#I LOVE THE GALLIFREY POLY PILE OKAY

[rennyrosie]

The Gallifrey High AU That No One Needed But Here It Is Anyway

SO JUST A DISCLAIMER I WAS HANGING OUT WITH @coordinatorromana AND THEY WERE WEARING A GALLIFREY ACADEMY SHIRT UNDER THEIR GALLIFREY ACADEMY JACKET AND THIS AU LITERALLY STARTED WITH ME SAYING THAT THEY LOOKED LIKE A VARSITY ATHLETE FOR GALLIFREY HIGH SO IT’S THEIR FAULT NOT MINE

The year is 2XXX. Korean society has evolved so far that our ID schematics have been condensed into chips taking the shape of normal contact lenses. These ID lenses are given to children and are changed according to their growth needs. When their eyes stop changing a permanent lens is fixed onto one of their eyes, thus making ID cards and numbers obsolete. However, a growing number of reports are surfacing of chips becoming scrambled or dislodged after injuries, accidents, and other incidents. What happened to Leela Sae’s eyes to make her unidentifiable? In this new technological age spurred by chaebol conglomerates, whose family will come out on top? Will Korea’s economy be torn asunder in the rumbling threat of an economic war?

I imagined 갈리프레이 고등학교, 갈고 for short (Gallifrey High School, “Galgo” or “Sharpening” for short) as a Special High School, a fancy private high school for students whose parents are affiliated with conglomerates, diplomats, politicians, all kinds of important people. So basically like an international school minus the white people and with only three years in high school: Korean high schools split the twelve grades 6-3-3 as opposed to 5-3-4 as is common in America. (Yes this does mean that I headcanon the entire cast as Korean in this AU). Usually in these private schools, students from lower income families with certain professions (lower level civil servants/bureaucrats, small business owners, etc.) have access to certain degrees of financial aid that depend on how well the student does in school. In some rare cases, a very low income and potentially first generation student can gain a full scholarship for exceptional talent.

This is how we first meet Leela (새리라, Leela Sae), a seventeen-year-old cast out into the world who uses a fake last name for Reasons. She’s always wanted to be free as a bird and bird in Korean is 새 so she chose it as a new last name. She gains admission to Gallifrey High by winning a taekwondo tournament hosted by the conglomerate owned by Romana’s family, the 나라 (Na-Ra, “Nation”) corporation. The tournament was meant to scout new muscle to work as guard staff for Na-Ra with the promise of job security and a scholarship to 갈고 for the youth division. Because Romana is the heir apparent of the corporation, she is of course present at the tournament and as the newly-elected student body president she welcomes Leela to the school. Leela transfers to Gallifrey High as a second year, the same year as Romana.

Romana (나루마, Ruma Na) is the sole child of the ruling Na family, making her heir apparent to the corporation from the age of fifteen. She excels in school, consistently ranking first in her class, but finds her true passions lie in leading the school to victory and prosperity in all aspects of student life. However, recent tensions between conglomerates and within her own family’s corporation have kicked off power struggles in the Korean market as well as in school. A separate faction led by Darkel, the heiress to Kim and Co., a competing conglomerate and the Na corporation’s closest rival and bitterest enemy.

Darkel (김다루, Daru Kim), another second year and the Student Body Vice President, has consistently scored just below Romana in rankings, but despite her sharp intellect her unpopularity and refusal to listen to her peers made her lose the opportunity to hold power over the entire school, an opportunity she thought should be rightfully hers. As such, she gathered all the students whose families worked with or for her and rallied them against Romana and the Na-Ra corporation. This started a kind of turf war in the high school as well as starting an economic meltdown of global proportions as Na-Ra and Kim and Co. slashed prices, salaries, everything to compete against each other, resulting in the near-total collapse of the Korean economy.

As the war rages on, Darkel seeks out Narvin, the Student Body Treasurer and lures him to her side of the fight, intending to bankrupt his family’s large pharmaceutical company later to monopolize more power over the school and the economy.

Narvin (빈나라, Nara Bin, play on words with “empty nation” and also yes matching to one of the conglomerates guess which) is the Treasurer and is very stingy with club budgets despite only being a second year, but that’s what he likes so much about that work: He could know and control the money flow of the entire school. Although he starts out working with Darkel, when he discovers Darkel’s plan, he crosses sides to join Romana, despite his reservations about her and the transfer student she always hung around. Now, he doesn’t care to admit it but he cares deeply about Romana and Leela in the aftermath of the Sul War. Narvin is a huge nerd who is on the math team and participates regularly in the physics Olympiad.

On the other hand, Brax (시보락, Borak Si) seeks to gain more power than his position as Secretary of the Student Body by aligning himself and his family’s company with Romana. As a third year, this year is his last chance to try for student body president and he is growing more desperate. Darkel considers him a prime threat as a key player in this war due to his parents’ microchip development and manufacturing company, Si Sees Ltd. This emphasis on technological advancement to tear the other side apart led to the coining of this economic war the Sul War, for “Kisul”, meaning “technology.”

Wynter (태위영, Wi-Young Tae) is an impressionable first year who looks up to Romana and considers her his 선배. His family is among the first to go bankrupt when the falling cost of iron makes his family’s ironworks company go under and he leaves the country to pay off his debt to loan sharks.

Andred (뢰안도, Ando Rae), a second year who took interest in Leela, the new transfer student, as he was also a recipient of financial aid as the son of a lower ranking bureaucrat. He found Leela’s blunt language and unconventional wisdom charming and they dated for a while until Leela saw that Andred was just like all the other spoiled asshole brats at this entitled school and left him. Soon afterward, Andred was expelled for beating another student into unconsciousness despite multiple suspensions and warnings from similar behavior.

Matthias (아마디, Madi A, first name means “words”), was a quiet second year student but his family seemed to be the only one really staying afloat as he kept to himself and was often ignored by the likes of Darkel and Romana. However, when he was noticed he was generally well liked and as the son of a high ranking politician he knew how the game worked even if he chose not to play. Until now. Sensing a weakness in both Romana and Darkel, Matthias seized an opportunity to make himself student body president with the support of weary and newly broke students and the promise of rebuilding Korea’s techno-economic infrastructure.

The Doctor (닥터, Doctor), is a truant. No one knows what year he’s in, only that he’s smart but he pops in and out as he pleases and the teachers can only sigh and shake their heads at him because heaven knows they’ve tried yelling, punishing, locking up, it didn’t seem to matter to him.

Valyes is taking his second year a second time because he failed out the year before. Despite knowing how the school works and how the political game is played he lacks the common sense and patience to use what he knows effectively. (Yes I realize I’m being way too nice but I’m trying to get something of a consistent tone here ;w; )

Other minor commanders and such are class reps in the student council.

I haven’t met Ace yet where I’m up to (haven’t started season 6 yet) but according to Alex’s description my version of Ace is a delinquent with constantly dyed hair who could use the nearest object to smash your head in but would rather shatter your kneecaps and let Leela finish you off.