Ulysses (9/?) [Ten/Jack/Rose - Firefly crossover - PG-13]
Title: Ulysses (9/?)
Author: aibhinn
Rating: PG-13
Characters: Rose, Jack, Ten (will end up OT3); the Firefly crew.
Spoilers: DW through Journey's End, TW through Children of Earth, and all aired Firefly canon, including episodes and the movie Serenity.
Betas: larielromeniel, dameruth, and canaana, though I did some editing after I got it back from them, so if I messed it up, it's not their fault!
Summary: After the death of the blue-suited Doctor, an immortal Rose uses the dimension cannon to teleport herself back into her home universe. Or should that be 'Verse? Crossover with Joss Whedon's Firefly.
Disclaimer: Nothing is mine. I promise to put everything back where I found it.
Author's Note: Wow. It's been months. I'm really sorry, folks, but hopefully my Muse is back from her holiday in Majorca and will allow me to continue. :) Thanks for all the "please continue" comments-they've kept me slogging along.
Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3 | Chapter 4 | Chapter 5 | Chapter 6 | Chapter 7 | Chapter 8 | Chapter 10
Chapter 9
Jack and Mal jogged along behind Jayne, who never so much as paused as he led them into the warren of buildings that made up the oldest part of the city. Good memory, Jack thought, impressed. After being attacked and having a comrade kidnapped, few people, even those with training, would be able to keep a clear enough head to backtrack so easily. No matter how much he might want others to think differently, Jayne wasn't stupid.
They slowed to a walk, and Jayne brought his weapon up closer to ready position. Mal and Jack followed suit. Cautiously, they approached the corner of a big blue building, its newish paint standing out among the red-brick buildings around it. Jayne plastered himself against the wall; so, perforce, did the others. "We was attacked just around the corner," Jayne whispered. "I dunno if the chou ma niao that got her are still around."
"Prob'ly not, but no sense takin' risks," Mal agreed.
Jayne glanced quickly around the corner, then looked at the others and jerked his head in a let's-go motion. Gun at the ready and every sense on alert, Jack followed the other two.
The space before them looked as though nothing untoward had taken place, unless you knew what you were looking for. There against a building were scraps of broken lumber and dented pots made of cheap metal-the remnants of the food booth Jayne had tipped over in his escape. The dirt road, hard-packed everywhere else in the city, had a loose layer on top, as though it had been kicked free in a scuffle. On the far side was a deep, dark patch that made Jack's heart pound. "Blood," he said, nodding towards it.
Mal swung to look, but Jayne said, "That ain't Zoë's. She never got her gun clear, but she took a knife from one o' them and gutted a guy with it 'fore they knocked her out."
"That's our Zoë," Mal said, but there was a tightness in his voice that Jack recognized. "Any idea where they took her?"
"I was too busy dodgin' bullets and tryin' to get away to come get you," Jayne said. He seemed embarrassed. "They was headin' that way, though." He indicated the alley nearest Jack.
Frowning, Jack glanced over to the dark, shadowed alley. It seemed quiet enough, like the rest of the area, but Jack had seen too many ambushes to take any chances. He moved into the shadow, letting his eyes adjust. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Mal and Jayne doing the same. Once he could see clearly in the shade, he stepped forward, keeping the wall at his back, and into the alley.
It was empty of anything except ordinary, scattered litter; there was nothing anyone could hide behind. No doorways, no windows. Jayne, tailmost, walked backwards to guard them from that direction, while Mal kept his eyes and his gun trained on the roofs of the buildings to either side of them. Jack allowed a small part of himself to register approval and minor surprise that they trusted him enough to let him take point while they guarded against attack from other quarters. Then again, Jack thought, they don't have a lot of choice if someone took Zoë.
Certain the way before them was clear, Jack stopped a couple steps into the alley to take a good look at the ground. His brows pinched together. There was a familiar pattern in the dirt: a clear spot with litter and loose dirt blown away in all directions equally, creating a circle. "Andrea said powered vehicles aren't allowed in the city," he said to Mal. "That right?"
"Ain't so much they ain't allowed as nobody much can afford 'em," Mal corrected. "This here's a mighty high-tax city, if they think you can pay, and folks as have powered vehicles can. So pretty much everyone drives a wagon, rich or not." He let his gaze slip from the rooftops to Jack. "Find something?"
Jack indicated the ground with a jerk of the head. "That's an exhaust pattern," he said. "Some kind of smallish jump-ship."
Mal narrowed his eyes and lowered his gun, stepping back a pace to see the ground more clearly. "You're right," he said. "So whoever got Zoë, it ain't no ordinary criminal. Which we already knew, since she'd've made tofu out of anyone ordinary."
"Someone who's got money," Jack said. "And who doesn't care if he gets taxed on it or not. Probably paid a good bit of that money to the ones who took her."
"Might be someone from off-world," Jayne suggested over his shoulder. "Folk takin' on cargoes can use powered vehicles if they ain't here more'n two weeks."
Mal dropped to one knee, looking at the exhaust pattern. Jack crouched beside him. "This is no cargo float," Mal said. "Mule leaves a trail. This thing went straight up in the air, not along the ground, and prob'ly took our mule with it."
"Not enough force to get into any sort of orbit," Jack added. "The exhaust pattern's too small. Strictly local-I'd say within a hundred-klick radius."
"Well, that narrows it down," Jayne muttered.
Mal was looking at Jack with respect. "It does, actually," he said. "Ain't many folks with the money for one o' them jump buggies around here, and them as has it wouldn't be in this part of town for love nor money. It'd take too much to guard 'em. No, it ain't a single person done this. It's gotta be a corporation."
"And not many of those, either," Jack said, remembering discussions he'd had with Jacob. "This is mostly an agricultural planet."
"No, you're right," Mal said grimly. "There's really only one within three days' spaceflight from here. The mines."
***
Rose unlocked the door to the TARDIS and stepped inside slowly. It looked a little different, she thought as she climbed up the ramp and stopped at the top, surveying the console room. A little more worn, a little more weary. Her heart broke at the loneliness that now seemed part of the timeship.
And then the familiar, golden voice echoed in her mind, trilling a welcome, and she smiled. "Hello, old girl," she murmured, touching a coral strut tenderly. "I missed you, too."
"What the-?" Simon's voice said behind her. Overlapping him, Kaylee exclaimed, "Oh, she's purty!"
Brought back to the present, Rose turned to grin at her friends. "This is the TARDIS," she said. "We go way back."
"It's-" Simon stared around, obviously searching for the right words.
"Beautiful?" Kaylee suggested.
"Fantastic," Rose said.
"Bigger on the inside!" Simon croaked finally. Rose had never seen his eyes so big.
Rose laughed. "Yeah," she said. "She is." The TARDIS grumbled in her mind-everyone said that. Be nice, Rose thought. Not everyone's used to you. Besides, I said it, too. "Close the door," she said aloud. "We're safe in here as long as we need to be. No-one will get in without a key."
Simon, who was nearest, pushed the door closed. "But it's just wood," he said.
"It looks like wood," Rose corrected. "She's much, much more." The TARDIS purred in her mind, pleased.
"Whose is she?" Kayle asked, petting a coral strut of her own. Neither of the two of them had ventured much past the door yet.
"She belongs to a friend of mine. A close friend, though I haven't seen him in ages. He won't mind us waiting in here till he gets back." The idea of him walking through that door, seeing him again after so long, set her heart pounding. Where is he? she asked the TARDIS silently. Will he be back soon?
The ship sent a feeling of great distance and sorrow, and a picture of a dark, close room-no, a cave….
The mines. Rose's heart sank. In her excitement at finally seeing the TARDIS again, she'd forgotten what River had told her.
"What is it?" Kaylee asked, stepping closer and cocking her head to one side. "Somethin' wrong?"
Rose forced a smile. "No, of course not. Except, of course, our being chased through the streets of Pallas by blokes who've been after me for months, getting ourselves thoroughly lost, and finally finding shelter in a ship we can't fly and whose owner isn't here."
Kaylee wrinkled her nose. "Ain't that the truth," she said wryly.
Rose had to keep herself from blowing out a relieved breath: she'd managed to distract her friend. "We'll wait around a bit, and if he doesn't come back to give us a lift, maybe you two can slip out and find your way back to Serenity."
"What about you?" Simon asked, also coming up to the top of the ramp finally. He rested a hand on the small of Kaylee's back. "You're just going to wait here? What if he doesn't come back?"
"He will," Rose said with more firmness than she actually felt.
"But what if he don't?" Kaylee asked.
Rose sighed. They were just concerned about her, she knew, but she couldn't bring herself to involve them in breaking the Doctor out of the mines. It would be a lot easier with the TARDIS, but "easier" didn't mean "easy." "If he doesn't come back in a couple of days, I'll go back to Serenity," she lied. "All right? I won't stay here alone."
Kaylee looked satisfied, but Simon gave her a sharp look, as if he wasn't sure he could believe her. Rose gave him her most convincing "no, really" smile, and after a moment, he relaxed. "All right," he said. "When do you think it'll be safe for us to head back to the ship?"
"Do you know how to get there from here?" Rose asked. They nodded, and she said, "Probably wait an hour or two for them to give up. If we're lucky, they didn't get a good look at you two, and you won't be hassled on your way back. But just in case, I think we can find you a disguise in the wardrobe."
A faint tendril of thought caught Rose's attention. The TARDIS could take all three of them back, the ship informed her.
Rose blinked. The ship had never actually volunteered information to her before, and certainly never in words. She tended to communicate in images and concepts instead. But I can't fly you, Rose thought.
No need, the timeship told her. Since Rose knew where the Firefly was, the TARDIS knew, too.
You can dothat? Rose asked silently, surprised. She'd never known the ship to travel without the Doctor, and she'd certainly never seen her take initiative like this. Then again, when they'd travelled together, if the Doctor had been taken captive, chances were Rose had, too.
"Rose?" Kaylee asked, concern in her voice again. "You okay?"
Rose realised she'd closed her eyes, and opened them again. "Sorry," she said. "The TARDIS was talking to me." In response to their confused expressions, she added, "The ship's telepathic. I bonded with her when I flew on her before, with the Doctor, so she can talk to me. She says she can take us back to Serenity herself, no need to worry about being caught."
"She can?" Kaylee's face lit up. "A ship as can really talk to you? That's amazing!" All fear forgotten, she raced up to the console and looked it over, admiring. "I dunno what any of this does," she said over her shoulder. "I ain't never been a pilot. But to be able to talk to the ship, and have her talk back to ya-!"
Rose chuckled and followed her up to the console, Simon in her wake. "The TARDIS is the most amazing ship I've ever known," she said honestly. "If she says she can do something, she can. But you might want to hold onto something; the ride can get a little bumpy sometimes."
Nonsense, the TARDIS thought. That was the Doctor's fault, always speeding hither and yon and not watching for turbulence in the Vortex. She could set herself down in the cargo hold of the Firefly without disturbing a hair on their heads.
But where's the fun in that? Rose thought wickedly.
There was something very like a sigh. Rose, the TARDIS thought, was very much like the Doctor sometimes.
Before Rose could respond, the Time Rotor started up with the familiar, rhythmic grating noise she'd missed so much. Kaylee and Simon exclaimed, Kaylee staring in awe at the mechanism above the console, but true to her word, the TARDIS kept her flight completely turbulence-free. In only seconds, the Rotor came to a stop, and the TARDIS informed her that they had arrived at their destination-but to be careful when she opened the door, because the humans who were already there had been somewhat surprised by their materialization.
"I just bet they are," Rose said under her breath, and reached out to grab Simon and Kaylee before they could run for the door. "Careful," she said. "Think about the reactions of the crew to something suddenly appearing in the hold."
Understanding lit their eyes. "I'll go first," Simon said. "In case they shoot first and ask questions later."
"You can't," Kaylee said, her chin coming forward mulishly. "If'n you get shot, who's gonna patch you up? You're the only doctor we got. I'll go first." She started off down the ramp.
Rose caught up and ducked around her, stopping her with hands on her shoulders. "No," she said firmly. "This ship is my friend's, and it was my idea we come here. I'll go first. Simon, feel free to patch me up; I trust you." She grinned at him, then turned and went straight for the door before they could argue. She saw Simon draw Kaylee up and away, out of range of stray bullets. Satisfied, though not looking forward to explaining why she came back from the dead if anyone shot her, Rose eased the door open a crack.
"We're armed," an unfamiliar woman's voice said flatly. "C'mon out with your hands in the air unless you want a gut full o' shot."
Rose glanced back at Kaylee and Simon, frowning. That didn't sound like any of the crew. Had the TARDIS taken them to the wrong ship?
"Don't worry," River's familiar voice said. "She's friendly. And the ship is, too."
Carefully, Rose opened the door and found herself facing an odd scene: River, a woman she didn't know, and a horse and cart in the middle of Serenity's cargo hold. The strange woman held a shotgun pointed unerringly at Rose's heart. Rose's eyes flickered towards her friend. "River?"
"It's okay, Andrea," River said, putting her hand on top of the shotgun and gently pushing its muzzle down. "She's family."
Blowing out a relieved breath, Rose stepped out onto the grating, followed by Simon and Kaylee. Kaylee brightened when she saw the strange woman. "Andrea!" she said, and hugged her. "I hoped you'd come this year! Where's Jacob?"
"Laid up with pneumonia," Andrea said ruefully. "I came with our hired man this year." She turned the shotgun barrel-up, resting the stock on the decking, and gave the TARDIS an appraising look. "That's some ship," she said to Rose. "How'd you do that?"
One corner of Rose's mouth quirked up. "I've no idea how she does it," she said. "I'm just a passenger." She looked around. "Where's the captain?"
"Out with Jayne and Jones," Andrea said soberly. "Zoë was kidnapped, but Jayne got away and came back to tell us. The menfolk went off to track 'em and see if they could get her back. It's been over an hour now, and no word."
"Zoë was kidnapped?" Rose repeated, shocked. "Who could take her?"
"Good question," Andrea said soberly. "They didn't know, either, but it's not likely to be good news." She cocked her head to one side. "You wouldn't be Rose, by any chance, would you?"
One of Rose's eyebrows went up. "Yes, I am," she said, trying not to sound wary. "Why?"
"So you are here." The comment was soft, but unmistakeable, and for a moment, Rose felt a thrill of atavistic fear shoot through her. Was this woman part of the search for her? But then Andrea grinned. "Jones'll be over the moon when he sees you," she said.
"Jones?" Rose glanced at River, remembering the girl's comments about Smith and Jones.
Andrea made an annoyed tch noise, apparently at herself. "No, not Jones," she said. "His real name. I went and forgot what it was. Jack something?"
The outer door opened suddenly. Sunshine streamed in, and Andrea swivelled to cover the door. Her shotgun didn't waver. "Who's there?" she called.
"It's us, Andie." Mal appeared out of the glare, flanked by Jayne and another, very familiar man.
Rose's heart jumped into her throat. She couldn't move, she couldn't talk-all she could do was stare at the man who'd died for her, and whom she'd brought back to life.
Jack glanced over towards the TARDIS casually, then his eyes flicked sharply back to it. "That's the-" he began, then his gaze moved straight to Rose, as though drawn there. "Rose?" he whispered.
His voice loosened her muscles, and she ran for him, all but leaping into his arms. He let the gun he held drop to the grating as he caught her, pulling her to him and swinging her around. "Rose," he murmured into her ear. "Rose, Rose, Rose."
Rose couldn't speak. All she could do was cling to him. The fear she'd been carrying in her heart for so long unknotted and bled away. She wasn't alone any more. For the first time in months, she had hope.
"Well," Mal's voice said, "I guess she does know you, at that."
Author: aibhinn
Rating: PG-13
Characters: Rose, Jack, Ten (will end up OT3); the Firefly crew.
Spoilers: DW through Journey's End, TW through Children of Earth, and all aired Firefly canon, including episodes and the movie Serenity.
Betas: larielromeniel, dameruth, and canaana, though I did some editing after I got it back from them, so if I messed it up, it's not their fault!
Summary: After the death of the blue-suited Doctor, an immortal Rose uses the dimension cannon to teleport herself back into her home universe. Or should that be 'Verse? Crossover with Joss Whedon's Firefly.
Disclaimer: Nothing is mine. I promise to put everything back where I found it.
Author's Note: Wow. It's been months. I'm really sorry, folks, but hopefully my Muse is back from her holiday in Majorca and will allow me to continue. :) Thanks for all the "please continue" comments-they've kept me slogging along.
Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3 | Chapter 4 | Chapter 5 | Chapter 6 | Chapter 7 | Chapter 8 | Chapter 10
Chapter 9
Jack and Mal jogged along behind Jayne, who never so much as paused as he led them into the warren of buildings that made up the oldest part of the city. Good memory, Jack thought, impressed. After being attacked and having a comrade kidnapped, few people, even those with training, would be able to keep a clear enough head to backtrack so easily. No matter how much he might want others to think differently, Jayne wasn't stupid.
They slowed to a walk, and Jayne brought his weapon up closer to ready position. Mal and Jack followed suit. Cautiously, they approached the corner of a big blue building, its newish paint standing out among the red-brick buildings around it. Jayne plastered himself against the wall; so, perforce, did the others. "We was attacked just around the corner," Jayne whispered. "I dunno if the chou ma niao that got her are still around."
"Prob'ly not, but no sense takin' risks," Mal agreed.
Jayne glanced quickly around the corner, then looked at the others and jerked his head in a let's-go motion. Gun at the ready and every sense on alert, Jack followed the other two.
The space before them looked as though nothing untoward had taken place, unless you knew what you were looking for. There against a building were scraps of broken lumber and dented pots made of cheap metal-the remnants of the food booth Jayne had tipped over in his escape. The dirt road, hard-packed everywhere else in the city, had a loose layer on top, as though it had been kicked free in a scuffle. On the far side was a deep, dark patch that made Jack's heart pound. "Blood," he said, nodding towards it.
Mal swung to look, but Jayne said, "That ain't Zoë's. She never got her gun clear, but she took a knife from one o' them and gutted a guy with it 'fore they knocked her out."
"That's our Zoë," Mal said, but there was a tightness in his voice that Jack recognized. "Any idea where they took her?"
"I was too busy dodgin' bullets and tryin' to get away to come get you," Jayne said. He seemed embarrassed. "They was headin' that way, though." He indicated the alley nearest Jack.
Frowning, Jack glanced over to the dark, shadowed alley. It seemed quiet enough, like the rest of the area, but Jack had seen too many ambushes to take any chances. He moved into the shadow, letting his eyes adjust. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Mal and Jayne doing the same. Once he could see clearly in the shade, he stepped forward, keeping the wall at his back, and into the alley.
It was empty of anything except ordinary, scattered litter; there was nothing anyone could hide behind. No doorways, no windows. Jayne, tailmost, walked backwards to guard them from that direction, while Mal kept his eyes and his gun trained on the roofs of the buildings to either side of them. Jack allowed a small part of himself to register approval and minor surprise that they trusted him enough to let him take point while they guarded against attack from other quarters. Then again, Jack thought, they don't have a lot of choice if someone took Zoë.
Certain the way before them was clear, Jack stopped a couple steps into the alley to take a good look at the ground. His brows pinched together. There was a familiar pattern in the dirt: a clear spot with litter and loose dirt blown away in all directions equally, creating a circle. "Andrea said powered vehicles aren't allowed in the city," he said to Mal. "That right?"
"Ain't so much they ain't allowed as nobody much can afford 'em," Mal corrected. "This here's a mighty high-tax city, if they think you can pay, and folks as have powered vehicles can. So pretty much everyone drives a wagon, rich or not." He let his gaze slip from the rooftops to Jack. "Find something?"
Jack indicated the ground with a jerk of the head. "That's an exhaust pattern," he said. "Some kind of smallish jump-ship."
Mal narrowed his eyes and lowered his gun, stepping back a pace to see the ground more clearly. "You're right," he said. "So whoever got Zoë, it ain't no ordinary criminal. Which we already knew, since she'd've made tofu out of anyone ordinary."
"Someone who's got money," Jack said. "And who doesn't care if he gets taxed on it or not. Probably paid a good bit of that money to the ones who took her."
"Might be someone from off-world," Jayne suggested over his shoulder. "Folk takin' on cargoes can use powered vehicles if they ain't here more'n two weeks."
Mal dropped to one knee, looking at the exhaust pattern. Jack crouched beside him. "This is no cargo float," Mal said. "Mule leaves a trail. This thing went straight up in the air, not along the ground, and prob'ly took our mule with it."
"Not enough force to get into any sort of orbit," Jack added. "The exhaust pattern's too small. Strictly local-I'd say within a hundred-klick radius."
"Well, that narrows it down," Jayne muttered.
Mal was looking at Jack with respect. "It does, actually," he said. "Ain't many folks with the money for one o' them jump buggies around here, and them as has it wouldn't be in this part of town for love nor money. It'd take too much to guard 'em. No, it ain't a single person done this. It's gotta be a corporation."
"And not many of those, either," Jack said, remembering discussions he'd had with Jacob. "This is mostly an agricultural planet."
"No, you're right," Mal said grimly. "There's really only one within three days' spaceflight from here. The mines."
***
Rose unlocked the door to the TARDIS and stepped inside slowly. It looked a little different, she thought as she climbed up the ramp and stopped at the top, surveying the console room. A little more worn, a little more weary. Her heart broke at the loneliness that now seemed part of the timeship.
And then the familiar, golden voice echoed in her mind, trilling a welcome, and she smiled. "Hello, old girl," she murmured, touching a coral strut tenderly. "I missed you, too."
"What the-?" Simon's voice said behind her. Overlapping him, Kaylee exclaimed, "Oh, she's purty!"
Brought back to the present, Rose turned to grin at her friends. "This is the TARDIS," she said. "We go way back."
"It's-" Simon stared around, obviously searching for the right words.
"Beautiful?" Kaylee suggested.
"Fantastic," Rose said.
"Bigger on the inside!" Simon croaked finally. Rose had never seen his eyes so big.
Rose laughed. "Yeah," she said. "She is." The TARDIS grumbled in her mind-everyone said that. Be nice, Rose thought. Not everyone's used to you. Besides, I said it, too. "Close the door," she said aloud. "We're safe in here as long as we need to be. No-one will get in without a key."
Simon, who was nearest, pushed the door closed. "But it's just wood," he said.
"It looks like wood," Rose corrected. "She's much, much more." The TARDIS purred in her mind, pleased.
"Whose is she?" Kayle asked, petting a coral strut of her own. Neither of the two of them had ventured much past the door yet.
"She belongs to a friend of mine. A close friend, though I haven't seen him in ages. He won't mind us waiting in here till he gets back." The idea of him walking through that door, seeing him again after so long, set her heart pounding. Where is he? she asked the TARDIS silently. Will he be back soon?
The ship sent a feeling of great distance and sorrow, and a picture of a dark, close room-no, a cave….
The mines. Rose's heart sank. In her excitement at finally seeing the TARDIS again, she'd forgotten what River had told her.
"What is it?" Kaylee asked, stepping closer and cocking her head to one side. "Somethin' wrong?"
Rose forced a smile. "No, of course not. Except, of course, our being chased through the streets of Pallas by blokes who've been after me for months, getting ourselves thoroughly lost, and finally finding shelter in a ship we can't fly and whose owner isn't here."
Kaylee wrinkled her nose. "Ain't that the truth," she said wryly.
Rose had to keep herself from blowing out a relieved breath: she'd managed to distract her friend. "We'll wait around a bit, and if he doesn't come back to give us a lift, maybe you two can slip out and find your way back to Serenity."
"What about you?" Simon asked, also coming up to the top of the ramp finally. He rested a hand on the small of Kaylee's back. "You're just going to wait here? What if he doesn't come back?"
"He will," Rose said with more firmness than she actually felt.
"But what if he don't?" Kaylee asked.
Rose sighed. They were just concerned about her, she knew, but she couldn't bring herself to involve them in breaking the Doctor out of the mines. It would be a lot easier with the TARDIS, but "easier" didn't mean "easy." "If he doesn't come back in a couple of days, I'll go back to Serenity," she lied. "All right? I won't stay here alone."
Kaylee looked satisfied, but Simon gave her a sharp look, as if he wasn't sure he could believe her. Rose gave him her most convincing "no, really" smile, and after a moment, he relaxed. "All right," he said. "When do you think it'll be safe for us to head back to the ship?"
"Do you know how to get there from here?" Rose asked. They nodded, and she said, "Probably wait an hour or two for them to give up. If we're lucky, they didn't get a good look at you two, and you won't be hassled on your way back. But just in case, I think we can find you a disguise in the wardrobe."
A faint tendril of thought caught Rose's attention. The TARDIS could take all three of them back, the ship informed her.
Rose blinked. The ship had never actually volunteered information to her before, and certainly never in words. She tended to communicate in images and concepts instead. But I can't fly you, Rose thought.
No need, the timeship told her. Since Rose knew where the Firefly was, the TARDIS knew, too.
You can dothat? Rose asked silently, surprised. She'd never known the ship to travel without the Doctor, and she'd certainly never seen her take initiative like this. Then again, when they'd travelled together, if the Doctor had been taken captive, chances were Rose had, too.
"Rose?" Kaylee asked, concern in her voice again. "You okay?"
Rose realised she'd closed her eyes, and opened them again. "Sorry," she said. "The TARDIS was talking to me." In response to their confused expressions, she added, "The ship's telepathic. I bonded with her when I flew on her before, with the Doctor, so she can talk to me. She says she can take us back to Serenity herself, no need to worry about being caught."
"She can?" Kaylee's face lit up. "A ship as can really talk to you? That's amazing!" All fear forgotten, she raced up to the console and looked it over, admiring. "I dunno what any of this does," she said over her shoulder. "I ain't never been a pilot. But to be able to talk to the ship, and have her talk back to ya-!"
Rose chuckled and followed her up to the console, Simon in her wake. "The TARDIS is the most amazing ship I've ever known," she said honestly. "If she says she can do something, she can. But you might want to hold onto something; the ride can get a little bumpy sometimes."
Nonsense, the TARDIS thought. That was the Doctor's fault, always speeding hither and yon and not watching for turbulence in the Vortex. She could set herself down in the cargo hold of the Firefly without disturbing a hair on their heads.
But where's the fun in that? Rose thought wickedly.
There was something very like a sigh. Rose, the TARDIS thought, was very much like the Doctor sometimes.
Before Rose could respond, the Time Rotor started up with the familiar, rhythmic grating noise she'd missed so much. Kaylee and Simon exclaimed, Kaylee staring in awe at the mechanism above the console, but true to her word, the TARDIS kept her flight completely turbulence-free. In only seconds, the Rotor came to a stop, and the TARDIS informed her that they had arrived at their destination-but to be careful when she opened the door, because the humans who were already there had been somewhat surprised by their materialization.
"I just bet they are," Rose said under her breath, and reached out to grab Simon and Kaylee before they could run for the door. "Careful," she said. "Think about the reactions of the crew to something suddenly appearing in the hold."
Understanding lit their eyes. "I'll go first," Simon said. "In case they shoot first and ask questions later."
"You can't," Kaylee said, her chin coming forward mulishly. "If'n you get shot, who's gonna patch you up? You're the only doctor we got. I'll go first." She started off down the ramp.
Rose caught up and ducked around her, stopping her with hands on her shoulders. "No," she said firmly. "This ship is my friend's, and it was my idea we come here. I'll go first. Simon, feel free to patch me up; I trust you." She grinned at him, then turned and went straight for the door before they could argue. She saw Simon draw Kaylee up and away, out of range of stray bullets. Satisfied, though not looking forward to explaining why she came back from the dead if anyone shot her, Rose eased the door open a crack.
"We're armed," an unfamiliar woman's voice said flatly. "C'mon out with your hands in the air unless you want a gut full o' shot."
Rose glanced back at Kaylee and Simon, frowning. That didn't sound like any of the crew. Had the TARDIS taken them to the wrong ship?
"Don't worry," River's familiar voice said. "She's friendly. And the ship is, too."
Carefully, Rose opened the door and found herself facing an odd scene: River, a woman she didn't know, and a horse and cart in the middle of Serenity's cargo hold. The strange woman held a shotgun pointed unerringly at Rose's heart. Rose's eyes flickered towards her friend. "River?"
"It's okay, Andrea," River said, putting her hand on top of the shotgun and gently pushing its muzzle down. "She's family."
Blowing out a relieved breath, Rose stepped out onto the grating, followed by Simon and Kaylee. Kaylee brightened when she saw the strange woman. "Andrea!" she said, and hugged her. "I hoped you'd come this year! Where's Jacob?"
"Laid up with pneumonia," Andrea said ruefully. "I came with our hired man this year." She turned the shotgun barrel-up, resting the stock on the decking, and gave the TARDIS an appraising look. "That's some ship," she said to Rose. "How'd you do that?"
One corner of Rose's mouth quirked up. "I've no idea how she does it," she said. "I'm just a passenger." She looked around. "Where's the captain?"
"Out with Jayne and Jones," Andrea said soberly. "Zoë was kidnapped, but Jayne got away and came back to tell us. The menfolk went off to track 'em and see if they could get her back. It's been over an hour now, and no word."
"Zoë was kidnapped?" Rose repeated, shocked. "Who could take her?"
"Good question," Andrea said soberly. "They didn't know, either, but it's not likely to be good news." She cocked her head to one side. "You wouldn't be Rose, by any chance, would you?"
One of Rose's eyebrows went up. "Yes, I am," she said, trying not to sound wary. "Why?"
"So you are here." The comment was soft, but unmistakeable, and for a moment, Rose felt a thrill of atavistic fear shoot through her. Was this woman part of the search for her? But then Andrea grinned. "Jones'll be over the moon when he sees you," she said.
"Jones?" Rose glanced at River, remembering the girl's comments about Smith and Jones.
Andrea made an annoyed tch noise, apparently at herself. "No, not Jones," she said. "His real name. I went and forgot what it was. Jack something?"
The outer door opened suddenly. Sunshine streamed in, and Andrea swivelled to cover the door. Her shotgun didn't waver. "Who's there?" she called.
"It's us, Andie." Mal appeared out of the glare, flanked by Jayne and another, very familiar man.
Rose's heart jumped into her throat. She couldn't move, she couldn't talk-all she could do was stare at the man who'd died for her, and whom she'd brought back to life.
Jack glanced over towards the TARDIS casually, then his eyes flicked sharply back to it. "That's the-" he began, then his gaze moved straight to Rose, as though drawn there. "Rose?" he whispered.
His voice loosened her muscles, and she ran for him, all but leaping into his arms. He let the gun he held drop to the grating as he caught her, pulling her to him and swinging her around. "Rose," he murmured into her ear. "Rose, Rose, Rose."
Rose couldn't speak. All she could do was cling to him. The fear she'd been carrying in her heart for so long unknotted and bled away. She wasn't alone any more. For the first time in months, she had hope.
"Well," Mal's voice said, "I guess she does know you, at that."