FIC: Ordinary (DW, 10/Rose, Jack, AU)
Title - Ordinary
Author - Kazzy
Rating - PG-13/T
Spoilers - Parting of the Ways; possibly Children in Need and The Christmas Invasion, but not overtly.
Category - Drama, Romance, AU
Summary - The Tylers are pretty normal. However, nothing is as it seems. Why does the Doctor remember the names of people he’s never met? Why does Rose keep forgetting her mother is dead? And just how does their mechanic come into it?
Disclaimer - If I was RTD… but I’m not, and I can’t claim to own any of these characters. I do love them though. So, I’m borrowing them. I’ll return them (largely) intact soon enough. And no money will change hands at any point. Oh and I can’t claim to own Calvin and Hobbes either.
A/N: Beta-d by the lovely Paranoid Seat.
When my other betas get back to me, I’ll put in their changes and suggestions as well. Links to the profiles of all my betas (they all have fic) can be found here: my profile. Check them out, as they all have something to offer.
This chapter is dedicated to Wendymr, because she is a very kind and wonderful person!
Ordinary Chapter One
Ordinary Chapter Two
Chapter Three
-x-x-x-
The next morning, they both called in citing a ‘family emergency’ as the reason neither would be at work. For breakfast, they both sat at the table, Rose with her marmalade on toast and the Doctor with his cornflakes. The routine was comfortable and normal, something that Rose thought they probably both needed.
The notebook, however, still sat in the middle of the table, reminding them that they had work to do, and many things to discuss. For the first few moments, neither of them spoke, but Rose knew they needed to get this over with. It was essential that they do something about what was happening, and there was no time like the present.
“Do you have any more names?” she asked finally, after some deliberation about how to approach the subject, and deciding that directly was best.
The Doctor looked up from spooning the last of his sugary milk from his bowl, his eyes wide and serious. “Hmmm? Oh. Yes. Two people and a place, as a matter of fact. Charley Pollard, who apparently didn’t die when she was meant to; and Romana, who was a Time Lady. The place is Earth.”
“That actually sounds familiar,” Rose told him. “Earth. Earth.” She repeated the word over a couple of times to listen to its sound.
“It should,” replied the Doctor. “It’s your home world.”
There was a pause while Rose collected her wits. “What?” she asked, completely nonplussed. Her home world? But she’d always lived here. On this world, and there was no travelling to other worlds at all. They couldn’t even get a ship to the other planets in the solar system.
Across from her, the Doctor looked back serenely for a few seconds, until he seemed to realise what he had said. He shook his head, concern written all over his face.
“I did it again?” he asked. “Didn’t I?”
Rose nodded, not sure what to say. Was there a good answer to a question like that? “The name does feel familiar to me,” she pointed out eventually. “But I don’t know why. This is my home, Doctor, always has been. I think I’d know if I came from a different planet.”
“Well, yes, I have to admit that’s true. However, I’m beginning to think this is about something greater, something more than our physical surroundings.”
Rose puzzled through that statement. Physical surroundings. But she was unsure what he was trying to say. Well, when in doubt, ask. “What do you mean?”
“I’m beginning to think that this is about something that is happening on my, or rather our - since it does seem to affect you as well - subconscious level.”
“You mean like crazy?” she asked, and when he didn’t immediately follow up with a denial, she continued. “Doctor, I thought we’d already discussed this wasn’t about you being crazy - or me for that matter. I’m not crazy.”
“Crazy is something completely out of the norm. What is happening now is just that: completely out of the norm. I’m remembering names and characteristics of people I’ve never met and places I’ve never been - things that I have no basis for knowing anything about. Yesterday, you tried to call your mother, who has been dead for years.” She jumped at this as the memory flooded back through her, and she discovered she’d forgotten again. The Doctor reached out and curled a hand around hers in comfort. “And then there’s Jack Harkness, who as far as we’re concerned, didn’t even exist until four days ago, yet - and correct me if I’m wrong - both of us felt a certain affinity with him, as if he was familiar.”
“You’re not wrong.” She had felt as if she’d known Jack for a while, like he was an old, or dear friend. And then there was the situation with her mother. It’d been years, more than enough time to come to terms with the death.
“See, crazy.” Sometimes the Doctor liked to think that the truth of his words spoke for themselves.
Maybe that was because his students seemed to accept them easily enough. However, Rose wasn’t one of his students and she doubted he’d have married her if she had been. The Doctor seemed to like that she challenged him on his beliefs regularly. She wasn’t going to accept what he said just because he said it, and he was older than her and so much more educated. Rose needed the proof, and she’d keep needling until she got what she was looking for.
“But Doctor, crazy? I mean if we were crazy we’d probably be the last to know, I admit, but I don’t feel any different than I did yesterday or Tuesday or last month. It’s everything else that’s becoming weird.”
“Yes, and that’s my point. Everything else appears to be crazy not us. It’s the situation, not me and not you.” He seemed perfectly happy with this explanation.
“So, we’re sane and the rest of the world is crazy,” she said, not quite disbelieving - more sceptical.
“Exactly.”
Rose sat back in her seat. Well, that was a better a point of view from where she was sitting, but it still seemed unlikely. She pointed this out to the Doctor.
He just shrugged. “Doesn’t mean to say that it’s not true. Unlikely isn’t impossible, Rose. However, we do need more information, to do some research as it were. Once I’ve finished adding in today's and yesterday’s entries, I want you to go through this -” he tapped the notebook, “- and tell me if any of it is familiar to you.”
While he was updating himself, Rose tidied away their breakfast. As she stacked the dishwasher, she watched him copying down information from the day before that he’d had to write on a piece of paper, because he’d accidentally left it at home. She felt slightly guilty at the thought, but it was washed away by amusement when she realised that he was also copying in all of his crossing-outs.
Once the box of cornflakes and jar of marmalade were back in the cupboard, and the table wiped clean, Rose sat down beside the Doctor and watched him copy in Romana. Compared to the rest of the entries she’d seen there wasn’t very much, so she asked him about it and he told her that he usually garnered more information through the day.
The last phrase he wrote in made her sit forward. She hadn’t noticed before when he said it to her, but now it rang a bell in the back of her mind. “Time Lady? Isn’t there something in your book about them?” she asked. The entries at the back of the book hadn’t really caught her attention the way the ones at the front had, but now that she thought about it, she could remember something.
The Doctor flipped to the back of the book, where one of the entries was labelled ‘Time Lords’. “Here we are.” Quickly, he tagged on the entry ‘Romana (ref.) - a Time Lady (?)’ to the bottom. Then scanned back through it. “I don’t seem to have liked these ‘Time Lords’ much. ‘A stuck up bunch of ivory tower academics.’” She could see his frown, and brushed her hand down his cheek. Something was bothering him, something more than the current situation.
“What is it?” she asked.
“I don’t know. I feel sad when I look at this. Sad and angry, and I don’t know why. Alone.”
For a second, she was at a loss to say anything. There was something dark and painful in his eyes, similar to when he spoke of his family and their deaths. Gently she reached forward and placed a hand on his arm. “You are never alone, Doctor. You have me, and always will.”
He covered her hand with his own. “Thank you, Rose. I am glad I have you. Of course, you have me too, for better or for worse.” The moment stretched and became fluid. Finally the Doctor shifted and sighed. He pushed the notebook towards her. “Look through it carefully, and see if you can give any insights on any of this. Any at all.”
Rose did as he asked, but nothing stood out to her. The blurb on Jack Harkness seemed to fit in with what little she knew of him, but little else. 'TARDIS' made her sit up, but she didn’t know why. Occasionally, what appeared to be names of either places or people tickled the back of her mind, but nothing distinct. The word 'regeneration' evoked a sense of displeasure, which she conveyed to the Doctor, but he just shrugged and brushed it off, apparently not as affected. The back section had a little more effect, when she felt as if she recognised some of the places or people. 'Slitheen' and 'Game Station' in particular made her lip curl, but she couldn’t add to the Doctor’s information, and some of it seemed foreign to her as well. Skin suit. The last of the Daleks. No shattering revelations.
“I’m sorry,” she told him once she was done. “Nothing.”
“No matter,” he said although she got the feeling that it did in fact matter. “Perhaps Mr. Harkness can help us here. I’ll write the names down, and we’ll give him the list, minus the extra information - and his own name - to see what he says.”
Which was how, half an hour later, they found themselves on the way to see their new mechanic. Rose was feeling apprehensive, which she supposed was understandable. The Doctor seemed calm and unflappable, whistling quietly as he drove them over.
Once they were out of the car, he escorted Rose inside the building with a hand firmly at the small of her back. The gesture was purely possessive, and Rose had to suppress a smile. Yes, it could be annoying when he started getting jumpy about the presence of other men in her life, but it also gave her immense satisfaction. She liked that he had this little insecurity about her, because until all of this happened, he seemed to have very few insecurities. Nice to know he wasn’t completely immortal.
An assistant led them out to where Harkness was working, and Rose’s first impression was that of a pair of smudged jeans sticking out from under a car. For a second, the sight was so familiar that Rose actually stepped back, and wondered why there was only one pair of legs. The Doctor caught her firmly, and threw her a concerned glance, but she shook her head not knowing how to explain the sense of nostalgia and loss that swept through her.
Harkness slid out from under the car and his welcoming smile grew into one of invitation. Rose was surprised when her first reaction was to step closer to her husband. She suppressed it, and smiled back at the tall man in front of them, trying to not admire his good looks too closely. If she did the Doctor would notice and there’d be trouble.
“Hey, there,” Jack Harkness greeted them with his broad drawl. “Something wrong with the car?” His tone suggested that there wasn’t, and that in actual fact this was his lucky day.
“Actually, we’re here on unrelated business,” the Doctor said smoothly, although Rose noticed he had increased the pressure on her back.
Harkness’ grin hinted that he knew what that business was and that he was going to enjoy said business. Rose was becoming increasingly more disturbed. There wasn’t anything about him that was unfamiliar. She could have had similar conversations with him all of her life.
“Really,” asked the mechanic, looking completely unperturbed. “Well, let's find somewhere more… comfortable to discuss it then.” He indicated a door to one side, and that they should proceed through it, but the Doctor held back. Tilting his head at Harkness, he flicked his chin. Harkness held the Doctor’s gaze for long moments. Rose stayed very still. This was different from her husband’s usual ‘back off, she’s mine’ look. She wasn’t quite sure what it meant, but it felt dangerous.
Then Harkness smiled, warm and friendly, as if nothing had happened, and led the way through the door to a comfortable looking office. He made sure they were seated comfortably on a couch, before exiting through a second door that seemed to lead to a small bathroom, and the sound of running water reached Rose’s ears.
“What’s going on?” she murmured into the Doctor’s ear.
“I don’t know,” he admitted quietly. “Are you all right? You seemed tense earlier.”
She shook her head. “It was nothing. Just seems familiar, is all.” Everything about Jack Harkness was familiar up to the way he interacted with the Doctor and herself, and even including the folded blanket and pillow sitting unobtrusively in the corner.
“Yeah,” he agreed.
“Are you all right?” she asked. “You can relax, you know. I’m yours - always will be.” Sometimes he responded best to direct statements.
The Doctor turned sharply towards her and she lifted her eyebrows, letting him know she’d caught him in the act. He nodded to himself and then leaned forward and kissed her lightly on the lips. Rose smiled and touched his face with a fingertip, running it along his cheek. He kissed her again.
“As sweet as the two of you are - making out on my couch and all - you did say you had business to discuss.” Harkness’ voice interrupted them, and Rose and the Doctor jumped apart a little, but Rose felt the Doctor’s hand creeping into her own, and she curled her fingers around his. Harkness definitely noticed the gesture, but what he thought of it, Rose couldn’t tell.
Out of the Doctor’s pocket came the list of names, which he passed over to Harkness, who took them readily. “Do you recognise any of these names, Mr. Harkness?”
“It’s Jack,” Harkness said, as he began to look down the list. Rose thought she saw shock and horror reflected in his eyes for a moment, but she couldn’t be sure.
“Jack,” the Doctor said. “Any of the names ring a bell? There’s a few places towards the bottom as well.”
“Game Station,” was Harkness’ - Jack’s - immediate answer. There was some surprise in his tone, and concern. His lip curled, much like Rose remembered her own doing at the name. The place seemed distasteful, provoking a response similar to the word Auschwitz. If she knew what Auschwitz was.
“Interesting. Rose, here said the same, even had a similar reaction. Which considering the two of you hadn’t met until Wednesday is a little unusual, don’t you think?” the Doctor said, and Rose could tell he was fishing for information, trying to offer some of his own as encouragement.
Jack wasn’t biting. Either he didn’t know, or he didn’t care. Rose watched him carefully, as his gaze swung between herself and the Doctor.
“Really?” the mechanic said as he passed the piece of paper back. The Doctor waved his hand indicating that Jack should hold on to it. “Well, 'TARDIS' may mean something but I couldn’t tell you what.”
Rose felt her heart sink. She hadn’t really believed that this man would be able to help them, but she had hoped that he might have something to give them. A glance at the Doctor showed no reaction whatsoever.
“What if I told you that your name was on that list, between the Rani and Victoria Waterfield?” the Doctor asked carefully.
Jack stiffened, and his eyes flicked downwards. “Is that supposed to be a threat?” he asked, and Rose once again felt a sense of danger. Jack Harkness would not be a good man to make angry. Her husband could be terrifying - though never towards her - and she suspected that a display of temper between the two would not end well. Idly, she wondered which would come off better, and then frowned at herself for being disloyal - the Doctor would, of course.
But, right at that moment, the Doctor was doing his best to diffuse the situation. ”Of course not,” he scoffed. “If I were threatening you, Mr. Harkness, you wouldn’t need to ask. And I’d be doing a much better job of it - I assure you. All I want to know is if anything on this list means anything to you.”
“Then no, it doesn’t.”
“You’re lying.” The words were cool and even, confident.
Rose fought the urge to groan and drop her face into her hands. “Doctor…” His fingers around hers tightened a little, but otherwise he didn’t acknowledge her in anyway. The message was for her to keep quiet, but she wasn’t going to, not for much longer.
“What do you want me to say?” Jack asked, eyes narrowed.
“Start with the truth, would be good.”
“The truth about what?” Rose could hear the exasperation in Jack’s tone, as if he didn’t quite know what was being asked of him.
“What you know,” the Doctor said calmly.
“I don’t know anything,” the other man replied through gritted teeth.
“Then why was your name on the list?” snapped the Doctor and Rose could see his patience rapidly running out.
“I don’t know. Why don’t you tell me - you wrote the damned thing!” growled Jack, and Rose knew from some sort of forgotten experience that he was only moments away from losing his temper.
“Wait,” Rose interrupted before anything got worse. “Jack, if we said your name appeared as 'Captain Jack Harkness', would that mean anything to you?”
He looked at her sharply. “No,” he said confusion creeping into his tone. Beside her the Doctor let a soft sigh, and she could feel him trying to lose some of the tension. “A pilot, though. Different type of vehicle.”
“You were a pilot?” Rose asked, more out of curiosity than anything else.
“Yeah,” and Jack threw her a speculative glance. He seemed to be wondering if that was something she might look for in a potential partner. “For the Air Force.” Now the Doctor stiffened again at Jack’s interest in her, which she could tell was as much to piss the Doctor off, as it was genuine.
“So who are these people that you’ve come here accusing me of knowing?” A sharp edge still cut along Jack’s words, but some of his animosity seemed to have drained. Rose wondered if it were because he’d managed to get one over the Doctor by attracting her attention. She hoped not, she really hoped not, because she refused to be fought over by these two.
A slight pause met his answer as the Doctor seemed to be considering how best to answer him. Rose gave him a gentle squeeze through their joined hands to remind him of her earlier words. She watched him carefully as he came to a decision.
“We don’t know,” the Doctor admitted at long last. “None of them seem to fit with anyone as far as I can tell. Some of the names belong to real people, but there’s no reason to believe that they fit their profile.”
As Rose was still watching him closely, she could see him flinch slightly at his words, though she doubted Jack would notice. They’d argued before leaving home whether they should, or should not show Jack the blurbs. Rose had thought so, while the Doctor had vetoed the idea, saying the names should be enough. He’d won in the end, and the notebook still sat on their kitchen table.
“Profile?” Jack asked now. He would have had to have been fairly dim not to pick up on the reference to more information, and Rose was getting the impression that Jack was far away from being unintelligent. She’d never thought him stupid, but she suspected there was a lot more to him than met the eye. The mention of the Air Force had only been one tiny piece.
“You don’t need to know right now,” was the Doctor’s icy answer. Rose groaned inwardly, but didn’t get a chance to say anything.
In response to the frosty tone, Jack’s face went blank. “Well, then, I’m sorry, but I can’t help you. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have work to do.” His tone was smooth and professional.
The three of them stood, and the Doctor looked Jack up and down. “I wish you’d help. It’d be in your own best interests.”
“I seriously doubt that, Doctor. Somehow, I think it’d be in your own best interests. There’s nothing here for me. Also, I’d appreciate it if next time you have a problem with your car, you take it somewhere else.”
Rose firmly kept her jaw from dropping. Now that was a little unfair. He’d really prefer to lose business rather than have to talk to Rose or the Doctor? That seemed extreme. Maybe he really thought they were crazy. If that was the case, Rose could sympathise - she thought that they might be crazy too.
Jack indicated they should proceed him out of the door, and the Doctor didn’t resist this time. Rose however broke away and strode to Jack’s desk, despite the mechanic’s startled protest. Grabbing a piece of paper and pen, she scribbled down their phone number.
“Here,” she said. “If you change your mind, or think you remember something - please call us.” Then she caught the Doctor’s arm as they left.
“You didn’t have to antagonise him,” she protested once they were in the car.
The Doctor sighed as he started the engine, which failed the first time, but caught the second. How embarrassing, Rose thought irrationally, if it did stop right here and now. We’d be stuck outside of the mechanic who doesn’t want anything to do with us crazy people.
“I didn’t really antagonise him,” the Doctor pointed out.
“You called him a liar!”
“Well, he was - is. He’s good at hiding it, but something on that list really bothered him. He was very unsettled towards the end there. I find that suspicious, don’t you find it suspicious?”
“Of course, we could just be utterly crazy, and that’s what disturbed him.”
“There is that, but we’re fairly certain it isn’t, remember? By the way, good thinking on leaving our number. Should he rethink things - and I think he might, he’s intelligent enough not to be foolish for long - he’ll be able to reach us. Of course, he likely has our details on file, but this’ll keep gnawing at him, like a dog at a bone.”
“You really think that?” Rose asked, warmed.
“I do. Home again, my dear?”
“Home,” she agreed, feeling tired all of a sudden.
-x-x-x-
A/N: Your honest thoughts and opinions are terribly, terribly important to me. And they can be motivating. Please review! (I’ll give you chocolate)
Author - Kazzy
Rating - PG-13/T
Spoilers - Parting of the Ways; possibly Children in Need and The Christmas Invasion, but not overtly.
Category - Drama, Romance, AU
Summary - The Tylers are pretty normal. However, nothing is as it seems. Why does the Doctor remember the names of people he’s never met? Why does Rose keep forgetting her mother is dead? And just how does their mechanic come into it?
Disclaimer - If I was RTD… but I’m not, and I can’t claim to own any of these characters. I do love them though. So, I’m borrowing them. I’ll return them (largely) intact soon enough. And no money will change hands at any point. Oh and I can’t claim to own Calvin and Hobbes either.
A/N: Beta-d by the lovely Paranoid Seat.
When my other betas get back to me, I’ll put in their changes and suggestions as well. Links to the profiles of all my betas (they all have fic) can be found here: my profile. Check them out, as they all have something to offer.
This chapter is dedicated to Wendymr, because she is a very kind and wonderful person!
Ordinary Chapter One
Ordinary Chapter Two
Chapter Three
-x-x-x-
The next morning, they both called in citing a ‘family emergency’ as the reason neither would be at work. For breakfast, they both sat at the table, Rose with her marmalade on toast and the Doctor with his cornflakes. The routine was comfortable and normal, something that Rose thought they probably both needed.
The notebook, however, still sat in the middle of the table, reminding them that they had work to do, and many things to discuss. For the first few moments, neither of them spoke, but Rose knew they needed to get this over with. It was essential that they do something about what was happening, and there was no time like the present.
“Do you have any more names?” she asked finally, after some deliberation about how to approach the subject, and deciding that directly was best.
The Doctor looked up from spooning the last of his sugary milk from his bowl, his eyes wide and serious. “Hmmm? Oh. Yes. Two people and a place, as a matter of fact. Charley Pollard, who apparently didn’t die when she was meant to; and Romana, who was a Time Lady. The place is Earth.”
“That actually sounds familiar,” Rose told him. “Earth. Earth.” She repeated the word over a couple of times to listen to its sound.
“It should,” replied the Doctor. “It’s your home world.”
There was a pause while Rose collected her wits. “What?” she asked, completely nonplussed. Her home world? But she’d always lived here. On this world, and there was no travelling to other worlds at all. They couldn’t even get a ship to the other planets in the solar system.
Across from her, the Doctor looked back serenely for a few seconds, until he seemed to realise what he had said. He shook his head, concern written all over his face.
“I did it again?” he asked. “Didn’t I?”
Rose nodded, not sure what to say. Was there a good answer to a question like that? “The name does feel familiar to me,” she pointed out eventually. “But I don’t know why. This is my home, Doctor, always has been. I think I’d know if I came from a different planet.”
“Well, yes, I have to admit that’s true. However, I’m beginning to think this is about something greater, something more than our physical surroundings.”
Rose puzzled through that statement. Physical surroundings. But she was unsure what he was trying to say. Well, when in doubt, ask. “What do you mean?”
“I’m beginning to think that this is about something that is happening on my, or rather our - since it does seem to affect you as well - subconscious level.”
“You mean like crazy?” she asked, and when he didn’t immediately follow up with a denial, she continued. “Doctor, I thought we’d already discussed this wasn’t about you being crazy - or me for that matter. I’m not crazy.”
“Crazy is something completely out of the norm. What is happening now is just that: completely out of the norm. I’m remembering names and characteristics of people I’ve never met and places I’ve never been - things that I have no basis for knowing anything about. Yesterday, you tried to call your mother, who has been dead for years.” She jumped at this as the memory flooded back through her, and she discovered she’d forgotten again. The Doctor reached out and curled a hand around hers in comfort. “And then there’s Jack Harkness, who as far as we’re concerned, didn’t even exist until four days ago, yet - and correct me if I’m wrong - both of us felt a certain affinity with him, as if he was familiar.”
“You’re not wrong.” She had felt as if she’d known Jack for a while, like he was an old, or dear friend. And then there was the situation with her mother. It’d been years, more than enough time to come to terms with the death.
“See, crazy.” Sometimes the Doctor liked to think that the truth of his words spoke for themselves.
Maybe that was because his students seemed to accept them easily enough. However, Rose wasn’t one of his students and she doubted he’d have married her if she had been. The Doctor seemed to like that she challenged him on his beliefs regularly. She wasn’t going to accept what he said just because he said it, and he was older than her and so much more educated. Rose needed the proof, and she’d keep needling until she got what she was looking for.
“But Doctor, crazy? I mean if we were crazy we’d probably be the last to know, I admit, but I don’t feel any different than I did yesterday or Tuesday or last month. It’s everything else that’s becoming weird.”
“Yes, and that’s my point. Everything else appears to be crazy not us. It’s the situation, not me and not you.” He seemed perfectly happy with this explanation.
“So, we’re sane and the rest of the world is crazy,” she said, not quite disbelieving - more sceptical.
“Exactly.”
Rose sat back in her seat. Well, that was a better a point of view from where she was sitting, but it still seemed unlikely. She pointed this out to the Doctor.
He just shrugged. “Doesn’t mean to say that it’s not true. Unlikely isn’t impossible, Rose. However, we do need more information, to do some research as it were. Once I’ve finished adding in today's and yesterday’s entries, I want you to go through this -” he tapped the notebook, “- and tell me if any of it is familiar to you.”
While he was updating himself, Rose tidied away their breakfast. As she stacked the dishwasher, she watched him copying down information from the day before that he’d had to write on a piece of paper, because he’d accidentally left it at home. She felt slightly guilty at the thought, but it was washed away by amusement when she realised that he was also copying in all of his crossing-outs.
Once the box of cornflakes and jar of marmalade were back in the cupboard, and the table wiped clean, Rose sat down beside the Doctor and watched him copy in Romana. Compared to the rest of the entries she’d seen there wasn’t very much, so she asked him about it and he told her that he usually garnered more information through the day.
The last phrase he wrote in made her sit forward. She hadn’t noticed before when he said it to her, but now it rang a bell in the back of her mind. “Time Lady? Isn’t there something in your book about them?” she asked. The entries at the back of the book hadn’t really caught her attention the way the ones at the front had, but now that she thought about it, she could remember something.
The Doctor flipped to the back of the book, where one of the entries was labelled ‘Time Lords’. “Here we are.” Quickly, he tagged on the entry ‘Romana (ref.) - a Time Lady (?)’ to the bottom. Then scanned back through it. “I don’t seem to have liked these ‘Time Lords’ much. ‘A stuck up bunch of ivory tower academics.’” She could see his frown, and brushed her hand down his cheek. Something was bothering him, something more than the current situation.
“What is it?” she asked.
“I don’t know. I feel sad when I look at this. Sad and angry, and I don’t know why. Alone.”
For a second, she was at a loss to say anything. There was something dark and painful in his eyes, similar to when he spoke of his family and their deaths. Gently she reached forward and placed a hand on his arm. “You are never alone, Doctor. You have me, and always will.”
He covered her hand with his own. “Thank you, Rose. I am glad I have you. Of course, you have me too, for better or for worse.” The moment stretched and became fluid. Finally the Doctor shifted and sighed. He pushed the notebook towards her. “Look through it carefully, and see if you can give any insights on any of this. Any at all.”
Rose did as he asked, but nothing stood out to her. The blurb on Jack Harkness seemed to fit in with what little she knew of him, but little else. 'TARDIS' made her sit up, but she didn’t know why. Occasionally, what appeared to be names of either places or people tickled the back of her mind, but nothing distinct. The word 'regeneration' evoked a sense of displeasure, which she conveyed to the Doctor, but he just shrugged and brushed it off, apparently not as affected. The back section had a little more effect, when she felt as if she recognised some of the places or people. 'Slitheen' and 'Game Station' in particular made her lip curl, but she couldn’t add to the Doctor’s information, and some of it seemed foreign to her as well. Skin suit. The last of the Daleks. No shattering revelations.
“I’m sorry,” she told him once she was done. “Nothing.”
“No matter,” he said although she got the feeling that it did in fact matter. “Perhaps Mr. Harkness can help us here. I’ll write the names down, and we’ll give him the list, minus the extra information - and his own name - to see what he says.”
Which was how, half an hour later, they found themselves on the way to see their new mechanic. Rose was feeling apprehensive, which she supposed was understandable. The Doctor seemed calm and unflappable, whistling quietly as he drove them over.
Once they were out of the car, he escorted Rose inside the building with a hand firmly at the small of her back. The gesture was purely possessive, and Rose had to suppress a smile. Yes, it could be annoying when he started getting jumpy about the presence of other men in her life, but it also gave her immense satisfaction. She liked that he had this little insecurity about her, because until all of this happened, he seemed to have very few insecurities. Nice to know he wasn’t completely immortal.
An assistant led them out to where Harkness was working, and Rose’s first impression was that of a pair of smudged jeans sticking out from under a car. For a second, the sight was so familiar that Rose actually stepped back, and wondered why there was only one pair of legs. The Doctor caught her firmly, and threw her a concerned glance, but she shook her head not knowing how to explain the sense of nostalgia and loss that swept through her.
Harkness slid out from under the car and his welcoming smile grew into one of invitation. Rose was surprised when her first reaction was to step closer to her husband. She suppressed it, and smiled back at the tall man in front of them, trying to not admire his good looks too closely. If she did the Doctor would notice and there’d be trouble.
“Hey, there,” Jack Harkness greeted them with his broad drawl. “Something wrong with the car?” His tone suggested that there wasn’t, and that in actual fact this was his lucky day.
“Actually, we’re here on unrelated business,” the Doctor said smoothly, although Rose noticed he had increased the pressure on her back.
Harkness’ grin hinted that he knew what that business was and that he was going to enjoy said business. Rose was becoming increasingly more disturbed. There wasn’t anything about him that was unfamiliar. She could have had similar conversations with him all of her life.
“Really,” asked the mechanic, looking completely unperturbed. “Well, let's find somewhere more… comfortable to discuss it then.” He indicated a door to one side, and that they should proceed through it, but the Doctor held back. Tilting his head at Harkness, he flicked his chin. Harkness held the Doctor’s gaze for long moments. Rose stayed very still. This was different from her husband’s usual ‘back off, she’s mine’ look. She wasn’t quite sure what it meant, but it felt dangerous.
Then Harkness smiled, warm and friendly, as if nothing had happened, and led the way through the door to a comfortable looking office. He made sure they were seated comfortably on a couch, before exiting through a second door that seemed to lead to a small bathroom, and the sound of running water reached Rose’s ears.
“What’s going on?” she murmured into the Doctor’s ear.
“I don’t know,” he admitted quietly. “Are you all right? You seemed tense earlier.”
She shook her head. “It was nothing. Just seems familiar, is all.” Everything about Jack Harkness was familiar up to the way he interacted with the Doctor and herself, and even including the folded blanket and pillow sitting unobtrusively in the corner.
“Yeah,” he agreed.
“Are you all right?” she asked. “You can relax, you know. I’m yours - always will be.” Sometimes he responded best to direct statements.
The Doctor turned sharply towards her and she lifted her eyebrows, letting him know she’d caught him in the act. He nodded to himself and then leaned forward and kissed her lightly on the lips. Rose smiled and touched his face with a fingertip, running it along his cheek. He kissed her again.
“As sweet as the two of you are - making out on my couch and all - you did say you had business to discuss.” Harkness’ voice interrupted them, and Rose and the Doctor jumped apart a little, but Rose felt the Doctor’s hand creeping into her own, and she curled her fingers around his. Harkness definitely noticed the gesture, but what he thought of it, Rose couldn’t tell.
Out of the Doctor’s pocket came the list of names, which he passed over to Harkness, who took them readily. “Do you recognise any of these names, Mr. Harkness?”
“It’s Jack,” Harkness said, as he began to look down the list. Rose thought she saw shock and horror reflected in his eyes for a moment, but she couldn’t be sure.
“Jack,” the Doctor said. “Any of the names ring a bell? There’s a few places towards the bottom as well.”
“Game Station,” was Harkness’ - Jack’s - immediate answer. There was some surprise in his tone, and concern. His lip curled, much like Rose remembered her own doing at the name. The place seemed distasteful, provoking a response similar to the word Auschwitz. If she knew what Auschwitz was.
“Interesting. Rose, here said the same, even had a similar reaction. Which considering the two of you hadn’t met until Wednesday is a little unusual, don’t you think?” the Doctor said, and Rose could tell he was fishing for information, trying to offer some of his own as encouragement.
Jack wasn’t biting. Either he didn’t know, or he didn’t care. Rose watched him carefully, as his gaze swung between herself and the Doctor.
“Really?” the mechanic said as he passed the piece of paper back. The Doctor waved his hand indicating that Jack should hold on to it. “Well, 'TARDIS' may mean something but I couldn’t tell you what.”
Rose felt her heart sink. She hadn’t really believed that this man would be able to help them, but she had hoped that he might have something to give them. A glance at the Doctor showed no reaction whatsoever.
“What if I told you that your name was on that list, between the Rani and Victoria Waterfield?” the Doctor asked carefully.
Jack stiffened, and his eyes flicked downwards. “Is that supposed to be a threat?” he asked, and Rose once again felt a sense of danger. Jack Harkness would not be a good man to make angry. Her husband could be terrifying - though never towards her - and she suspected that a display of temper between the two would not end well. Idly, she wondered which would come off better, and then frowned at herself for being disloyal - the Doctor would, of course.
But, right at that moment, the Doctor was doing his best to diffuse the situation. ”Of course not,” he scoffed. “If I were threatening you, Mr. Harkness, you wouldn’t need to ask. And I’d be doing a much better job of it - I assure you. All I want to know is if anything on this list means anything to you.”
“Then no, it doesn’t.”
“You’re lying.” The words were cool and even, confident.
Rose fought the urge to groan and drop her face into her hands. “Doctor…” His fingers around hers tightened a little, but otherwise he didn’t acknowledge her in anyway. The message was for her to keep quiet, but she wasn’t going to, not for much longer.
“What do you want me to say?” Jack asked, eyes narrowed.
“Start with the truth, would be good.”
“The truth about what?” Rose could hear the exasperation in Jack’s tone, as if he didn’t quite know what was being asked of him.
“What you know,” the Doctor said calmly.
“I don’t know anything,” the other man replied through gritted teeth.
“Then why was your name on the list?” snapped the Doctor and Rose could see his patience rapidly running out.
“I don’t know. Why don’t you tell me - you wrote the damned thing!” growled Jack, and Rose knew from some sort of forgotten experience that he was only moments away from losing his temper.
“Wait,” Rose interrupted before anything got worse. “Jack, if we said your name appeared as 'Captain Jack Harkness', would that mean anything to you?”
He looked at her sharply. “No,” he said confusion creeping into his tone. Beside her the Doctor let a soft sigh, and she could feel him trying to lose some of the tension. “A pilot, though. Different type of vehicle.”
“You were a pilot?” Rose asked, more out of curiosity than anything else.
“Yeah,” and Jack threw her a speculative glance. He seemed to be wondering if that was something she might look for in a potential partner. “For the Air Force.” Now the Doctor stiffened again at Jack’s interest in her, which she could tell was as much to piss the Doctor off, as it was genuine.
“So who are these people that you’ve come here accusing me of knowing?” A sharp edge still cut along Jack’s words, but some of his animosity seemed to have drained. Rose wondered if it were because he’d managed to get one over the Doctor by attracting her attention. She hoped not, she really hoped not, because she refused to be fought over by these two.
A slight pause met his answer as the Doctor seemed to be considering how best to answer him. Rose gave him a gentle squeeze through their joined hands to remind him of her earlier words. She watched him carefully as he came to a decision.
“We don’t know,” the Doctor admitted at long last. “None of them seem to fit with anyone as far as I can tell. Some of the names belong to real people, but there’s no reason to believe that they fit their profile.”
As Rose was still watching him closely, she could see him flinch slightly at his words, though she doubted Jack would notice. They’d argued before leaving home whether they should, or should not show Jack the blurbs. Rose had thought so, while the Doctor had vetoed the idea, saying the names should be enough. He’d won in the end, and the notebook still sat on their kitchen table.
“Profile?” Jack asked now. He would have had to have been fairly dim not to pick up on the reference to more information, and Rose was getting the impression that Jack was far away from being unintelligent. She’d never thought him stupid, but she suspected there was a lot more to him than met the eye. The mention of the Air Force had only been one tiny piece.
“You don’t need to know right now,” was the Doctor’s icy answer. Rose groaned inwardly, but didn’t get a chance to say anything.
In response to the frosty tone, Jack’s face went blank. “Well, then, I’m sorry, but I can’t help you. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have work to do.” His tone was smooth and professional.
The three of them stood, and the Doctor looked Jack up and down. “I wish you’d help. It’d be in your own best interests.”
“I seriously doubt that, Doctor. Somehow, I think it’d be in your own best interests. There’s nothing here for me. Also, I’d appreciate it if next time you have a problem with your car, you take it somewhere else.”
Rose firmly kept her jaw from dropping. Now that was a little unfair. He’d really prefer to lose business rather than have to talk to Rose or the Doctor? That seemed extreme. Maybe he really thought they were crazy. If that was the case, Rose could sympathise - she thought that they might be crazy too.
Jack indicated they should proceed him out of the door, and the Doctor didn’t resist this time. Rose however broke away and strode to Jack’s desk, despite the mechanic’s startled protest. Grabbing a piece of paper and pen, she scribbled down their phone number.
“Here,” she said. “If you change your mind, or think you remember something - please call us.” Then she caught the Doctor’s arm as they left.
“You didn’t have to antagonise him,” she protested once they were in the car.
The Doctor sighed as he started the engine, which failed the first time, but caught the second. How embarrassing, Rose thought irrationally, if it did stop right here and now. We’d be stuck outside of the mechanic who doesn’t want anything to do with us crazy people.
“I didn’t really antagonise him,” the Doctor pointed out.
“You called him a liar!”
“Well, he was - is. He’s good at hiding it, but something on that list really bothered him. He was very unsettled towards the end there. I find that suspicious, don’t you find it suspicious?”
“Of course, we could just be utterly crazy, and that’s what disturbed him.”
“There is that, but we’re fairly certain it isn’t, remember? By the way, good thinking on leaving our number. Should he rethink things - and I think he might, he’s intelligent enough not to be foolish for long - he’ll be able to reach us. Of course, he likely has our details on file, but this’ll keep gnawing at him, like a dog at a bone.”
“You really think that?” Rose asked, warmed.
“I do. Home again, my dear?”
“Home,” she agreed, feeling tired all of a sudden.
-x-x-x-
A/N: Your honest thoughts and opinions are terribly, terribly important to me. And they can be motivating. Please review! (I’ll give you chocolate)