Unpredictable (1/1)
Title: Unpredictable
Pairing: Jenny/River
Rating: K
Summary: Jenny takes River on a date
A/N: Written for isilienelenihin, although I'm still cringing about the poor quality. I'M NOT WORTHY!!!!
This is... well, un-beta'ed, which is rather scary. Read at your own risk.
Having a steady relationship wasn’t easy when both partners were time travellers. There was the occasional instance when one would meet the other before they knew them, and other instances when one met the other long after they had met; both cases were awkward and irritating.
Most of the time, however, their time line synched up nicely. So what if they had to plan a little harder than most couples? It was worth it.
“I was wondering when you would get here,” River said nonchalantly as Jenny poked her head out of her TARDIS. “You’re three minutes late, by the way.”
Jenny pulled a face. “There was turbulence getting in. And it’s way better than dad!”
“I think you’ve been spending too much time with him,” River teased as she walked through the doorway, Jenny pouting at her. “Not only are you acquiring his driving skills, you’re also adopting his facial expressions!”
The Time Lady’s face instantly showed horror. “No. I can’t be. Am I?”
River let Jenny’s distress stew for a moment as she greeted the young TARDIS. Jenny had only acquired her eighty years ago and as such the time ship was still growing. The wardrobe room was no bigger than an average supermarket, and there was only one bedroom (not that sharing a bed bothered them) as well as a kitchen. The last time the Doctor had visited, he had expressed horror that there was yet to be a banana grove; Rose had rolled her eyes and reminded him that the TARDIS was still a baby. For the duration of their stay his goal had been to convince the fledgling TARDIS to grow one, and in response the TARDIS had purposely grown a pear tree in the console room. It had shut the Doctor up, at least, though Jenny and Rose had giggled about it afterward.
“Don’t worry,” River replied as the TARDIS hummed a welcome back at her. “I don’t mind. You have enough of your mother in you to cancel it out.”
Placated, Jenny moved to the console. “I have a surprise in mind,” she said as River started to help her. “So no peeking!”
River sighed and moved to the jump seat. “The last time didn’t go so well, if you remember correctly.”
“I was also listening to my dad’s advice, which I shall never do again,” Jenny replied mildly. “And once we jumped back a thousand years, it was much more pleasant.”
The TARDIS landed with a gentle thump, and Jenny grinned as she checked the coordinates. “Right on time!”
River easily accepted Jenny’s hand as the Time Lady led her out onto the streets. It was a warm planet, with their version of palm trees lining the walkways. The native inhabitants were green-skinned, and from the intensity of the sun River assumed they were photosynthetic. There was enough off-worlders for them to blend in, so it must be a tourist destination; in fact, it was remarkable similar to Los Angeles, if Lost Angeles had green aliens and a nearly white sky.
“Sweetie,” River said as Jenny pulled her along, “if you wanted me in a bikini, all you had to do was ask.”
Jenny grinned, the blush that River loved so much creeping over her face. “If we have time, we’ll go to the beach later. I was thinking something a bit more... well, private.”
“Oh?” River asked, cocking an eyebrow.
“Not like that, although an argument could be made for later,” Jenny teased. “Come on. It’ll be fun, I promise.”
River allowed herself to be pulled along, content to window shop and take in the sights while Jenny worked to figure out where they were and how to get to their destination. They didn’t take dates like this often; even with two Time Lords in the universe, the problems and worlds that needed protection still numbered in the thousands. Jenny and her father rarely caught a break. Often Jenny (or, if he was in a mood, the Doctor) would pick River up, asking for her help in some problem or other. She wouldn’t hesitate to go along with them, of course, and if they felt compelled to keep her around after their deed was done, well, who was she to argue?
But times like these, when Jenny dropped by because she missed her, when they weren’t looking for trouble or overthrowing a power-hungry overlord, were her favourite.
“Here we are!” Jenny exclaimed, stopping in front of a non-descript grey building. It didn’t look like much and other than the plaque nailed to the wall had no other sign of identification.
“And where is here, exactly?” River asked, reading the plaque. ‘Madame Hurse’, it proclaimed. What was this, an etiquette school?
Jenny didn’t answer and knocked on the door instead. A G’r’thel, famous the galaxy over for their impeccable taste and proper manners, answered the door. A butler then. “May I be of assistance?” it asked.
“Yes, please. Athena has stolen the chariot,” Jenny replied.
The alien inclined his head and stepped inside. River followed Jenny in, curious, taking in a plain, but tasteful, parlour. The butler moved away after politely asking them to stay there, entering a room to their right. Jenny wandered over to look at a painting, and River tried to figure out her motive.
The butler returned before River could ask Jenny what was going on, silently handing her a plastic key-card. Jenny was handed the same before they were ushered through the far doors and up a flight of stairs, into a hallway with more doors. Five rooms down the butler stopped and gestured at one. “Enjoy your stay,” he intoned, politely, before leaving them be.
Jenny was fairly brimming with excitement as she swiped her key card, and the door opened silently. They entered a plain white room, large, with a window taking up the entirety of the back wall.
“If you wanted to move in together,” River drawled, “all you had to do was ask.”
Busy fiddling with a keypad on the wall, Jenny replied, “all you have to do is ask, as well. But this isn’t a flat.”
The room suddenly shifted, leaving River feeling disoriented for a split second, and she found herself in ancient Rome.
“What-“ she exclaimed, startled. She had time-travelled accidentally before, but it disturbed her greatly when she couldn’t feel any after-effects. The one and only time the Rift had snagged her she had a migrane for a week, and hadn’t stopped throwing up for hours.
Jenny grabbed her hand. “It’s ok, it’s a holographic projection,” she replied. “It’s a... time window, for lack of a better word. We side-stepped into a between-dimension, half in the past and half in the future. We can’t affect anything that goes on, but we can enjoy it as if we were actually there.”
Though River was touched, she looked at her Time Lord lover curiously. “You have a TARDIS, Jenny. Why would you come here?”
Jenny studiously avoided her eyes. “I had... a trip go wrong, recently. There were these creatures, that were hunting Dad and I. We ran into each other on this planet, and our out-of-sync timelines got the notice of these temporal feeders. Dad was so early in his life... he still had all of Gallifrey in his head, and I couldn’t tell him why we were being chased. I think... I think he hated me at one point, because I was with-holding information from him.” Jenny shook herself. “At any rate, I got them off dad’s trail and managed to shake them off, but I have to lie low. This planet is shielded, so they can’t detect me here, but I’ve been running. They almost had me when I picked you up, hence me being slightly off time.”
“Jenny,” River started, sounding concerned, but the Time Lady just shook her head.
“It’s nothing to worry about, River,” She said firmly. “I called Dad and Mum up, and they’re looking into a solution as we speak. It might take a while, though, so that’s why we’re here. Even though the TARDIS has to remain planet-side, that doesn’t mean we can’t still time-travel.” She marched toward a random point. “And besides, miss archaeologist, you need to perfect that Roman thesis of yours, don’t you?”
River trailed behind her, still worried, but if Jenny was determined to ignore it so would she. For now. “I don’t think even the lowliest professor would accept a thesis from me at this point,” she commented dryly, “what with me in jail as a murderer, after all.”
Jenny shot her a look. “The Silence will fall, River. And then you’ll be free. I might not know much now, but I’m still looking.”
They fell into silence as they merged into the crowd. Eventually River gave in and started making comments on the era, switching into archaeologist mode and arguing good-naturedly with Jenny over theories. They tried catching a play, but they were either too late or in the wrong district; instead, they perched on a low stone wall and picked out two people and tried to guess what they were arguing about, miming their actions. River finally made Jenny laugh, and after that the ice was broken.
They were giggling over a mother and child when a roll of fire erupted into the sky, blooming like a mushroom and leaving a thick trail of smoke. Screams erupted around them, and River looked at Jenny, exasperated. “We can never have a day off, can we?” She asked, dryly.
Jenny grinned impishly. “That’s what makes it fun!” She exclaimed, grabbing River’s hand and dashing toward the chaos.
They were met by one of the green-skinned locals terrorizing a group of Romans, holding them at gunpoint. River frowned as she crouched behind a pile of baskets. “I’m pretty sure that’s not supposed to happen.”
Jenny was staring in undisguised awe at the mass of wires and circuitry on his back. “That’s amazing,” she breathed. “Totally wrong, of course, but amazing nonetheless.”
“What?”
She pointed at the gear. “He’s using a temporal phaser. It allows him to be in two places at once while not existing in either; he can physically influence the time he is in while being unharmed, because he technically isn’t there.”
“Which leaves a problem, because we can’t do anything,” River pointed out. Unfortunately, she was heard, because the alien swivelled toward them.
“But,” Jenny replied helpfully as they slowly stood, arms raised above their head, “He can, because he technically exists in the plane where we are, too.”
River shot her a dry look as they moved to join the various Romans.
It didn’t take much effort to understand the alien’s ploy; he was part of a group of revolutionists, who thought that viewing the past was akin to viewing the face of their God; the past was revered in their culture, and businesses like the one River and Jenny were visiting were being blamed for the recent economic slump and world-wide famine. The two time traveller’s listened politely while he ranted, apparently recording himself while he did so, occasionally flashing over to his prisoners. It was all terribly cliché.
“Think we should tell him that sabotaging the past like this in order to shut these businesses down is what caused the problems in the first place?” River whispered.
“Nah,” Jenny whispered. “Let him say his piece. It’ll serve as good evidence to this world’s justice system. Look- he’s listing his colleagues.”
“Not very smart, is he?” River replied.
“Not very, no.”
They fell silent as the alien roared at them.
When he was done, River remarked, “Now?”
Jenny nodded.
River reached down her blouse and pulled out a blaster. Jenny blinked at her; the shirt clung to her, and there had been no suspicious bumps. “Where’d you get that?” Jenny hissed as she pulled out her key card.
“Spoilers,” River replied blithely as she shot at the alien. It passed right through him, of course, but the ripple had been felt and he turned to her, hissing.
As River danced away, continuing to distract him, Jenny walked over to a stone in a nearby pillar. Swiping her card, a keypad popped out, revealing technology distinctly out of place for the time period. She began inputting a long equation. When she finished, she and River flickered twice before steadying.
“Now, River!” Jenny shouted, and this time when River fired her blaster, the equipment on the alien’s back erupted into a flurry of sparks and small fires. The alien promptly winked out, and the locals screamed harder.
River didn’t have to listen for long, as the scene winked out, revealing the plain white room once more. The alien was standing in the centre, equipment still smoking. Jenny and River dodged as it took its frustrations out on them, River swiftly grabbing the recorder it had used and Jenny dancing behind the alien to deliver a heavy blow to its neck. It collapsed, just as the local police force broke down the door.
It didn’t take much to explain what had happened, for the evidence spoke for itself. With the alien’s testimonial in hand and the blasted equipment packed away, the alien was arrested. The building’s proprietor apologized profusely, offering them a lifetime of free experiences.
“We were just doing our job, ma’am,” Jenny said politely as River put her blaster back from wherever she had gotten it. “Next time, though, I’d suggest you put in a bit more security on your room’s shields. He crossed over to ours.”
The proprietor agreed, and soon enough, River and Jenny were back on the streets, idly looking what the world had on offer.
“Well, that was bit of a disappointment,” River remarked. “It would be nice to have an intelligent opponent, for once.”
Jenny laughed. “Perhaps. But there’s still more to offer. For instance, the beaches are divine.”
“Want to see me in that bikini after all?” River smirked.
Jenny’s eyes sparkled mischievously. “Oh, didn’t I mention? The beaches are nude beaches.”
As River grabbed her hand and towed her toward the ocean, Jenny laughed merrily. The day might not have gone as they planned, but that’s what Jenny liked about their relationship- it was unpredictable. So what if they had to plan more than other couples, and they were sometimes out-of-sync? That’s what made it exciting.
After all, no one said love was easy; but they were speaking the undeniable truth when they said it was worth it.
Pairing: Jenny/River
Rating: K
Summary: Jenny takes River on a date
A/N: Written for isilienelenihin, although I'm still cringing about the poor quality. I'M NOT WORTHY!!!!
This is... well, un-beta'ed, which is rather scary. Read at your own risk.
Having a steady relationship wasn’t easy when both partners were time travellers. There was the occasional instance when one would meet the other before they knew them, and other instances when one met the other long after they had met; both cases were awkward and irritating.
Most of the time, however, their time line synched up nicely. So what if they had to plan a little harder than most couples? It was worth it.
“I was wondering when you would get here,” River said nonchalantly as Jenny poked her head out of her TARDIS. “You’re three minutes late, by the way.”
Jenny pulled a face. “There was turbulence getting in. And it’s way better than dad!”
“I think you’ve been spending too much time with him,” River teased as she walked through the doorway, Jenny pouting at her. “Not only are you acquiring his driving skills, you’re also adopting his facial expressions!”
The Time Lady’s face instantly showed horror. “No. I can’t be. Am I?”
River let Jenny’s distress stew for a moment as she greeted the young TARDIS. Jenny had only acquired her eighty years ago and as such the time ship was still growing. The wardrobe room was no bigger than an average supermarket, and there was only one bedroom (not that sharing a bed bothered them) as well as a kitchen. The last time the Doctor had visited, he had expressed horror that there was yet to be a banana grove; Rose had rolled her eyes and reminded him that the TARDIS was still a baby. For the duration of their stay his goal had been to convince the fledgling TARDIS to grow one, and in response the TARDIS had purposely grown a pear tree in the console room. It had shut the Doctor up, at least, though Jenny and Rose had giggled about it afterward.
“Don’t worry,” River replied as the TARDIS hummed a welcome back at her. “I don’t mind. You have enough of your mother in you to cancel it out.”
Placated, Jenny moved to the console. “I have a surprise in mind,” she said as River started to help her. “So no peeking!”
River sighed and moved to the jump seat. “The last time didn’t go so well, if you remember correctly.”
“I was also listening to my dad’s advice, which I shall never do again,” Jenny replied mildly. “And once we jumped back a thousand years, it was much more pleasant.”
The TARDIS landed with a gentle thump, and Jenny grinned as she checked the coordinates. “Right on time!”
River easily accepted Jenny’s hand as the Time Lady led her out onto the streets. It was a warm planet, with their version of palm trees lining the walkways. The native inhabitants were green-skinned, and from the intensity of the sun River assumed they were photosynthetic. There was enough off-worlders for them to blend in, so it must be a tourist destination; in fact, it was remarkable similar to Los Angeles, if Lost Angeles had green aliens and a nearly white sky.
“Sweetie,” River said as Jenny pulled her along, “if you wanted me in a bikini, all you had to do was ask.”
Jenny grinned, the blush that River loved so much creeping over her face. “If we have time, we’ll go to the beach later. I was thinking something a bit more... well, private.”
“Oh?” River asked, cocking an eyebrow.
“Not like that, although an argument could be made for later,” Jenny teased. “Come on. It’ll be fun, I promise.”
River allowed herself to be pulled along, content to window shop and take in the sights while Jenny worked to figure out where they were and how to get to their destination. They didn’t take dates like this often; even with two Time Lords in the universe, the problems and worlds that needed protection still numbered in the thousands. Jenny and her father rarely caught a break. Often Jenny (or, if he was in a mood, the Doctor) would pick River up, asking for her help in some problem or other. She wouldn’t hesitate to go along with them, of course, and if they felt compelled to keep her around after their deed was done, well, who was she to argue?
But times like these, when Jenny dropped by because she missed her, when they weren’t looking for trouble or overthrowing a power-hungry overlord, were her favourite.
“Here we are!” Jenny exclaimed, stopping in front of a non-descript grey building. It didn’t look like much and other than the plaque nailed to the wall had no other sign of identification.
“And where is here, exactly?” River asked, reading the plaque. ‘Madame Hurse’, it proclaimed. What was this, an etiquette school?
Jenny didn’t answer and knocked on the door instead. A G’r’thel, famous the galaxy over for their impeccable taste and proper manners, answered the door. A butler then. “May I be of assistance?” it asked.
“Yes, please. Athena has stolen the chariot,” Jenny replied.
The alien inclined his head and stepped inside. River followed Jenny in, curious, taking in a plain, but tasteful, parlour. The butler moved away after politely asking them to stay there, entering a room to their right. Jenny wandered over to look at a painting, and River tried to figure out her motive.
The butler returned before River could ask Jenny what was going on, silently handing her a plastic key-card. Jenny was handed the same before they were ushered through the far doors and up a flight of stairs, into a hallway with more doors. Five rooms down the butler stopped and gestured at one. “Enjoy your stay,” he intoned, politely, before leaving them be.
Jenny was fairly brimming with excitement as she swiped her key card, and the door opened silently. They entered a plain white room, large, with a window taking up the entirety of the back wall.
“If you wanted to move in together,” River drawled, “all you had to do was ask.”
Busy fiddling with a keypad on the wall, Jenny replied, “all you have to do is ask, as well. But this isn’t a flat.”
The room suddenly shifted, leaving River feeling disoriented for a split second, and she found herself in ancient Rome.
“What-“ she exclaimed, startled. She had time-travelled accidentally before, but it disturbed her greatly when she couldn’t feel any after-effects. The one and only time the Rift had snagged her she had a migrane for a week, and hadn’t stopped throwing up for hours.
Jenny grabbed her hand. “It’s ok, it’s a holographic projection,” she replied. “It’s a... time window, for lack of a better word. We side-stepped into a between-dimension, half in the past and half in the future. We can’t affect anything that goes on, but we can enjoy it as if we were actually there.”
Though River was touched, she looked at her Time Lord lover curiously. “You have a TARDIS, Jenny. Why would you come here?”
Jenny studiously avoided her eyes. “I had... a trip go wrong, recently. There were these creatures, that were hunting Dad and I. We ran into each other on this planet, and our out-of-sync timelines got the notice of these temporal feeders. Dad was so early in his life... he still had all of Gallifrey in his head, and I couldn’t tell him why we were being chased. I think... I think he hated me at one point, because I was with-holding information from him.” Jenny shook herself. “At any rate, I got them off dad’s trail and managed to shake them off, but I have to lie low. This planet is shielded, so they can’t detect me here, but I’ve been running. They almost had me when I picked you up, hence me being slightly off time.”
“Jenny,” River started, sounding concerned, but the Time Lady just shook her head.
“It’s nothing to worry about, River,” She said firmly. “I called Dad and Mum up, and they’re looking into a solution as we speak. It might take a while, though, so that’s why we’re here. Even though the TARDIS has to remain planet-side, that doesn’t mean we can’t still time-travel.” She marched toward a random point. “And besides, miss archaeologist, you need to perfect that Roman thesis of yours, don’t you?”
River trailed behind her, still worried, but if Jenny was determined to ignore it so would she. For now. “I don’t think even the lowliest professor would accept a thesis from me at this point,” she commented dryly, “what with me in jail as a murderer, after all.”
Jenny shot her a look. “The Silence will fall, River. And then you’ll be free. I might not know much now, but I’m still looking.”
They fell into silence as they merged into the crowd. Eventually River gave in and started making comments on the era, switching into archaeologist mode and arguing good-naturedly with Jenny over theories. They tried catching a play, but they were either too late or in the wrong district; instead, they perched on a low stone wall and picked out two people and tried to guess what they were arguing about, miming their actions. River finally made Jenny laugh, and after that the ice was broken.
They were giggling over a mother and child when a roll of fire erupted into the sky, blooming like a mushroom and leaving a thick trail of smoke. Screams erupted around them, and River looked at Jenny, exasperated. “We can never have a day off, can we?” She asked, dryly.
Jenny grinned impishly. “That’s what makes it fun!” She exclaimed, grabbing River’s hand and dashing toward the chaos.
They were met by one of the green-skinned locals terrorizing a group of Romans, holding them at gunpoint. River frowned as she crouched behind a pile of baskets. “I’m pretty sure that’s not supposed to happen.”
Jenny was staring in undisguised awe at the mass of wires and circuitry on his back. “That’s amazing,” she breathed. “Totally wrong, of course, but amazing nonetheless.”
“What?”
She pointed at the gear. “He’s using a temporal phaser. It allows him to be in two places at once while not existing in either; he can physically influence the time he is in while being unharmed, because he technically isn’t there.”
“Which leaves a problem, because we can’t do anything,” River pointed out. Unfortunately, she was heard, because the alien swivelled toward them.
“But,” Jenny replied helpfully as they slowly stood, arms raised above their head, “He can, because he technically exists in the plane where we are, too.”
River shot her a dry look as they moved to join the various Romans.
It didn’t take much effort to understand the alien’s ploy; he was part of a group of revolutionists, who thought that viewing the past was akin to viewing the face of their God; the past was revered in their culture, and businesses like the one River and Jenny were visiting were being blamed for the recent economic slump and world-wide famine. The two time traveller’s listened politely while he ranted, apparently recording himself while he did so, occasionally flashing over to his prisoners. It was all terribly cliché.
“Think we should tell him that sabotaging the past like this in order to shut these businesses down is what caused the problems in the first place?” River whispered.
“Nah,” Jenny whispered. “Let him say his piece. It’ll serve as good evidence to this world’s justice system. Look- he’s listing his colleagues.”
“Not very smart, is he?” River replied.
“Not very, no.”
They fell silent as the alien roared at them.
When he was done, River remarked, “Now?”
Jenny nodded.
River reached down her blouse and pulled out a blaster. Jenny blinked at her; the shirt clung to her, and there had been no suspicious bumps. “Where’d you get that?” Jenny hissed as she pulled out her key card.
“Spoilers,” River replied blithely as she shot at the alien. It passed right through him, of course, but the ripple had been felt and he turned to her, hissing.
As River danced away, continuing to distract him, Jenny walked over to a stone in a nearby pillar. Swiping her card, a keypad popped out, revealing technology distinctly out of place for the time period. She began inputting a long equation. When she finished, she and River flickered twice before steadying.
“Now, River!” Jenny shouted, and this time when River fired her blaster, the equipment on the alien’s back erupted into a flurry of sparks and small fires. The alien promptly winked out, and the locals screamed harder.
River didn’t have to listen for long, as the scene winked out, revealing the plain white room once more. The alien was standing in the centre, equipment still smoking. Jenny and River dodged as it took its frustrations out on them, River swiftly grabbing the recorder it had used and Jenny dancing behind the alien to deliver a heavy blow to its neck. It collapsed, just as the local police force broke down the door.
It didn’t take much to explain what had happened, for the evidence spoke for itself. With the alien’s testimonial in hand and the blasted equipment packed away, the alien was arrested. The building’s proprietor apologized profusely, offering them a lifetime of free experiences.
“We were just doing our job, ma’am,” Jenny said politely as River put her blaster back from wherever she had gotten it. “Next time, though, I’d suggest you put in a bit more security on your room’s shields. He crossed over to ours.”
The proprietor agreed, and soon enough, River and Jenny were back on the streets, idly looking what the world had on offer.
“Well, that was bit of a disappointment,” River remarked. “It would be nice to have an intelligent opponent, for once.”
Jenny laughed. “Perhaps. But there’s still more to offer. For instance, the beaches are divine.”
“Want to see me in that bikini after all?” River smirked.
Jenny’s eyes sparkled mischievously. “Oh, didn’t I mention? The beaches are nude beaches.”
As River grabbed her hand and towed her toward the ocean, Jenny laughed merrily. The day might not have gone as they planned, but that’s what Jenny liked about their relationship- it was unpredictable. So what if they had to plan more than other couples, and they were sometimes out-of-sync? That’s what made it exciting.
After all, no one said love was easy; but they were speaking the undeniable truth when they said it was worth it.