Fic: Selfishness
Title: Selfishness
Author: RubyChan05
Prompt used: "The Doctor's selfishness" and "Return to the 51st century - Jack in his natural environment"
Rating: PG-13
Spoilers: Mentions of Last of the Time Lords and Voyage of the Damned
Summary: He didn't look much older than 17
Selfishness
He was alone.
That was all the Doctor could think about as he left the Titanic and punched in a set of random coordinates. He’d tried to convince Astrid to come with him, but the waitress had just smiled and told him that his life was far too much for her; she was better off waiting tables on the best ship in the world.
So he’d left, hoping that she’d be on the list of the survivors and not the list of the dead. And now he was just flying aimlessly through time, hoping against hope that there would be some sort of emergency he’d have to immerse himself in, or he’d find another companion when he next set down.
The TARDIS beeped, indicating that it had landed, and the Doctor smiled wanly to himself. Time to see whether that last hope would be fulfilled, then. He still had faith that Martha would keep her promise and return, but with the hazards of time travel who knew how long it would be until he actually received that call?
As for Jack…he knew full well why the other man had turned him down. Yes, the Captain really did feel a sense of obligation to his team. But he also knew full well that the Doctor could have set him down again only a few days after he’d left, with them none the wiser. No, the real reason was that Jack had known how much his ‘Wrongness’ still bothered the Doctor, and had left because he knew that being on the same ship as the Doctor would eventually send the Time Lord crazy.
Which was more than a pity - during the past year he’d definitely remembered why he’d kept Jack as a companion before.
Flinging open the doors of the TARDIS, the Doctor blinked as he took in where he’d landed. A small town in a pretty green valley lay at the bottom of the hill he was on, and as he watched he could see a few hovercars zipping down the narrow streets. Ah. That took care of the ‘when’ part then…obviously 51st century judging from those designs. But as for where…the Doctor had no clue.
Judging from the fact that he could see a considerable amount of water from his viewpoint, he guessed he was on some sort of peninsula, probably on Earth since he could see daisies peeping out from among the grass. For a flower that was practically a weed, they had proven surprisingly hard to grow on other worlds. But other than that, he really had no clue.
Striding down the hill and into the town, the Doctor couldn’t help smiling as the strangely rural atmosphere he could feel. Here they were, in a time where hovercars were freely used, and most people here seemed to prefer using the old fashioned cars. The equivalent of countryside dwellers choosing to use horse and trap’s instead of motors, centuries ago.
There didn’t appear to be anything here that was interesting enough to hold his attention, but the Doctor decided that he liked this place all the same. There was something…quaint…about it, and he deserved a chance to relax for now.
Hearing the loud music coming from the Town Hall, the Doctor grinned to himself as he saw the large banners eagerly announcing the reason for what was obviously a massive party by the town’s standards.
“Come say goodbye to Jamian Harpen, the pride of Boeshane!”
Boeshane. The name sounded familiar, but the Doctor couldn’t quite place it. Shrugging, he gave up. After 900 years he couldn’t really be expected to remember everything, after all. Readying his psychic paper in case he needed it, the Doctor walked up the steps and into the building, nodding companionably to a few people in the entrance hall. It was obvious they could tell he wasn’t from around there, yet they still waved him on, positively brimming with a friendliness that instinctively made the Doctor beam back at them.
Entering the large decorated room, the Doctor navigated his way through the throng of people to the buffet table, laughing in triumph as he saw they had Chipoto Sticks. He reached for one, only to pull back sharply as his hand met another’s, its owner obviously aiming for exactly the same thing.
“Sorry, you go first.” He apologised, stepping back a bit.
“Nah, it’s fine…I’ve probably eaten more than my fair share of those anyway.” The other person said, and the Doctor’s head snapped round as he looked at the stranger properly for the first time.
“Wha…?” He gasped, and the stranger frowned in concern, reaching out a hand to clasp the Doctor’s arm in an attempt to steady him.
“Are you alright? You’re not feeling dizzy are you?” He asked worriedly.
The Doctor gulped and shook his head, unable to tear his eyes away from what was obviously a much younger Jack Harkness. He didn’t look much older than 17 at most, and the Doctor felt slightly thrown by the innocence he could see shining in those blue eyes. By the time he met Jack, that innocence would be long extinguished, and right now that saddened him.
“Do you need to sit down?” Jack’s anxious question reminded the Doctor exactly where he was, and with some difficulty he got himself under control again. He should have realised sooner…the Boeshane Peninsula was where Jack had said he’d grown up, hadn’t he?
“I’m fine.” The Doctor grinned at Jack, relieved when the worried expression on the teen’s face melted away into a grin.
“That’s good. I was afraid I was going to have someone fainting right in the middle of my party!” He laughed. The Doctor blinked.
“Yours?”
“Yup! Jamian Harpen, at your service. I can tell you’re not from around here, so I’ll forgive you for not knowing my name.” Jack’s…Jamian’s…Jack’s eyes twinkled, and the Doctor couldn’t help but smile back. He’d always suspected that Jack’s name wasn’t entirely real, and now he knew for sure.
“So what’s the party in aid of then?” He asked, although he was pretty sure he knew already. Jack seemed to swell with pride right before his eyes, and the Doctor bit his lip to keep from laughing. Jack was almost cute at this age.
“I’m heading off to join the Time Agency tomorrow. First one ever to be signed up from here.” He said proudly. Then he hesitated, smile weakening slightly. “Darid was meant to be coming too, but he broke his leg yesterday climbing apple trees. So it’s just me.”
The Doctor felt a sudden wave of pity for Jack. Here he was, barely out of school, and he was going to be travelling hundreds of miles away from home to a place where he knew no one. No wonder the boy was worried.
Holding out a hand, he grinned when Jack didn’t hesitate in taking it, touched that Jack instinctively trusted him even as far back as this.
“Come on. Why don’t we get out of here for a bit, hey? I’m sure you’re getting tired of being fawned over like some sort of hero.” The Doctor winked, although he didn’t believe that last statement for a moment. But to his surprise Jack nodded sheepishly.
“Kind of. I’d rather have actually done something heroic before having people practically worshipping me. All I did was sign my name on a datapad and send over some physical stats.”
“Really? I’d thought you’d be using this to bag a pretty girl…or guy. Whichever.” The Doctor mused, only to stare as Jack blushed scarlet at the idea.
“I’m not…I mean I don’t…” Jack sighed, clearly ready to die from embarrassment. “I’m not that interested in all of that. The others are, but…”
The Doctor was sure that his eyes must be bugging out of his head like sort of comedic cartoon character right about now. Jack Harkness, not interested in sex? What kind of parallel universe was this?
“You sure?” He managed to get out. Jack turned an even deeper crimson, if that was possible.
“Look, I know it’s weird, but…”
“No, no, it’s perfectly alright. You just surprised me, that’s all…I wouldn’t have got that impression from you.” The Doctor hastened to say. Tugging at Jack’s hand, he began to lead him out of the hall instead, purposefully ignoring the wolf whistles coming from behind them.
“But I don’t even know your name!”
“Just call me Doctor.”
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
They ended up back in Jack’s room, his parents out for the night.
They’d spent most of the time just wandering around the town, talking, and the Doctor had found himself listening eagerly to the other man, drinking in the sight of his old friend so young and enthusiastic. Some of the things Jack had told him explained a lot about his future self, and the Doctor had found himself wishing desperately that he’d thought to ask Jack about those things himself.
And through it all, the Doctor couldn’t help but be delighted by the fact that he was enjoying the company of a Jack who wasn’t Wrong again, of a Jack who didn’t make his stomach squirm and twist itself into knots. In fact, he had the feeling that he’d rather let himself get carried away by that.
Which was quite possibly how they’d ended up on Jack’s bed, Jack arching beneath him as the Doctor kissed him senseless.
Pulling back, the Doctor stared down at the teen, trying to steady his breathing.
“I thought you weren’t interested in this sort of thing?” He panted, leering down at Jack. The boy shrugged, twisting strong hands into the Doctor’s hair.
“I wasn’t. There’s just something about you…so shut up and kiss me again.”
Laughing, the Doctor leant down to comply.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Afterwards, sitting on the edge of Jack’s bed and watching him sleep, the Doctor realised what an idiot he had been. Not only had he been selfish enough to take Jack’s virginity in an attempt to stave off his loneliness, he’d done it at a point in time where he could quite possibly change history. Jack wasn’t meant to meet him for another fifteen years still…he couldn’t be allowed to remember this.
Lightly placing his hands on Jack’s temples, the Doctor hesitated. Did he have any right to remove memories of Jack’s first time? He had to in order to preserve the timeline, yes…but maybe he could just blur his own features. Erase the identity of his mystery lover from Jack’s mind.
Job done, the Doctor crept out of the house, heading back to his TARDIS sure that he’d done the right thing.
He never knew that when Jack woke up he swore to himself that he’d find that person again. He never knew that Jack decided at that moment to sleep his way across the universe until he found them.
He never knew that he was the reason Jack truly lost his innocence.
Can you guess what I'm going to say? Comments are love! (Apologies to all who have not read my fics before and did not get the joke)
Author: RubyChan05
Prompt used: "The Doctor's selfishness" and "Return to the 51st century - Jack in his natural environment"
Rating: PG-13
Spoilers: Mentions of Last of the Time Lords and Voyage of the Damned
Summary: He didn't look much older than 17
Selfishness
He was alone.
That was all the Doctor could think about as he left the Titanic and punched in a set of random coordinates. He’d tried to convince Astrid to come with him, but the waitress had just smiled and told him that his life was far too much for her; she was better off waiting tables on the best ship in the world.
So he’d left, hoping that she’d be on the list of the survivors and not the list of the dead. And now he was just flying aimlessly through time, hoping against hope that there would be some sort of emergency he’d have to immerse himself in, or he’d find another companion when he next set down.
The TARDIS beeped, indicating that it had landed, and the Doctor smiled wanly to himself. Time to see whether that last hope would be fulfilled, then. He still had faith that Martha would keep her promise and return, but with the hazards of time travel who knew how long it would be until he actually received that call?
As for Jack…he knew full well why the other man had turned him down. Yes, the Captain really did feel a sense of obligation to his team. But he also knew full well that the Doctor could have set him down again only a few days after he’d left, with them none the wiser. No, the real reason was that Jack had known how much his ‘Wrongness’ still bothered the Doctor, and had left because he knew that being on the same ship as the Doctor would eventually send the Time Lord crazy.
Which was more than a pity - during the past year he’d definitely remembered why he’d kept Jack as a companion before.
Flinging open the doors of the TARDIS, the Doctor blinked as he took in where he’d landed. A small town in a pretty green valley lay at the bottom of the hill he was on, and as he watched he could see a few hovercars zipping down the narrow streets. Ah. That took care of the ‘when’ part then…obviously 51st century judging from those designs. But as for where…the Doctor had no clue.
Judging from the fact that he could see a considerable amount of water from his viewpoint, he guessed he was on some sort of peninsula, probably on Earth since he could see daisies peeping out from among the grass. For a flower that was practically a weed, they had proven surprisingly hard to grow on other worlds. But other than that, he really had no clue.
Striding down the hill and into the town, the Doctor couldn’t help smiling as the strangely rural atmosphere he could feel. Here they were, in a time where hovercars were freely used, and most people here seemed to prefer using the old fashioned cars. The equivalent of countryside dwellers choosing to use horse and trap’s instead of motors, centuries ago.
There didn’t appear to be anything here that was interesting enough to hold his attention, but the Doctor decided that he liked this place all the same. There was something…quaint…about it, and he deserved a chance to relax for now.
Hearing the loud music coming from the Town Hall, the Doctor grinned to himself as he saw the large banners eagerly announcing the reason for what was obviously a massive party by the town’s standards.
“Come say goodbye to Jamian Harpen, the pride of Boeshane!”
Boeshane. The name sounded familiar, but the Doctor couldn’t quite place it. Shrugging, he gave up. After 900 years he couldn’t really be expected to remember everything, after all. Readying his psychic paper in case he needed it, the Doctor walked up the steps and into the building, nodding companionably to a few people in the entrance hall. It was obvious they could tell he wasn’t from around there, yet they still waved him on, positively brimming with a friendliness that instinctively made the Doctor beam back at them.
Entering the large decorated room, the Doctor navigated his way through the throng of people to the buffet table, laughing in triumph as he saw they had Chipoto Sticks. He reached for one, only to pull back sharply as his hand met another’s, its owner obviously aiming for exactly the same thing.
“Sorry, you go first.” He apologised, stepping back a bit.
“Nah, it’s fine…I’ve probably eaten more than my fair share of those anyway.” The other person said, and the Doctor’s head snapped round as he looked at the stranger properly for the first time.
“Wha…?” He gasped, and the stranger frowned in concern, reaching out a hand to clasp the Doctor’s arm in an attempt to steady him.
“Are you alright? You’re not feeling dizzy are you?” He asked worriedly.
The Doctor gulped and shook his head, unable to tear his eyes away from what was obviously a much younger Jack Harkness. He didn’t look much older than 17 at most, and the Doctor felt slightly thrown by the innocence he could see shining in those blue eyes. By the time he met Jack, that innocence would be long extinguished, and right now that saddened him.
“Do you need to sit down?” Jack’s anxious question reminded the Doctor exactly where he was, and with some difficulty he got himself under control again. He should have realised sooner…the Boeshane Peninsula was where Jack had said he’d grown up, hadn’t he?
“I’m fine.” The Doctor grinned at Jack, relieved when the worried expression on the teen’s face melted away into a grin.
“That’s good. I was afraid I was going to have someone fainting right in the middle of my party!” He laughed. The Doctor blinked.
“Yours?”
“Yup! Jamian Harpen, at your service. I can tell you’re not from around here, so I’ll forgive you for not knowing my name.” Jack’s…Jamian’s…Jack’s eyes twinkled, and the Doctor couldn’t help but smile back. He’d always suspected that Jack’s name wasn’t entirely real, and now he knew for sure.
“So what’s the party in aid of then?” He asked, although he was pretty sure he knew already. Jack seemed to swell with pride right before his eyes, and the Doctor bit his lip to keep from laughing. Jack was almost cute at this age.
“I’m heading off to join the Time Agency tomorrow. First one ever to be signed up from here.” He said proudly. Then he hesitated, smile weakening slightly. “Darid was meant to be coming too, but he broke his leg yesterday climbing apple trees. So it’s just me.”
The Doctor felt a sudden wave of pity for Jack. Here he was, barely out of school, and he was going to be travelling hundreds of miles away from home to a place where he knew no one. No wonder the boy was worried.
Holding out a hand, he grinned when Jack didn’t hesitate in taking it, touched that Jack instinctively trusted him even as far back as this.
“Come on. Why don’t we get out of here for a bit, hey? I’m sure you’re getting tired of being fawned over like some sort of hero.” The Doctor winked, although he didn’t believe that last statement for a moment. But to his surprise Jack nodded sheepishly.
“Kind of. I’d rather have actually done something heroic before having people practically worshipping me. All I did was sign my name on a datapad and send over some physical stats.”
“Really? I’d thought you’d be using this to bag a pretty girl…or guy. Whichever.” The Doctor mused, only to stare as Jack blushed scarlet at the idea.
“I’m not…I mean I don’t…” Jack sighed, clearly ready to die from embarrassment. “I’m not that interested in all of that. The others are, but…”
The Doctor was sure that his eyes must be bugging out of his head like sort of comedic cartoon character right about now. Jack Harkness, not interested in sex? What kind of parallel universe was this?
“You sure?” He managed to get out. Jack turned an even deeper crimson, if that was possible.
“Look, I know it’s weird, but…”
“No, no, it’s perfectly alright. You just surprised me, that’s all…I wouldn’t have got that impression from you.” The Doctor hastened to say. Tugging at Jack’s hand, he began to lead him out of the hall instead, purposefully ignoring the wolf whistles coming from behind them.
“But I don’t even know your name!”
“Just call me Doctor.”
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
They ended up back in Jack’s room, his parents out for the night.
They’d spent most of the time just wandering around the town, talking, and the Doctor had found himself listening eagerly to the other man, drinking in the sight of his old friend so young and enthusiastic. Some of the things Jack had told him explained a lot about his future self, and the Doctor had found himself wishing desperately that he’d thought to ask Jack about those things himself.
And through it all, the Doctor couldn’t help but be delighted by the fact that he was enjoying the company of a Jack who wasn’t Wrong again, of a Jack who didn’t make his stomach squirm and twist itself into knots. In fact, he had the feeling that he’d rather let himself get carried away by that.
Which was quite possibly how they’d ended up on Jack’s bed, Jack arching beneath him as the Doctor kissed him senseless.
Pulling back, the Doctor stared down at the teen, trying to steady his breathing.
“I thought you weren’t interested in this sort of thing?” He panted, leering down at Jack. The boy shrugged, twisting strong hands into the Doctor’s hair.
“I wasn’t. There’s just something about you…so shut up and kiss me again.”
Laughing, the Doctor leant down to comply.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Afterwards, sitting on the edge of Jack’s bed and watching him sleep, the Doctor realised what an idiot he had been. Not only had he been selfish enough to take Jack’s virginity in an attempt to stave off his loneliness, he’d done it at a point in time where he could quite possibly change history. Jack wasn’t meant to meet him for another fifteen years still…he couldn’t be allowed to remember this.
Lightly placing his hands on Jack’s temples, the Doctor hesitated. Did he have any right to remove memories of Jack’s first time? He had to in order to preserve the timeline, yes…but maybe he could just blur his own features. Erase the identity of his mystery lover from Jack’s mind.
Job done, the Doctor crept out of the house, heading back to his TARDIS sure that he’d done the right thing.
He never knew that when Jack woke up he swore to himself that he’d find that person again. He never knew that Jack decided at that moment to sleep his way across the universe until he found them.
He never knew that he was the reason Jack truly lost his innocence.
Can you guess what I'm going to say? Comments are love! (Apologies to all who have not read my fics before and did not get the joke)