Who Fic - Smith and Jones (Again)
Title: Smith and Jones (Again)
Fandom: Doctor Who
Rating/warnings: PG
Genre: gen
Character/s: Martha, Mickey, cameo from Jack
Spoilers: immediately post-JE but with foreshadowing from EoT 2. No explicit spoilers.
Summary: Somewhere along the line they both became casualties of the love between the Doctor and Rose. Left behind, outshone or merely doomed to return at the beck and call of those they loved but who could not love them in return, they are brought together in an unexpected place and time to begin their own story.
Disclaimer: Doctor Who and all it’s associated characters/situations etc do not belong to me, I’m just borrowing them for now.
Author's Note: Funnily enough, I started writing this after JE aired and never quite returned to finish it. Now in the wake of EoT it gains a new meaning I think :) enjoy.
~*~
Still on a post-saving the world high, Jack announced to his companions it was time for a celebratory round of drinks in the nearest bar they could find. Both Mickey and Martha readily agreed to this plan and before too long they were settled in at a pub and awaiting word from Gwen and Ianto who were still trying to dig their way out of the ruined front door of the Torchwood hub.
As the talk slowed into longer, more companionable silences and their drinks emptied, Martha found herself watching Mickey carefully. Of all the new people she had met today on the TARDIS, he had been the only one she hadn’t really spoken to yet. When Jack went back to the bar to buy a third round for them all, she leant forward and caught his eye
“So where do you fit into the picture then?” she asked.
Mickey looked puzzled. “What d’you mean?”
“I travelled with Jack and Donna.” Martha explained. “And the Doctor told me about Rose but he never mentioned you and I was just wondering...”
Mickey laughed quietly, thumb stroking the rim of his empty pint glass. “Doesn’t surprise me. He did steal my girlfriend off me.”
Martha stared. Of all the things she had expected to hear that had certainly not been one of them.
“What?”
“Rose. She was my girlfriend.” Mickey said, so flippantly that Martha couldn’t help but goggle at him even further as she tried to process the idea of the Doctor trying to steal anyone’s girlfriend. “Ages ago she was anyway. Anyway, the Doctor blew up her job. Some plastic aliens tryin’ to take over the world - you know how it is. An’ then afterwards he asked her to come travel with him.”
“So what, she just…left you?” Martha tried not to sound disapproving but after hearing the way the Doctor and Jack had both spoken about Rose she found it hard to believe that someone they thought so highly of would leave her boyfriend behind so she could travel the stars with a stranger.
“Nah they came back.” Mickey said dismissively. “Only he messed up. Didn’t realise they’d been gone for a whole year and pretty much that whole year everyone thought I’d murdered her or something. Even Jackie - her mum that is, the one in the blue coat?”
“God.” Martha said, still a little shell shocked. “Wasn’t there anybody who could’ve given you an alibi?”
Mickey shook his head, suddenly chuckling. Once again Martha was amazed at how accommodating he seemed about the subject. “I was the only one there with her when she decided to go with him. No copper with half a brain would have believed me if I said that an alien abducted my girlfriend and carted her off in a big blue box. I would’ve been thrown in the nuthouse.
“So what about you Martha Jones?” he began toying with a straw, flipping it over and over in his fingers, casual as anything. “When did you start travelling with him?”
Martha shrugged. “Pretty soon after Rose left I think. He didn’t shut up about her for the first half dozen trips we made.”
Mickey looked intrigued by this. “Really? He never used to talk about people he travelled with before.”
Martha chanced a look at the bar where Jack was having a good flirt with the bartender. The Doctor hadn’t mentioned anyone to her apart from Rose - until the Captain had sent the TARDIS to the end of the universe that was. “He was a bit messed up over her I think.” she admitted. “Well. A lot messed up actually. The amount of times I had to stop him from doing something suicidal…”
“Good.” Mickey said firmly but at Martha’s shocked look he hastened to add. “No I don’t mean it like that! It’s just I remember thinking ‘I hope he hasn’t just gone swanning off with someone else and forgotten her’. She spent ages pining after him - it was a bit sad really. I mean I know she loved him and all but she was a mess. Honest. An’ I was the only person who could be bothered picking up all the pieces again.”
“But…she left you,” Martha said, deperately trying to wrap her brain around his logic. “Why would you keep going back to her? If she loved him anywhere near as much as he loved her I can’t see how you’d have a chance. No offence.” she added hastily.
“None taken. But,” Mickey shrugged. “I got over her a long time ago.”
“But you went back to her.”
Mickey shrugged again. “Cos she needed me.”
“Doesn’t sound like you’re over her.” Martha said skeptically. “Not if you come running whenever she has a fancy to see you.”
“Wouldn’t you come running if the Doctor called?” Mickey asked archly and Martha couldn’t think of any objection to his accusation that wouldn’t be a lie. “You don’t know Rose.” he shook his head again and the look in his eyes, whilst not worshipful, was certainly admiring. “She’s…she’s something else. I dunno what it is about her.”
“Well it must be a bloke thing.” Martha admitted in exasperation. “Cos I just can’t see it. I mean she seems nice enough...”
“It’s not about how nice she is.” Mickey said impatiently and leant forward. “Lemme ask you something. You ever loved somebody so much that they could hurt you in the worst way possibly and you’d keep coming back anyway - just to make em smile?” Martha was silent and Mickey nodded knowingly at the slightly stunned expression on her face. Argument well and truly trumped, he lounged back on his chair. “Well. Seems you and me’ve got something in common Martha Jones.”
“You mean aside from travelling around the universe in a blue box?” she said, trying to recover from the precision of Mickey’s analysis. He’d only known her a few hours and already he had her (and her relationship with the Doctor) pegged. It was unnerving to say the least.
“That too.” Mickey grinned. “Where was your first trip?”
Martha smiled faintly at the memory. “He took me to see Shakespeare. That was after the hospital I was working at got teleported up to the moon though.”
“Cool.” Mickey grinned appreciatively. “I got a spaceship filled with clockwork robots that tried to kill us and harvest our organs for ship parts.”
“One of the first places I went with him was Cardiff.” Jack said suddenly, appearing with an armful of drinks and a smug grin. “I think I got the short end of the deal.”
“Only because you went travelling with big ears instead of suit boy.” Mickey said smugly as he set to his pint. “Cheers.”
Later, as they left the pub, Martha shivered in the cool air depite her heavy jacket.
“Back to Cardiff I guess.” Jack said, offering them both a salute in farewell. Mickey rolled his eyes and shook his hand instead, Martha kissed him on the cheek. “I’ll never wash again!” Jack proclaimed as he headed off. “Call me if you kids want a job!”
When he was gone the two of them turned to each other.
“So what’ll you do now?” Martha asked. “You could come work at UNIT. I could probably pull some strings.”
“Nah. I might go freelance again.” Mickey grinned at the very thought. “Fight aliens. Annoy people. S’what I’m best at - I don’t really like being told what to do.”
Martha rolled her eyes. “Seems like that’s all I’m good at, doing as I’m told.”
Mickey considered her thoughtfully. “Nuh. I don’t reckon anyone could make you do something you really didn’t want to.”
“You reckon huh?” Martha said with a laugh then awkwardly changed the subject. “I guess I’ll be seeing you then?”
“If I’m lucky.” Mickey said and grinned. “You take care yeah?”
“Yeah.” Martha said. “You too.”
There was an awkward moment of hesitation and then they were gathered up in each others arms in a warm hug of farewell.
Not goodbye - oh no.
Their story was only just beginning.