Watson's Ghost. Part Seven, Ten/Rose.
May. 30th, 2006 07:17 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
misscamWatson's Ghost 7/9
by Camilla Sandman
Disclaimer: Just written for my own and other's amusement, BBC. Please not be suing me.
Rating: Mature, eventually.
Summary: Wherein the Doctor and Rose face a murder charge, Rose walks with ghosts, the Doctor tries for life and an alliance changes its nature. [Ten/Rose]
Author's Note: Prompt 029 for![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
50lyricsfanfic (just give me one more moment, another walk out in the sun; one more day to find some justice with your shadow by my side - As One - Dropkick Murphys). Written for an anon request in my LJ. Thanks to ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
lotus79 for beta-ing and being awesome. Love ya, darling.
Table of Prompts
Part One
Part Two
Part Three
Part Four
Part Five
Part Six
II
A Ghost's Trap: Wherein knowledge haunts
Strangers, it is known, came to Nattdvalve long ago. They came, and they saw, and they taught those already there much, but not everything, for knowledge is ever power and only the foolish render themselves powerless. They taught about death, and some about life, and the people of Nattdvalve craved ever more, until the strangers would not give, and there was war. The strangers had knowledge, but they had not the numbers, and they died. Some fled and hid in the mountains, but time battled them too, and one by one they all exhaled their last breath.
Giergny was the last of Nattdvalve's strangers. With him, knowledge would die. He couldn't let that happen.
Giergny died and didn't die still, breathing as ghost where the winds go to die. He never forgets, but no one else dares to remember and he is alone.
Knowledge didn't die. Knowledge doesn't live. Knowledge just haunts.
He haunts with it.
II
Part Seven: Wherein an idea of a home is explained, a plan has many catches, striking for tea-breaks is essential, the peculiar occurs, the TARDIS is of assistance and the Doctor makes a promise
There is one thing having a ghost in your head is good for, Rose discovers, and that's scaring people enough to have them give you exactly what you want when you ask for it. Which is why she's carefully cradling a sphere of some sort of reflective metal in her hands, and being very careful not to drop it. She wonders what it is, briefly, but then Berho whispers, and she knows it's the Nattdvalvian equivalent of a computer disc, storing knowledge. Only this is blank, and she ponders.
The Doctor is nowhere to be seen as she enters the TARDIS, but he's everywhere to be heard, clonking and banging and muttering, and she eventually spots him deep under the TARDIS console, ripping into it, apologising as he goes.
She's going to have to ask him about him and the TARDIS one of these days, she reflects.
"You sound like Mickey when he used to tamper with his favourite car," she calls down, and he gives her a pointed look. "Just saying."
"Did you get it?"
"Got it," she replies, holding out her prize. It glitters vaguely in the light, not feeling much heavier than a football, and about the size of it too. "I didn't even have to say 'please'."
"I hope you remembered to say 'thank you', Miss Manners," he replies, climbing up, resting his elbows on the grille. "What do you think? A nice home for a million ghosts?"
"This?"
"Mmmm." He takes the sphere from her, putting his glasses on and staring at it intently. "A little help from the TARDIS, and I can make this live. Sort of. The ghosts don't have to die, the living don't have to go mad with ghosts in their heads and still get those last parting messages, and maybe the ghosts will be content enough to let go after a while. Perfect."
"It is," she agrees. "So what's the catch?"
"Catches," he corrects. "Well, I could possibly blow up the TARDIS doing this and we'll either be killed or trapped here forever. Going to need a lot of power and I'll have to hook us up to the planet power supply, so they might decide to execute us for power nicking and general nuisance after all. I might calibrate it wrong and trap every living thing. And if I succeed in all this, the ghosts might still not be keen on moving. They might potentially make a fuss."
"Potentially?" she echoes. "So basically, this plan of yours is volatile, dangerous, prone to fuck-ups and could end in gruesome death for all involved?"
"Strictly speaking - yeah, pretty much."
"Sounds like every other plan you've had."
They grin at each other, and he chucks the sphere back to her, disappearing back under the console, sonic screwdriver in hand. She watches him rummage around for a few moments, still muttering apologies.
This is her Doctor, she thinks, and her mind hums with it.
He notices her gaze and looks up at her, wires around his neck, devices she has no idea what are even meant to do scattered around his feet and so much mischief and determination in his eyes. Affection too, because he can never hide that. Or maybe he just never tries.
"Ready, Rose Tyler?"
"For what?"
He grins. "Exactly!"
She wonders if Watson thought Holmes a little mad sometimes too.
II
There are many ways to break into a power station, but Rose rather thinks this one is new - start up the first Nattdvalve union ever, and encourage strike action. With success, no less, but then very few can resist the Doctor in full-on gob mode. Her included, of course.
"If what my mum told me about her, Thatcher would've just loved you," she remarks, peering out the window and seeing the banners and slogans down at the gate. She's rather amused to see they've made some with suggested slogans of hers. She does wonder if they even know what tea-breaks are, though, now that they're willing to strike to get it.
"She did!" he protests from under a console, ripping into wires with no apology this time, just pure glee. Others wires from the TARDIS are being attached, and he does look a bit like a kid playing with Lego and using the parts for all the things they were never intended for. "Give me that Aragan modifier - that's the thing with the discs that look vaguely like the Sydney Opera House."
"I thought you said she tossed you out of 10 Downing Street that one time?" she asks, handing over the requested item.
"Tough love."
"The Universe sure gives you a lot of it," she reflects, and then feels a moment of bang at it, because it's true. She looks down at him, and he gives her a small smile that tells her he knows too, and somehow, he still manages to love the Universe right back. It almost makes her want to...
"Rose, stop mentally undressing me," he interrupts. "Again. Hand me that Knarv tool - the thing with the lump that looks vaguely like the Eiffel tower on a bad day."
"Sorry," she replies, fiddling through the ever-growing pile of stuff that looks vaguely like something or another. "How come no ghost stories I know mention the raging hormones part?"
"Would mean admitting you had them in the first place, since the ghost's just mirroring what is," he says, gripping the Knarv tool and ramming it into something, causing a shower of sparks. "Victorian sensibilities."
"You're right, Queen Victoria would not be amused at that," she quips, and he groans. "Let me guess, now you want the thing that looks vaguely like Brandenburger Tor?"
"No," he says, sliding out. "Now I want your hand, and your shush, and we're going to duck behind that wall and hope I'm not blowing up the entire planet."
She takes his hand, and has time to briefly hope he doesn't indeed, this planet is a nice home for her, or Berho rather, and then she and the Doctor are ducking behind a wall, the Doctor pressing her between him and the wall. She would give him a look for that, but his body is warm, he always does it, and potential last words shouldn't be that inane.
"Fingers crossed," she says, and decides that is just as inane, really.
"Toes crossed," the Doctor replies, and sticks his sonic screwdriver around the corner, aiming in the general direction of the console he's just tinkered with. "Here goes."
He presses the button and the sonic screwdriver buzzes.
Nothing happens.
"Huh," he says, "that was pecul-"
The room warbles somehow, and her ears feel like they might explode, and then she's flying, and the Doctor is holding her and everything is very, very bright. She feels the impact of landing only vaguely, mostly because her landing is cushioned by a Time Lord body. She can hear him groan, or maybe it's her, or maybe it's the building, because everything seems very loud.
The sudden silence is almost deafening, and she twists to face the Doctor underneath her, and for a heartbreaking moment she thinks he's hurt or worse, his eyes closed and lips not moving. She wants to howl, and then he does open his eyes, and looks a little stunned.
"Huh," he says again. "That was peculiar."
She laughs in relief, and he just laughs at her laugh, and they help each other up, surveying the damage. Several of the walls seem to suddenly have become entries in a modern art exhibition, having twisted into weird shapes. Almost all the blinking lights in the room have gone out, and this is one control room that might never recover, she reflects.
But the TARDIS stands unharmed in the centre, and she can almost feel the power in it, a sort of electric tingle that makes her hair stand on end.
"Oh yes," the Doctor says, grinning madly. "Oh yes. I've just blacked out the entire planet, but look at that! Look at that, Rose! Isn't she beautiful?"
"She's... Buzzing?"
"Buzzing with energy!" he says proudly, and sounds like a proud father. "Oh, would you look at that! She's holding it! For now, at least. She'll probably wipe us all out if we don't use it up fast. Fortunately, that's just what I have in mind."
"Sounds great!" she says cheerfully. "Where are we going?"
"Take a little stroll with ghosts," he says, and her heart falls.
...cold where the winds die, so cold, and don't want to go back, don't go back...
"We're going back there?" she asks, and he nods.
"Great," she repeats, but it sounds hollow even to her own ears, and he steps closer to her, the warmth of him comforting.
"Are you brave, Rose?" he asks, and he's looking at her with so much trust it almost hurts.
She thinks of a million ghosts needing help, and how pale fear seems in comparison. "Yes."
"It's going to hurt. I'm sorry. I'll make it better after."
She nods, accepting it as a promise. "What am I going to do?"
"You're going to extend an invitation."
(To be continued...)
by Camilla Sandman
Disclaimer: Just written for my own and other's amusement, BBC. Please not be suing me.
Rating: Mature, eventually.
Summary: Wherein the Doctor and Rose face a murder charge, Rose walks with ghosts, the Doctor tries for life and an alliance changes its nature. [Ten/Rose]
Author's Note: Prompt 029 for
50lyricsfanfic (just give me one more moment, another walk out in the sun; one more day to find some justice with your shadow by my side - As One - Dropkick Murphys). Written for an anon request in my LJ. Thanks to lotus79 for beta-ing and being awesome. Love ya, darling. Table of Prompts
Part One
Part Two
Part Three
Part Four
Part Five
Part Six
II
A Ghost's Trap: Wherein knowledge haunts
Strangers, it is known, came to Nattdvalve long ago. They came, and they saw, and they taught those already there much, but not everything, for knowledge is ever power and only the foolish render themselves powerless. They taught about death, and some about life, and the people of Nattdvalve craved ever more, until the strangers would not give, and there was war. The strangers had knowledge, but they had not the numbers, and they died. Some fled and hid in the mountains, but time battled them too, and one by one they all exhaled their last breath.
Giergny was the last of Nattdvalve's strangers. With him, knowledge would die. He couldn't let that happen.
Giergny died and didn't die still, breathing as ghost where the winds go to die. He never forgets, but no one else dares to remember and he is alone.
Knowledge didn't die. Knowledge doesn't live. Knowledge just haunts.
He haunts with it.
II
Part Seven: Wherein an idea of a home is explained, a plan has many catches, striking for tea-breaks is essential, the peculiar occurs, the TARDIS is of assistance and the Doctor makes a promise
There is one thing having a ghost in your head is good for, Rose discovers, and that's scaring people enough to have them give you exactly what you want when you ask for it. Which is why she's carefully cradling a sphere of some sort of reflective metal in her hands, and being very careful not to drop it. She wonders what it is, briefly, but then Berho whispers, and she knows it's the Nattdvalvian equivalent of a computer disc, storing knowledge. Only this is blank, and she ponders.
The Doctor is nowhere to be seen as she enters the TARDIS, but he's everywhere to be heard, clonking and banging and muttering, and she eventually spots him deep under the TARDIS console, ripping into it, apologising as he goes.
She's going to have to ask him about him and the TARDIS one of these days, she reflects.
"You sound like Mickey when he used to tamper with his favourite car," she calls down, and he gives her a pointed look. "Just saying."
"Did you get it?"
"Got it," she replies, holding out her prize. It glitters vaguely in the light, not feeling much heavier than a football, and about the size of it too. "I didn't even have to say 'please'."
"I hope you remembered to say 'thank you', Miss Manners," he replies, climbing up, resting his elbows on the grille. "What do you think? A nice home for a million ghosts?"
"This?"
"Mmmm." He takes the sphere from her, putting his glasses on and staring at it intently. "A little help from the TARDIS, and I can make this live. Sort of. The ghosts don't have to die, the living don't have to go mad with ghosts in their heads and still get those last parting messages, and maybe the ghosts will be content enough to let go after a while. Perfect."
"It is," she agrees. "So what's the catch?"
"Catches," he corrects. "Well, I could possibly blow up the TARDIS doing this and we'll either be killed or trapped here forever. Going to need a lot of power and I'll have to hook us up to the planet power supply, so they might decide to execute us for power nicking and general nuisance after all. I might calibrate it wrong and trap every living thing. And if I succeed in all this, the ghosts might still not be keen on moving. They might potentially make a fuss."
"Potentially?" she echoes. "So basically, this plan of yours is volatile, dangerous, prone to fuck-ups and could end in gruesome death for all involved?"
"Strictly speaking - yeah, pretty much."
"Sounds like every other plan you've had."
They grin at each other, and he chucks the sphere back to her, disappearing back under the console, sonic screwdriver in hand. She watches him rummage around for a few moments, still muttering apologies.
This is her Doctor, she thinks, and her mind hums with it.
He notices her gaze and looks up at her, wires around his neck, devices she has no idea what are even meant to do scattered around his feet and so much mischief and determination in his eyes. Affection too, because he can never hide that. Or maybe he just never tries.
"Ready, Rose Tyler?"
"For what?"
He grins. "Exactly!"
She wonders if Watson thought Holmes a little mad sometimes too.
II
There are many ways to break into a power station, but Rose rather thinks this one is new - start up the first Nattdvalve union ever, and encourage strike action. With success, no less, but then very few can resist the Doctor in full-on gob mode. Her included, of course.
"If what my mum told me about her, Thatcher would've just loved you," she remarks, peering out the window and seeing the banners and slogans down at the gate. She's rather amused to see they've made some with suggested slogans of hers. She does wonder if they even know what tea-breaks are, though, now that they're willing to strike to get it.
"She did!" he protests from under a console, ripping into wires with no apology this time, just pure glee. Others wires from the TARDIS are being attached, and he does look a bit like a kid playing with Lego and using the parts for all the things they were never intended for. "Give me that Aragan modifier - that's the thing with the discs that look vaguely like the Sydney Opera House."
"I thought you said she tossed you out of 10 Downing Street that one time?" she asks, handing over the requested item.
"Tough love."
"The Universe sure gives you a lot of it," she reflects, and then feels a moment of bang at it, because it's true. She looks down at him, and he gives her a small smile that tells her he knows too, and somehow, he still manages to love the Universe right back. It almost makes her want to...
"Rose, stop mentally undressing me," he interrupts. "Again. Hand me that Knarv tool - the thing with the lump that looks vaguely like the Eiffel tower on a bad day."
"Sorry," she replies, fiddling through the ever-growing pile of stuff that looks vaguely like something or another. "How come no ghost stories I know mention the raging hormones part?"
"Would mean admitting you had them in the first place, since the ghost's just mirroring what is," he says, gripping the Knarv tool and ramming it into something, causing a shower of sparks. "Victorian sensibilities."
"You're right, Queen Victoria would not be amused at that," she quips, and he groans. "Let me guess, now you want the thing that looks vaguely like Brandenburger Tor?"
"No," he says, sliding out. "Now I want your hand, and your shush, and we're going to duck behind that wall and hope I'm not blowing up the entire planet."
She takes his hand, and has time to briefly hope he doesn't indeed, this planet is a nice home for her, or Berho rather, and then she and the Doctor are ducking behind a wall, the Doctor pressing her between him and the wall. She would give him a look for that, but his body is warm, he always does it, and potential last words shouldn't be that inane.
"Fingers crossed," she says, and decides that is just as inane, really.
"Toes crossed," the Doctor replies, and sticks his sonic screwdriver around the corner, aiming in the general direction of the console he's just tinkered with. "Here goes."
He presses the button and the sonic screwdriver buzzes.
Nothing happens.
"Huh," he says, "that was pecul-"
The room warbles somehow, and her ears feel like they might explode, and then she's flying, and the Doctor is holding her and everything is very, very bright. She feels the impact of landing only vaguely, mostly because her landing is cushioned by a Time Lord body. She can hear him groan, or maybe it's her, or maybe it's the building, because everything seems very loud.
The sudden silence is almost deafening, and she twists to face the Doctor underneath her, and for a heartbreaking moment she thinks he's hurt or worse, his eyes closed and lips not moving. She wants to howl, and then he does open his eyes, and looks a little stunned.
"Huh," he says again. "That was peculiar."
She laughs in relief, and he just laughs at her laugh, and they help each other up, surveying the damage. Several of the walls seem to suddenly have become entries in a modern art exhibition, having twisted into weird shapes. Almost all the blinking lights in the room have gone out, and this is one control room that might never recover, she reflects.
But the TARDIS stands unharmed in the centre, and she can almost feel the power in it, a sort of electric tingle that makes her hair stand on end.
"Oh yes," the Doctor says, grinning madly. "Oh yes. I've just blacked out the entire planet, but look at that! Look at that, Rose! Isn't she beautiful?"
"She's... Buzzing?"
"Buzzing with energy!" he says proudly, and sounds like a proud father. "Oh, would you look at that! She's holding it! For now, at least. She'll probably wipe us all out if we don't use it up fast. Fortunately, that's just what I have in mind."
"Sounds great!" she says cheerfully. "Where are we going?"
"Take a little stroll with ghosts," he says, and her heart falls.
...cold where the winds die, so cold, and don't want to go back, don't go back...
"We're going back there?" she asks, and he nods.
"Great," she repeats, but it sounds hollow even to her own ears, and he steps closer to her, the warmth of him comforting.
"Are you brave, Rose?" he asks, and he's looking at her with so much trust it almost hurts.
She thinks of a million ghosts needing help, and how pale fear seems in comparison. "Yes."
"It's going to hurt. I'm sorry. I'll make it better after."
She nods, accepting it as a promise. "What am I going to do?"
"You're going to extend an invitation."
(To be continued...)
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2006-05-30 07:07 am (UTC)And it's lovely how fast you update on it. XD It really makes me happy.
no subject
Date: 2006-05-30 07:14 am (UTC)I hope that made sense.
no subject
Date: 2006-05-30 07:19 am (UTC)BTW, tiny typo:
I might calibrate it wrong and every living thing.
thing... dies ?
no subject
Date: 2006-05-30 09:47 am (UTC)So: more, please! *begs* :D
no subject
Date: 2006-05-30 10:02 am (UTC)"Rose, stop mentally undressing me."
I found that brilliant. Just because it was the Doctor saying it.
I really enjoy reading this.
♥
no subject
Date: 2006-05-30 10:06 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-05-30 11:23 am (UTC)The Doctor should take out insurance. The amount of times he's blown things up...
Loving it!
no subject
Date: 2006-05-30 01:38 pm (UTC)