Just Another Shop Girl (3/18)
Dec. 1st, 2008 09:09 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
amberfocus Chapter Three: Halfway Across the Universe
“I don’t really think we need to take her to the hospital,” the Doctor said looking the girl over and shining the sonic screwdriver’s light into her eyes to see if her pupils dilated. “Her pupils are reactive. I think she just fainted from the fright. It’s not every girl who can take weird creatures bursting into her workplace and tearing the place apart,” he said smiling fondly at Rose.
“You’re hardly a weird creature,” Rose said in a teasing tone before switching gears and glancing back at the girl. “And she didn’t just faint. I saw her hit her head on a hutch and she’s got a small bump just here.” Rose indicated the spot and the Doctor’s fingers pressed lightly against it.
“That’ll leave a nice goose egg,” he commented. He scanned it with the sonic screwdriver. “She’s fine. No concussion. I'm resonating the bump. It'll make it dissolve faster. It might hurt a bit but she's in no danger.”
“At least take her to my room,” Rose insisted. “I can keep an eye on her until she wakes up and then we can drop her off back at her home or ask her if she wants to go to the hospital and no one will be the wiser.”
“I’d really rather she not wake up in the TARDIS,” the Doctor said. “And the hospital will have questions.”
“Make up your mind, Doc,” Jack said. “Either take her to the hospital and deal with it or let Rose watch over her. You can’t just ignore this and we’re not dumping her back on the street outside the shop even if that creature is likely long gone by now. Not until she’s awake at any rate.”
The Doctor looked like he was going to be stubborn for a bit and not relent at all when a small moan emerged from the girl on the jump seat. She sat up a little too quickly and Rose rushed over to her and steadied her shoulder then took her hand.
“It’s okay, sweetheart,” she said soothingly. “You’re safe.” She glanced at the nametag on the girl’s dress. “Tessa,” she added.
“My head hurts,” she mumbled gingerly touching the bump on the back of it.
“You hit it when…well, you hit it. How much do you remember?” Jack asked her.
“You’re the ones from my shop. Who are you people?” she wanted to know. She blinked a few times in confusion and took in her unfamiliar surroundings. “And where am I?”
“My name’s Rose Tyler, this is Captain Jack Harkness, and he’s the Doctor,” Rose explained pointing to each of them in turn.
“Yeah, got all that from your running commentary in the store. That doesn’t explain who you are. That just tells me your names,” she said tartly. “Or where I am. Don’t suppose you have an ice bag?”
Rose popped down to the infirmary to retrieve one and handed it to the girl who promptly put it on her head. “So? Is anyone going to tell me where I am?” She didn’t seem frightened, just a trifle irritated at having her questions left unanswered.
“Well, where you are is a little bit difficult to explain,” began Jack.
“Really?” Tessa asked mildly with a quick glance around. “Because from where I sit it looks like I’ve been abducted onto an alien space ship.” She shook off Rose’s hand and moved away from her on the jump seat. “Or the set of a bad science fiction show.”
“Oi!” said the Doctor.
“Don’t be silly,” said Jack.
Tessa frowned. “Don’t think I am being. You trying to tell me this isn’t an alien space ship?” She folded her arms across her chest and dared them to contradict her again.
“The TARDIS is much more than a space ship,” the Doctor said proudly stroking the console. “She’s alive. And she also travels through time.”
“So much for not blowing our cover, Doc,” Jack said.
“Stop calling me that,” snapped the Doctor.
“Well, I don’t care what it is. I want to go back to work,” the girl said stubbornly. “Take me back.”
“We can’t. There’s a Tirawl over there and unless that security team has come and rounded it up it’s certainly not safe to go back there. Besides, it pretty much tore apart the shop. You don’t have a job to go back to,” the Doctor explained looking a little irritated that he had to.
“You wrecked my job?” she asked stunned.
“He’s good at that,” Rose said with a delighted grin. “He blew up mine. It’s how we met.”
Tessa looked at their faces and then rolled her eyes. “Great, I’m abducted by aliens and they’re a bunch of raving nutters!”
“Well, he did make sure I was out of it first,” Rose explained. “Just like we got you out of your shop before you could get hurt. And technically only one of us is an alien. Jack and I are humans.”
“Oh, that’s really not very reassuring,” Tessa said weakly. “Did he kidnap you, too?”
“No, he didn’t,” the Doctor said irritation imbedding itself deeply into his tone. “And I haven’t done you, either. Tell me where you live and I’ll take you home.”
She got to her feet indignantly. “You do realize that’s not an entirely sane thing for me to do, right? I’m not telling you lot where I live. You’re liable to break into my home and do unspeakable things to me while I sleep,” she said staring at the Doctor like he had two heads.
“Look, Miss,” Jack said turning on the full Harkness charm. “I only do unspeakable things to women who ask me to first and they never regret it."
"Not helpful, Jack," the Doctor warned.
Jack sighed and switched tactics. "No one here is going to hurt you. I promise. Now why don’t you just tell us who you are and where we can take you? It doesn’t have to be at your home. It can be anywhere at all that you feel is a safe place, all right? We can drop you off and get back to figuring out what’s going on with those creatures.”
“And about time, too,” muttered the Doctor. “Wasting all this time dealing with some princess.”
Tessa was silent for a long time, glaring at the Doctor who studiously ignored her. Finally with a big exhalation of air she said, “Everything I’ve ever had in my life I’ve had to work for. I don’t have a family, a home, or anything like that. It’s just me. Only me. I’m the only thing I’ve got to rely on in this world. So maybe it’s a little hard for me to trust you lot at face value. But if there’s one thing I can make clear to you it is that I am not,” she glared at the Doctor, “a princess. My name is Tessa Morgan and you can drop me off in Barnsbury Park. I can walk home from there.”
“Fine,” grumbled the Doctor looking a little bit sheepish. He fiddled with the switches and levers. The ship lurched a moment or two later and she would have fallen if Rose hadn’t reached out again to steady her. The Doctor looked up. “There you go, Barnsbury Park.”
Tessa went to the door and took a few steps out of the TARDIS before she turned around and came rushing hastily back inside. “Yes, it’s bigger on the inside than the outside the Doctor said in a knowing voice.
“Don’t care about that,” she said brushing it away as if it were nothing.
“Most people are rather impressed by it. Usually have to run around it a few times and come back in,” he said smugly.
“Well, not me. I’m more concerned with the fact that you’re rather a rubbish pilot,” she said putting her hands on her hips and glaring at him.
“What?”
“You weren’t kidding when you said this was a time ship,” she said.
“I seldom kid,” the Doctor replied.
“Well, this may be Barnsbury Park, I don’t know. I’m not much good at geography. But if it is, it certainly isn’t the right century because it’s a savannah.”
“What?”
“And also there’re two moons in the sky and it’s daylight.”
The Doctor pushed her none to gently out of his way and dashed outside and almost as quickly came back inside. “Seems like she’s right,” he admitted. “It is the proper year, but we’re not on Earth. We’re definitely not even in the same galaxy.”
Tessa sighed. “Then I’m really not walking home,” she said with so much disgust in her voice that the other three burst out laughing. “It’s not funny,” snapped Tessa.
“Oh, but it is,” said Rose when she could speak again. “Just relax a little bit Tessa. Try to have some fun. You do know what fun is, don’t you?” Tessa froze and something in her expression made Rose think that maybe the girl didn’t. She looked at her sympathetically. “That wasn’t supposed to be a stumper.”
“We’re good people, Tessa,” Jack said softly. “We’ll get you home. Eventually.”
“The TARDIS just needs to rest a bit. She’s been working awfully hard the last few days. But we will get you home,” the Doctor said when her eyes settled on him.
She sighed, nodded her head and then glanced at the door again. “Well,” she said softening a bit and accepting the inevitable. “The air seems breathable. More than breathable. Sweet and wonderful, actually. And it’s very pretty out there. So, I guess…since you’ve brought me halfway across the universe…” She trailed off uncertainly.
“You want to go see what’s out there, don’t you?” Rose asked with a grin.
“Well, maybe, a bit.” She bit her lip, her eyes drifting yet again back to the Doctor.
“Oh, so now you want to go exploring with a bunch of raving nutters?” the Doctor asked folding his arms over his chest.
“Yeah, I rather think I do. If that’s okay, I mean?” she asked hesitantly. She glanced outside again and then she let a smile start to cross her face. It changed everything about her. “At least,” she said, “it won’t be boring.”
“Well, then, the Doctor said dropping his arms and making up his mind rapidly. “Let’s go then.” And to everyone’s surprise he gave the girl a beaming smile.
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no subject
Date: 2008-12-02 07:02 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-12-02 01:43 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-12-02 09:21 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-12-02 01:44 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-12-02 10:27 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-12-02 01:46 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-12-02 01:45 pm (UTC)"I only do unspeakable things to women who ask me to first and they never regret it."
That had me dying. It's just so Jack!
no subject
Date: 2008-12-02 01:46 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-12-02 07:33 pm (UTC)Hahahaha, oh, Jack. So much love.
no subject
Date: 2008-12-04 11:24 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-12-02 09:21 pm (UTC)HA! Poor Doctor.
And Jack is so much fun. *Sigh* he could do unspeakable things to me anytime. ;)
no subject
Date: 2008-12-04 11:25 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-04-18 10:10 pm (UTC)