![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
fajrdrakoTitle: Companionship
Fandom: Torchwood/Doctor Who
Characters: Jack, Sarah Jane Smith
Challenge: Way back in May I accepted a challenge from![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
neadods to write a 'first kiss' scene between Captain Jack Harkness and Sarah Jane Smith. I did not forget. I was not even slow to start working on it, as I loved the idea. But I wrote one scenario after another and discarded them as inadequate or unconvincing. It proved to be extraordinarily difficult. Here at last is a version I like enough to post.
Rating: G
Disclaimer: Not mine, no claims, all property of the BBC.
Notes: Spoilers for Doctor Who episode "The Last of the Time Lords", with a fleeting reference to "School Reunion". Cross-posted to galactic_conman and dwfiction.
Companionship
From the very beginning, Sarah Jane Smith did not trust Captain Jack Harkness. He'd come sailing out of nowhere, appearing on her doorstep with a smile full of promises and a mouth full of lies.
Clearly he knew some things about the Doctor. He'd met Rose, yes, that she could believe. He'd been on the TARDIS, obviously; his information was too good to have been acquired any other way. Beyond that, she believed nothing. There were too many things he didn't say, or couldn't, or wouldn't. He'd met the Doctor - that didn't necessarily make him any kind of a friend of the Doctor, least of all a friend of hers.
She did some research on him, and came up with an inescapable fact: there were no records of any American named Captain Jack Harkness being in the UK since 1941. He was false as a Titanian brisket, this Captain, and she intended to keep her eye on him.
His organization, Torchwood, was even worse. It seemed everyone with any actual power knew about Torchwood, but no one knew the important details. The whole institution looked like a powder keg. She had a good talk with UNIT; they were suspicious of Torchwood, too. "Weaponry no one should have," they said, and "too much power, too little accountability". It seems Queen Victoria set up Torchwood under suspicious circumstances, to guard the world against alien threats in general and the Doctor in particular.
This was an expose waiting to be written, even if it was another article that should never see the light of day. Since Torchwood under Harkness seemed to pose no immediate threat, and the rest had disappeared with the Battle of Canary Wharf, she let it go for the sake of more immediate matters. When Captain Jack again turned up on her doorstep, she told him to go away and not come back.
One day, more than a year after the Battle of Canary Wharf, he broke the silence. She received a telephone call from Captain Jack Harkness.
"I've seen him," he said, without preamble. "I have news. Do you want to hear?"
There was only one person he could be talking about. She shouldn't listen. It might be a lie. But she'd had no word for so very long, not since the Krillitanes had invaded that school. She said, "Very well. Come to my place."
"On my way," he said, and disconnected. It was probably literally true: he no doubt rang her from his car. She put the kettle on for tea, and tried not to pace in anticipation. Luke was off somewhere with Maria, and she was glad - she wasn't sure how to explain Captain Jack to Luke. She wouldn't lie about him, of course, she didn't lie to Luke. But she didn't much want to talk about the mysterious Captain, either.
When Jack tapped on her door twenty minutes later, Sarah Jane had already finished half of her own cup of tea. His smile was as she remembered. She ignored it. "Come in," she said. "Care for some tea?" She hoped she managed to sound sufficiently casual. Friendly but not gullible. Businesslike.
"I'd rather a glass of water," he said, and she got it for him. They sat in her living room, with Jack in the large, comfortable chair, while she sat on the sofa. He said, "The TARDIS came to Cardiff to refuel. I hitched a ride. On the outside."
As he continued, she saw how absurd it was, like all his stories. A severed hand, as some sort of Doctor alert? Riding the time vortex hanging onto the outside the of TARDIS - what was he, Spider-Man? Going to the end of time? Searching for Utopia? Well, that all sounded like the Doctor, right enough, he was always into wild extremes, and seemed to be more so inclined as time went on. Not that time ever just 'went on' for the Doctor.
Captain Jack's story got more and more outrageous. Meeting another Time Lord at the end of time, one who'd lost his memory, who turned out to be a friend of the Doctor, but insane and power-hungry. Harold Saxon and Archangel. Toclafanes and warfare. A year that never was, of imprisonment, enslavement and resistance. Martha Jones, saviour of mankind. Deceptions, tricks of the mind, and psychic magic.
Sarah Jane listened to him without interruption. "Quite a story," she said, mildly, when he stopped.
"Yes."
"If I didn't know him, I wouldn't believe any of it."
"But you know him."
"I was looking into the disappearance of Harold Saxon."
"Oh?"
"And the way he popped up a couple of years ago. He was almost as mysterious as you."
Jack smiled at that. "No one is as mysterious as me."
"...But your ego is bigger."
"Not just my ego," he murmured, but she pretended not to have heard him.
She tried to picture the scene he described. The gunshot, the woman in red. The Doctor in tears. "He loved him?"
"The Master was the only other living Time Lord. The Doctor wanted to save him. It was his last chance... He couldn't save the others, back in the Time War. He thought he could maybe save this one. Just this one."
"Chivalrous nonsense," she snapped, and found herself on the verge of tears herself.
"Not nonsense. It's what he is. It's why we love him."
She looked at him quizzically. "We?"
"You. Me. Rose. Martha, too. How could we not?"
Jack was a con man, an actor. She knew that. But looking at him now, she believed that he knew the Doctor, believed that he loved him, that the Doctor had touched him in the same way he had her, and triggered a soul-deep change. Some people, after meeting the Doctor, would never be the same again.
Jack reached over and took her hand, squeezing it.
"How could we not?" she echoed. "I wish... How he must be hurting. I wish we could help."
"He'll find us if he needs us," said Jack. He kissed her hand, comforting her. Then he kissed it again.
She looked at him suspiciously, though didn't pull her hand away. "Jack Harkness. Are you coming on to me?"
He did not let go of her hand, which he had lifted to his lips. She could feel his warm breath against her knuckles as he held it there. Without moving his lips away from her skin, he lifted an eyebrow and said quizzically, as if it were another question rather than an answer, "Yes?"
She pulled her hand away quickly, and tried not to wish she hadn't. "Idiot man. I'm too old for flirtation."
He laughed - not at her, but in a warm sort of way that made even the air around him feel good. "Sarah Jane Smith, how old are you? Fifty at most? I have a century on you, and I'm not too old for flirtation. We both know someone pushing a thousand. Doesn't he make you feel young?"
"I miss him," she said bluntly. She felt like crying again. She was the idiot, a weepy old fool. She was usually more careful than this. But Jack's news about the Doctor had unsettled her, and Jack himself.... She realized how badly she had misjudged him before, and was furious with herself for it. He had needed her friendship, and she had coldly withheld it. Had she turned into such a suspicious old curmudgeon that she didn't know a friend when she met one?
"I miss him, too," said Jack gently. "Every day. Always. But it makes life worth living, you know? He's out there, doing his thing. And one day he'll return." He stood. So did she. He pulled her into his arms as if it was the most natural thing in the world, and Sarah Jane let herself accept it. He was a link to the Doctor. A link to her past and the planet's future, even if he and she hadn't shared that time together. A link to a world out there of planets and aliens and adventures and dangers and doing things that must be done.
He had a very comforting hug.
She said, "What's this about you being more than a hundred years old?"
"A hundred and fifty. But looking good, don't you think?"
"Are you human?"
"Completely."
"Then how...?"
He kissed her, lightly, on the lips. "It's a long story. It involves the fifty-first century, and the Time Agency... or maybe the year 200,100 and a Game Station... or maybe a girl hanging from a barrage balloon in the Blitz. Tell you what. Let's order Chinese and I'll tell you the story of Captain Jack Harkness and how he became immortal."
"Immortal?"
"And hungry! Have a heart. I drove all the way from Cardiff and I haven't had any lunch."
"There's a really good Chinese place just around the corner. I'll call them - Luke loves it."
"Luke?"
"I can tell you a story or two as well, Captain. Did you know I'm a mother now?"
He sat, laughing. "You're full of surprises."
"It comes with the territory. Egg rolls, do you think?"
"Definitely egg rolls," agreed Jack.
- end -
Fandom: Torchwood/Doctor Who
Characters: Jack, Sarah Jane Smith
Challenge: Way back in May I accepted a challenge from
neadods to write a 'first kiss' scene between Captain Jack Harkness and Sarah Jane Smith. I did not forget. I was not even slow to start working on it, as I loved the idea. But I wrote one scenario after another and discarded them as inadequate or unconvincing. It proved to be extraordinarily difficult. Here at last is a version I like enough to post. Rating: G
Disclaimer: Not mine, no claims, all property of the BBC.
Notes: Spoilers for Doctor Who episode "The Last of the Time Lords", with a fleeting reference to "School Reunion". Cross-posted to galactic_conman and dwfiction.
Companionship
From the very beginning, Sarah Jane Smith did not trust Captain Jack Harkness. He'd come sailing out of nowhere, appearing on her doorstep with a smile full of promises and a mouth full of lies.
Clearly he knew some things about the Doctor. He'd met Rose, yes, that she could believe. He'd been on the TARDIS, obviously; his information was too good to have been acquired any other way. Beyond that, she believed nothing. There were too many things he didn't say, or couldn't, or wouldn't. He'd met the Doctor - that didn't necessarily make him any kind of a friend of the Doctor, least of all a friend of hers.
She did some research on him, and came up with an inescapable fact: there were no records of any American named Captain Jack Harkness being in the UK since 1941. He was false as a Titanian brisket, this Captain, and she intended to keep her eye on him.
His organization, Torchwood, was even worse. It seemed everyone with any actual power knew about Torchwood, but no one knew the important details. The whole institution looked like a powder keg. She had a good talk with UNIT; they were suspicious of Torchwood, too. "Weaponry no one should have," they said, and "too much power, too little accountability". It seems Queen Victoria set up Torchwood under suspicious circumstances, to guard the world against alien threats in general and the Doctor in particular.
This was an expose waiting to be written, even if it was another article that should never see the light of day. Since Torchwood under Harkness seemed to pose no immediate threat, and the rest had disappeared with the Battle of Canary Wharf, she let it go for the sake of more immediate matters. When Captain Jack again turned up on her doorstep, she told him to go away and not come back.
One day, more than a year after the Battle of Canary Wharf, he broke the silence. She received a telephone call from Captain Jack Harkness.
"I've seen him," he said, without preamble. "I have news. Do you want to hear?"
There was only one person he could be talking about. She shouldn't listen. It might be a lie. But she'd had no word for so very long, not since the Krillitanes had invaded that school. She said, "Very well. Come to my place."
"On my way," he said, and disconnected. It was probably literally true: he no doubt rang her from his car. She put the kettle on for tea, and tried not to pace in anticipation. Luke was off somewhere with Maria, and she was glad - she wasn't sure how to explain Captain Jack to Luke. She wouldn't lie about him, of course, she didn't lie to Luke. But she didn't much want to talk about the mysterious Captain, either.
When Jack tapped on her door twenty minutes later, Sarah Jane had already finished half of her own cup of tea. His smile was as she remembered. She ignored it. "Come in," she said. "Care for some tea?" She hoped she managed to sound sufficiently casual. Friendly but not gullible. Businesslike.
"I'd rather a glass of water," he said, and she got it for him. They sat in her living room, with Jack in the large, comfortable chair, while she sat on the sofa. He said, "The TARDIS came to Cardiff to refuel. I hitched a ride. On the outside."
As he continued, she saw how absurd it was, like all his stories. A severed hand, as some sort of Doctor alert? Riding the time vortex hanging onto the outside the of TARDIS - what was he, Spider-Man? Going to the end of time? Searching for Utopia? Well, that all sounded like the Doctor, right enough, he was always into wild extremes, and seemed to be more so inclined as time went on. Not that time ever just 'went on' for the Doctor.
Captain Jack's story got more and more outrageous. Meeting another Time Lord at the end of time, one who'd lost his memory, who turned out to be a friend of the Doctor, but insane and power-hungry. Harold Saxon and Archangel. Toclafanes and warfare. A year that never was, of imprisonment, enslavement and resistance. Martha Jones, saviour of mankind. Deceptions, tricks of the mind, and psychic magic.
Sarah Jane listened to him without interruption. "Quite a story," she said, mildly, when he stopped.
"Yes."
"If I didn't know him, I wouldn't believe any of it."
"But you know him."
"I was looking into the disappearance of Harold Saxon."
"Oh?"
"And the way he popped up a couple of years ago. He was almost as mysterious as you."
Jack smiled at that. "No one is as mysterious as me."
"...But your ego is bigger."
"Not just my ego," he murmured, but she pretended not to have heard him.
She tried to picture the scene he described. The gunshot, the woman in red. The Doctor in tears. "He loved him?"
"The Master was the only other living Time Lord. The Doctor wanted to save him. It was his last chance... He couldn't save the others, back in the Time War. He thought he could maybe save this one. Just this one."
"Chivalrous nonsense," she snapped, and found herself on the verge of tears herself.
"Not nonsense. It's what he is. It's why we love him."
She looked at him quizzically. "We?"
"You. Me. Rose. Martha, too. How could we not?"
Jack was a con man, an actor. She knew that. But looking at him now, she believed that he knew the Doctor, believed that he loved him, that the Doctor had touched him in the same way he had her, and triggered a soul-deep change. Some people, after meeting the Doctor, would never be the same again.
Jack reached over and took her hand, squeezing it.
"How could we not?" she echoed. "I wish... How he must be hurting. I wish we could help."
"He'll find us if he needs us," said Jack. He kissed her hand, comforting her. Then he kissed it again.
She looked at him suspiciously, though didn't pull her hand away. "Jack Harkness. Are you coming on to me?"
He did not let go of her hand, which he had lifted to his lips. She could feel his warm breath against her knuckles as he held it there. Without moving his lips away from her skin, he lifted an eyebrow and said quizzically, as if it were another question rather than an answer, "Yes?"
She pulled her hand away quickly, and tried not to wish she hadn't. "Idiot man. I'm too old for flirtation."
He laughed - not at her, but in a warm sort of way that made even the air around him feel good. "Sarah Jane Smith, how old are you? Fifty at most? I have a century on you, and I'm not too old for flirtation. We both know someone pushing a thousand. Doesn't he make you feel young?"
"I miss him," she said bluntly. She felt like crying again. She was the idiot, a weepy old fool. She was usually more careful than this. But Jack's news about the Doctor had unsettled her, and Jack himself.... She realized how badly she had misjudged him before, and was furious with herself for it. He had needed her friendship, and she had coldly withheld it. Had she turned into such a suspicious old curmudgeon that she didn't know a friend when she met one?
"I miss him, too," said Jack gently. "Every day. Always. But it makes life worth living, you know? He's out there, doing his thing. And one day he'll return." He stood. So did she. He pulled her into his arms as if it was the most natural thing in the world, and Sarah Jane let herself accept it. He was a link to the Doctor. A link to her past and the planet's future, even if he and she hadn't shared that time together. A link to a world out there of planets and aliens and adventures and dangers and doing things that must be done.
He had a very comforting hug.
She said, "What's this about you being more than a hundred years old?"
"A hundred and fifty. But looking good, don't you think?"
"Are you human?"
"Completely."
"Then how...?"
He kissed her, lightly, on the lips. "It's a long story. It involves the fifty-first century, and the Time Agency... or maybe the year 200,100 and a Game Station... or maybe a girl hanging from a barrage balloon in the Blitz. Tell you what. Let's order Chinese and I'll tell you the story of Captain Jack Harkness and how he became immortal."
"Immortal?"
"And hungry! Have a heart. I drove all the way from Cardiff and I haven't had any lunch."
"There's a really good Chinese place just around the corner. I'll call them - Luke loves it."
"Luke?"
"I can tell you a story or two as well, Captain. Did you know I'm a mother now?"
He sat, laughing. "You're full of surprises."
"It comes with the territory. Egg rolls, do you think?"
"Definitely egg rolls," agreed Jack.
- end -
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Re: reply part 2
Date: 2007-10-22 03:30 am (UTC)Me too. He doesn't even seem to pay attention when they disobey his orders. I was horrified when Gwen took the Ghost Machine home, after the directive from Jack that they were never to do that. That horrified me more, in its way, than Gwen lying to Rhys: I thought she respected Jack enough to obey him.
The line when he said to Tosh in "Greeks Bearing Gifts" that he wasn't a 'real' boss rang true. He hasn't been trying. He's been depressed, and probably preoccupied. I hope he (and the others) get their acts together next series. They don't have to be prefect. A modicum of competence would be acceptable. Otherwise we'll feel as if we're watching The Five Stooges.
I liked his stuff in "Out Of Time"
So did I. Did you read my story about John Ellis? It's here (http://fajrdrako.livejournal.com/565554.html).
how about a series of fics for TW S1, focusing on Jack and what we didn't get to see him do, in the episodes?
What a great idea! It also gives me a good excuse to watch all the episodes all over again, to pick scenes to write about.
Not that I have any time to do this at all, you understand. But it's a great idea. I could get excited over this. There are two 'missing' scenes I already have been planning to write.
I still can't see a figure running.
Look right in the middle of the plaza, between the upright things. Jack is making a beeline right through the middle. I love this. I wish I'd noticed before - now I feel unobservant. It isn't as if I haven't watched the end of that episode a thousand times....!
I'd like to know is where did the backpack come from and how did Jack manage to stuff the hand and jar into it so fast?
Obviously the backpack was nearby - maybe he had it stored under the hand - and Jack can move really fast when he wants to.
I put the disc in my computer and can still see it. As the camera cuts to the exterior aerial view, Jack has just run past the first set of uprights, at the bottom of the plaza, all towards the top right of the screen. As the camera pulls up, we can see him crossing the plaza, right through the centre of it. Then the camera changes angle, to show the plaza from the bay... I'm trying to make out if we can see something that might be the TARDIS. No. I don't think so. Can't get my computer to go slow motion enough to see without crashing the program. It's fascinating, though.
and how weird is that, that the Master as a human, is much better a person than the Doctor in human form?
It is weird, and I can understand it, though I don't share the sentiment. I thought John Smith was weak and a bit dull. Not so much a human version of the Doctor as a rather ordinary person who didn't like challenges and didn't know how to rise up to them with integrity.
both Joan's pain at Ten not being John Smith, and Martha's obvious feelings for Ten being ignored yet again by Ten.
I agreed with that but I liked it because I thought it was a clear message from the Doctor: "You can't have John Smith, because he doesn't exist. You can have me, but only on my own terms, which you probably won't like." All part of his gathering people to him while pushing them away, which he had been doing with Martha for most of the season. I liked the other implications - the "let's all get together for a big TARDIS party" implication, the polyamorous nuance (was that deliberate?). Partly it was the emphasis on the fact that he wasn't John Smith, he was a very different order of being which she didn't even know. I suppose I even liked the callousness of it - in that instance. Partly because it was callousness towards Joan, whom I didn't much like either (though she deserved better). And he was kind to Martha after that, and her thanked her, and was nice to Timmy.
it's usually just a matter of hours for me (hope it is for you, too)
usually, but it varies. It's often the next day before I get a chance to actually watch the episode, but not always - I'm so happy the UK is five hours ahead of us.
no doubt you'll be using the time to write fics with Jack for me, while you wait to see new TW. ;)
That's one of the things I'll be doing.
Re: reply part 2
Date: 2007-10-22 07:34 am (UTC)Me too. He doesn't even seem to pay attention when they disobey his orders. I was horrified when Gwen took the Ghost Machine home, after the directive from Jack that they were never to do that. That horrified me more, in its way, than Gwen lying to Rhys: I thought she respected Jack enough to obey him.
Yeah, Gwen has the brain power and morality of a cabbage... no offense to cabbages.
Re: Jack and Retcon and I can't remember if I replied that I'm horrified by that, too, how easily he uses it. It's the same damn thing that happened to Jack, someone tampered with his memories and removed two years' worth. He's removing less, time-wise, but it's the same damned thing. Bad Jack!!!
The line when he said to Tosh in "Greeks Bearing Gifts" that he wasn't a 'real' boss rang true. He hasn't been trying. He's been depressed, and probably preoccupied. I hope he (and the others) get their acts together next series. They don't have to be perfect. A modicum of competence would be acceptable. Otherwise we'll feel as if we're watching The Five Stooges.
Yeah, I had no problem believing Jack either, when he said he wasn't a real boss. Can they get at least five modicums of competence? *grin*
So did I. Did you read my story about John Ellis? It's here.
Thanks! :)
how about a series of fics for TW S1, focusing on Jack and what we didn't get to see him do, in the episodes?
What a great idea! It also gives me a good excuse to watch all the episodes all over again, to pick scenes to write about.
Not that I have any time to do this at all, you understand. But it's a great idea. I could get excited over this. There are two 'missing' scenes I already have been planning to write.
Thank you. :) Here, have another idea: Jack returns to Torchwood, and someone else is in his office, working. Whoever funds Torchwood doesn't like that Jack disappeared and don't trust Owen in charge, so someone has been sent to take over. How would Jack deal with the situation? How would he regain control? Who, of Torchwood Three, would want Jack to return as their boss and what would s/he do to help? who wouldn't, and what would s/he do to hinder Jack returning?
I'd like to know is where did the backpack come from and how did Jack manage to stuff the hand and jar into it so fast?
Obviously the backpack was nearby - maybe he had it stored under the hand - and Jack can move really fast when he wants to.
Backpack is like the smoking gun though, we should have seen a glimpse of it, and wasn't the jar connected to something, Jack would have to undo the connections to move it?
it's usually just a matter of hours for me (hope it is for you, too)
usually, but it varies. It's often the next day before I get a chance to actually watch the episode, but not always - I'm so happy the UK is five hours ahead of us.
Me too.
no doubt you'll be using the time to write fics with Jack for me, while you wait to see new TW. ;)
That's one of the things I'll be doing.
Yay! What else will you be doing, besides avoiding lj etc. so you don't get spoilers?
Re: reply part 2
Date: 2007-10-22 01:25 pm (UTC)Cool! And welcome to my rambling commentaries on life, the universe, and everything - especially Captain Jack.
Gwen has the brain power and morality of a cabbage... no offense to cabbages.
That's okay, none of my best friends are cabbages.
I'm horrified by that, too, how easily he uses it. It's the same damn thing that happened to Jack, someone tampered with his memories and removed two years' worth. He's removing less, time-wise, but it's the same damned thing. Bad Jack!!!
Very bad. This amuses me and horrifies me at the same time. A big lapse in his 'would the Doctor approve?' credo, I believe.
Re Jack finding someone in his place at Torchwood: I think a lot would depend who they were and how they got there. Would Jack take the person to bed, to bury them anonymously under Cardiff Bay? Might be either!
wasn't the jar connected to something, Jack would have to undo the connections to move it?
It might have had a simple release switch. Or maybe Jack practised removing it quickly when no one else was around. Carys seemed to grab it without hindrance, so I don't think it was securely fastened to anything.
What else will you be doing, besides avoiding lj etc. so you don't get spoilers?
Reading Border Princes. Watching the series again.
Re: reply part 2
Date: 2007-10-24 04:20 am (UTC)Cool! And welcome to my rambling commentaries on life, the universe, and everything - especially Captain Jack.
I'm looking forward to the Captain Jack ramblings. *grin* As well as the other ones.
That's okay, none of my best friends are cabbages.
Whew!
I'm horrified by that, too, how easily he uses it. It's the same damn thing that happened to Jack, someone tampered with his memories and removed two years' worth. He's removing less, time-wise, but it's the same damned thing. Bad Jack!!!
Very bad. This amuses me and horrifies me at the same time. A big lapse in his 'would the Doctor approve?' credo, I believe.
Re Jack finding someone in his place at Torchwood: I think a lot would depend who they were and how they got there. Would Jack take the person to bed, to bury them anonymously under Cardiff Bay? Might be either!
Yes, a huge, huge, huge lapse in that credo. Bad Jack! How's 'everything changes in the 21st century and you gotta be ready' when he Retcons (or gets others to do it) anyone who experiences anything of an alien nature?
What else will you be doing, besides avoiding lj etc. so you don't get spoilers?
Reading Border Princes. Watching the series again.
:)
Re: reply part 2
Date: 2007-10-31 05:59 pm (UTC)I rather like it that Jack isn't entirely consistent, not entirely good, not entirely living up to the principles he wants to hold. I think he's done a lot of things he can't quite justify, but still feels them to be necessary, and can't see an alternative.