Rose Tyler Gen Ficathon
Whew, got it in just under the wire! Thank you livii for your help today. I really appreciate it. And now, on to the fic! Enjoy! :)
Title: A Day at the Office
Author: vegasunicorn25
Rated: PG13 for one mild curse word
Spoilers: Minor ones, for Rose & co. in alt!verse & for Torchwood
Disclaimer: Not mine :( I promise I'll put them back unharmed
Notes: A million thanks go out to livii for 1) organizing this ficathon and 2) for last minute beta duties.
Written for settiai as part of the Rose Tyler Gen Ficathon.
She wanted:
(1) Rose getting on with life sometime at least a year post-"Doomsday."
(2) An alt!universe version of at least one of the Doctor's former companions (old or new school.)
(3) An explanation about the origins of alt!Torchwood, since it obviously couldn't have gotten started the same way as the one in Rose's home universe.
She don't want:
Anything angsty along the lines of "Rose will never be able to move on"
I hope you like this. Enjoy!! :)
============================================================
============================================================
The loud expletive caused Mickey to look up. And since Rose wasn't really the type to curse, curiosity made him go across the hallway to her office.)'>
"Dammit!"
The loud expletive caused Mickey to look up. And since Rose wasn't really the type to curse, curiosity made him go across the hallway to her office. She was scowling at her computer screen.
"Come on! I know you're there, you stupid idiot," she muttered.
"Hey! I might get insulted by that." Her head shot up, startled, when she heard Mickey's voice. He grinned at her. "After all, it's been almost 6 years since someone called me an idiot."
Rose laughed. "Wasn't talking to you, silly. Was just looking for a computer file Pete said was here, and I can't find it."
Mickey went into her office and stood next to her. "What file? Do you want me to look for it after the meeting?"
"The meeting's not 'til..." Rose's voice trailed off as she looked at her watch. "Oh, no! We'll be late! Let's get moving!" She grabbed her laptop and files and hurried out into the hallway. She waited as Mickey went in his office to get his stuff and then they walked together to the lift.
"You didn't answer me, what file?"
Rose shrugged. "It's not important, really. Last night we - Pete, Mum, & I - were discussing differences between the other universe and here, and Mum told me something I hadn't known."
"That must've been after I left," Mickey said. Rose nodded. "What did she say?"
"Oh, that Torchwood in the other universe was set up because of the Doctor. And, well, I was hoping to read our Torchwood's charter. Pete said it was in the computer files, but I couldn't find it."
"Well, maybe the Scottish Director knows, you two are having lunch after the meeting, yeah?" She nodded. "Talking about the meeting, do you think the new Welsh recruit will be there?" Mickey asked. That had been the talk of the gossip mill. A cop had tried to infiltrate the Hub by pretending to make a delivery. Most Torchwood agents had been amused and impressed. They always looked for people with initiative. She nodded again. "I think so."
After a brief silence, Mickey finally asked the question that had been burning in his mind for years. "If he came back, you know, the Doctor, would you go with him?"
Rose leaned her head against the wall of the lift. "I ask myself that question a lot." She sighed. "Some days I think, yeah, I'll definitely go with him. And some days I wouldn't. The 'no' days outnumber the 'yes' days, though."
Mickey couldn't help but smile. It quickly died as he thought of something. "Yeah, but are you happy here? I mean..."
She smiled. "Yeah, I'm fine here. And, yeah, sometimes I still miss him, but, it's...it's...it's kinda hard to explain." She paced back and forth. "It's like, I dunno, like when we were kids, yeah, and lost a tooth, especially if it had been yanked out. It hurts, it's sore for a long time. There's that gap where you expected something to be. But one day you found out that it's healed over. That there's a new tooth growing there. That the new tooth is stronger, more permanent."
Mickey laughed. "Well, never thought the Doctor was the type of bloke to be compared to a tooth."
She swatted him. "You know what I mean." He nodded.
The lift finally arrived at their floor. As they exited, Mickey gave her a one-armed hug and kept his arm around her as they walked to the conference room.
Mickey entered first and left Rose to go talk to another department head. As soon as she crossed the threshold, Rose stopped and stared in shock at someone standing on the far side of the room. Her name had to called several times to pierce the fog. She turned and saw the familiar dark-haired figure of the Welsh Director who smiled and greeted her. "Hi, Rose."
"Hi, Gwen." Rose turned back to look across the room. "Do you know who that is?" She pointed at the person she thought she recognised.
Gwen looked to where she pointed and smiled. "Yeah, I thought everyone had heard about him by now. The infiltrating cop? His name's Harkness. Captain Jack Harkness."
Rose felt light-headed. "C...Captain Jack Harkness?"
Gwen nodded, "Yep, he's an American. A former Air Force Captain."
"An American?" Jack glanced over at them and gave Rose a quick look up and down. He seemed to like what he saw, if the little half-smile was any indication. No sign of recognition, though.
"Uh huh, he said he got stuck in Wales after leaving the Air Force. Said he had no money, no friends, no nothing and decided to become a cop. Lucky for us, he joined Torchwood instead."
"Yeah, lucky for us. I'll talk to you later, alright?" Rose barely waited for Gwen's "Okay" before going over to talk to Jack, but before she got out more than a "Hello", she was interrupted by the entrance of Pete and the Scottish Director.
The meeting went quickly. It had been a slow month for aliens. After the important issues had been discussed, everyone seemed to have a question for Captain Harkness. It wasn't precisely an interrogation, but it came close. He answered everyone's questions and didn't seem to lose his good humour. Rose was still a bit suspicious. Her Jack was a conman, after all.
As everyone went their separate ways, she whispered a quick, "Watch him" to Gwen. Walking over to Jack, she handed him a piece of paper with her phone number. "Call me, will ya. I need to ask you some things, but not here." He grinned at her. "Sure thing, babe." She then went over to Pete and gave him a hug and a "See you later, yeah" before handing her stuff to Mickey. She walked over to the Scottish Director. "Ready, Sarah Jane?"
Sarah Jane Smith looked up from her laptop. "Just a minute, Rose."
"Okay," Rose answered. She sat, waiting patiently until Sarah Jane closed her laptop and stood. "Where to? I don't fancy the cafeteria."
"How about a chip shop?"
"Sounds good."
-----------------
Sarah Jane pushed the remainder of her lunch away. "All right. Mickey said you wanted to ask me something. What is it?"
Rose finished chewing her last chip. "Yeah. Well. Remember how I told you about my old universe? About the Doctor?" She barely waited for Sarah Jane's affirmative. "Well, last night my Mum told me that the Director of that Torchwood said it was set up because of him during Queen Victoria's reign. And I wondered, since there's no Doctor in this universe, how and who set this one up?"
"Oh, that's quite simple, really. It was first envisioned by Queen Elizabeth I."
Rose almost choked on her drink from surprise. "Elizabeth I? Not Queen Victoria?"
"Well, actually both."
Rose leaned forward in interest. "Okay, I'm curious. How can two Queens from about three hundred years apart both set up Torchwood?"
"Glad you asked." Sarah Jane opened her laptop, typed something, then turned it around to Rose who read the file as Sarah Jane continued.
"You've heard or read of John Dee?" Not looking up, Rose nodded. "He was an astronomer, astrologer, alchemist, and sometime consultant to Queen Elizabeth I. He also was fascinated by angels. At one time he thought he had captured one. It wasn't an angel, though. It was an alien who had crashed."
That caused Rose to look up. "Really?"
"Yes. He attempted to communicate with it and was convinced he succeeded. He even wrote several books, claiming the angel dictated them to him. Eventually, he persuaded the Queen to fund a small group to watch out for more 'angels'. They did catalog some alien artifacts that crashed to Earth. Along with some alien encounters."
Rose stopped reading. Sarah Jane's narrative was more interesting than the dry facts on the computer screen. "What happened after that?"
"Well, after he went traveling in Europe, there wasn't a leader for the group, which incidentally didn't have a name, until Sir Francis Bacon heard about it and thought it was interesting enough to join. He re-organised it to make it more scientific." She grinned, "We still use his methods now."
"Francis Bacon..." Rose's voice trailed off. "Didn't some people say he was the real writer of Shakespeare's plays?"
"Some people say that. I don't know if it's true. Even so, whoever wrote them was brilliant." Sarah Jane took a sip from her drink. "Anyway, to get back to the subject, after his death, the group continued, off-and-on for the next, oh, about two hundred and fifty years. It waxed and waned depending on the King, or Queen. Some were interested, some weren't. Some considered it heresy and severely punished the known members of the group." She paused for a moment. "The group really came into its own thanks to Prince Albert."
"Queen Victoria's Prince Consort? Really?"
"Yes. He was a bit ahead of his time. He was very interested in the sciences and the arts. And a lot of the reforms from that time owe thanks to him."
"Yeah, but, Torchwood?"
"Well, he had heard of something haunting somewhere in Scotland. He, and his friend, the Lord of Torchwood, tried to kill or stop it, but failed. Several years later, Queen Victoria visited the estate and..."
"Wait! Wait!" Rose had a sudden realisation. "Torchwood Estate," she continued excitedly, "that's where, remember I told you. That's where we, me and the Doctor, that's where we met her! Queen Victoria! The werewolf!"
"Yes, I remember you telling me that." Sarah Jane continued, after another sip from her drink. "According to the records, the Queen and her guards were attacked during her stay there, but it doesn't say from what. Only that most of her guards were killed as well as the estate's Lord who had been a member of, for want a better name, Dee's group."
"Yeah, Lord Robert did die to protect us," Rose commented.
Sarah Jane nodded. "Well, in recognition for the Lord's, Robert, was it? In his and Prince Albert's memories, she re-formed the group and named it the Torchwood Institute. With a mandate to defend the realm on all sides. And it's still going strong nearly a hundred and forty years later." The last statement was said with pride.
There was a long silence as Rose processed what she had heard. "Thanks for telling me this."
Sarah Jane grinned at her. "No problem. Anytime. Is there anything else you want to talk about before I go back to the Estate?"
Rose shook her head. "No, not anything important." She chuckled. "But now I know why you're based in that moldy old castle." Sarah Jane pretended to be insulted, but couldn't help laughing herself.
They sat in companionable silence until Rose's mobile went off. Looking at it, she sighed, "Lunch break's over. Gotta go."
"Yeah, I have to go also."
They gave each other a hug and said good-bye before going their separate ways.
FIN
============================================================
A/N: I couldn't have done this without invaluable information from:
here.
And most especially from Wikipedia, namely:
Elizabeth I, John Dee, Francis Bacon, Queen Victoria, and Prince Albert.
============================================================
============================================================
x-posted to vegasunicorn25 & dwfiction
Title: A Day at the Office
Author: vegasunicorn25
Rated: PG13 for one mild curse word
Spoilers: Minor ones, for Rose & co. in alt!verse & for Torchwood
Disclaimer: Not mine :( I promise I'll put them back unharmed
Notes: A million thanks go out to livii for 1) organizing this ficathon and 2) for last minute beta duties.
Written for settiai as part of the Rose Tyler Gen Ficathon.
She wanted:
(1) Rose getting on with life sometime at least a year post-"Doomsday."
(2) An alt!universe version of at least one of the Doctor's former companions (old or new school.)
(3) An explanation about the origins of alt!Torchwood, since it obviously couldn't have gotten started the same way as the one in Rose's home universe.
She don't want:
Anything angsty along the lines of "Rose will never be able to move on"
I hope you like this. Enjoy!! :)
============================================================
============================================================
The loud expletive caused Mickey to look up. And since Rose wasn't really the type to curse, curiosity made him go across the hallway to her office.)'>
"Dammit!"
The loud expletive caused Mickey to look up. And since Rose wasn't really the type to curse, curiosity made him go across the hallway to her office. She was scowling at her computer screen.
"Come on! I know you're there, you stupid idiot," she muttered.
"Hey! I might get insulted by that." Her head shot up, startled, when she heard Mickey's voice. He grinned at her. "After all, it's been almost 6 years since someone called me an idiot."
Rose laughed. "Wasn't talking to you, silly. Was just looking for a computer file Pete said was here, and I can't find it."
Mickey went into her office and stood next to her. "What file? Do you want me to look for it after the meeting?"
"The meeting's not 'til..." Rose's voice trailed off as she looked at her watch. "Oh, no! We'll be late! Let's get moving!" She grabbed her laptop and files and hurried out into the hallway. She waited as Mickey went in his office to get his stuff and then they walked together to the lift.
"You didn't answer me, what file?"
Rose shrugged. "It's not important, really. Last night we - Pete, Mum, & I - were discussing differences between the other universe and here, and Mum told me something I hadn't known."
"That must've been after I left," Mickey said. Rose nodded. "What did she say?"
"Oh, that Torchwood in the other universe was set up because of the Doctor. And, well, I was hoping to read our Torchwood's charter. Pete said it was in the computer files, but I couldn't find it."
"Well, maybe the Scottish Director knows, you two are having lunch after the meeting, yeah?" She nodded. "Talking about the meeting, do you think the new Welsh recruit will be there?" Mickey asked. That had been the talk of the gossip mill. A cop had tried to infiltrate the Hub by pretending to make a delivery. Most Torchwood agents had been amused and impressed. They always looked for people with initiative. She nodded again. "I think so."
After a brief silence, Mickey finally asked the question that had been burning in his mind for years. "If he came back, you know, the Doctor, would you go with him?"
Rose leaned her head against the wall of the lift. "I ask myself that question a lot." She sighed. "Some days I think, yeah, I'll definitely go with him. And some days I wouldn't. The 'no' days outnumber the 'yes' days, though."
Mickey couldn't help but smile. It quickly died as he thought of something. "Yeah, but are you happy here? I mean..."
She smiled. "Yeah, I'm fine here. And, yeah, sometimes I still miss him, but, it's...it's...it's kinda hard to explain." She paced back and forth. "It's like, I dunno, like when we were kids, yeah, and lost a tooth, especially if it had been yanked out. It hurts, it's sore for a long time. There's that gap where you expected something to be. But one day you found out that it's healed over. That there's a new tooth growing there. That the new tooth is stronger, more permanent."
Mickey laughed. "Well, never thought the Doctor was the type of bloke to be compared to a tooth."
She swatted him. "You know what I mean." He nodded.
The lift finally arrived at their floor. As they exited, Mickey gave her a one-armed hug and kept his arm around her as they walked to the conference room.
Mickey entered first and left Rose to go talk to another department head. As soon as she crossed the threshold, Rose stopped and stared in shock at someone standing on the far side of the room. Her name had to called several times to pierce the fog. She turned and saw the familiar dark-haired figure of the Welsh Director who smiled and greeted her. "Hi, Rose."
"Hi, Gwen." Rose turned back to look across the room. "Do you know who that is?" She pointed at the person she thought she recognised.
Gwen looked to where she pointed and smiled. "Yeah, I thought everyone had heard about him by now. The infiltrating cop? His name's Harkness. Captain Jack Harkness."
Rose felt light-headed. "C...Captain Jack Harkness?"
Gwen nodded, "Yep, he's an American. A former Air Force Captain."
"An American?" Jack glanced over at them and gave Rose a quick look up and down. He seemed to like what he saw, if the little half-smile was any indication. No sign of recognition, though.
"Uh huh, he said he got stuck in Wales after leaving the Air Force. Said he had no money, no friends, no nothing and decided to become a cop. Lucky for us, he joined Torchwood instead."
"Yeah, lucky for us. I'll talk to you later, alright?" Rose barely waited for Gwen's "Okay" before going over to talk to Jack, but before she got out more than a "Hello", she was interrupted by the entrance of Pete and the Scottish Director.
The meeting went quickly. It had been a slow month for aliens. After the important issues had been discussed, everyone seemed to have a question for Captain Harkness. It wasn't precisely an interrogation, but it came close. He answered everyone's questions and didn't seem to lose his good humour. Rose was still a bit suspicious. Her Jack was a conman, after all.
As everyone went their separate ways, she whispered a quick, "Watch him" to Gwen. Walking over to Jack, she handed him a piece of paper with her phone number. "Call me, will ya. I need to ask you some things, but not here." He grinned at her. "Sure thing, babe." She then went over to Pete and gave him a hug and a "See you later, yeah" before handing her stuff to Mickey. She walked over to the Scottish Director. "Ready, Sarah Jane?"
Sarah Jane Smith looked up from her laptop. "Just a minute, Rose."
"Okay," Rose answered. She sat, waiting patiently until Sarah Jane closed her laptop and stood. "Where to? I don't fancy the cafeteria."
"How about a chip shop?"
"Sounds good."
-----------------
Sarah Jane pushed the remainder of her lunch away. "All right. Mickey said you wanted to ask me something. What is it?"
Rose finished chewing her last chip. "Yeah. Well. Remember how I told you about my old universe? About the Doctor?" She barely waited for Sarah Jane's affirmative. "Well, last night my Mum told me that the Director of that Torchwood said it was set up because of him during Queen Victoria's reign. And I wondered, since there's no Doctor in this universe, how and who set this one up?"
"Oh, that's quite simple, really. It was first envisioned by Queen Elizabeth I."
Rose almost choked on her drink from surprise. "Elizabeth I? Not Queen Victoria?"
"Well, actually both."
Rose leaned forward in interest. "Okay, I'm curious. How can two Queens from about three hundred years apart both set up Torchwood?"
"Glad you asked." Sarah Jane opened her laptop, typed something, then turned it around to Rose who read the file as Sarah Jane continued.
"You've heard or read of John Dee?" Not looking up, Rose nodded. "He was an astronomer, astrologer, alchemist, and sometime consultant to Queen Elizabeth I. He also was fascinated by angels. At one time he thought he had captured one. It wasn't an angel, though. It was an alien who had crashed."
That caused Rose to look up. "Really?"
"Yes. He attempted to communicate with it and was convinced he succeeded. He even wrote several books, claiming the angel dictated them to him. Eventually, he persuaded the Queen to fund a small group to watch out for more 'angels'. They did catalog some alien artifacts that crashed to Earth. Along with some alien encounters."
Rose stopped reading. Sarah Jane's narrative was more interesting than the dry facts on the computer screen. "What happened after that?"
"Well, after he went traveling in Europe, there wasn't a leader for the group, which incidentally didn't have a name, until Sir Francis Bacon heard about it and thought it was interesting enough to join. He re-organised it to make it more scientific." She grinned, "We still use his methods now."
"Francis Bacon..." Rose's voice trailed off. "Didn't some people say he was the real writer of Shakespeare's plays?"
"Some people say that. I don't know if it's true. Even so, whoever wrote them was brilliant." Sarah Jane took a sip from her drink. "Anyway, to get back to the subject, after his death, the group continued, off-and-on for the next, oh, about two hundred and fifty years. It waxed and waned depending on the King, or Queen. Some were interested, some weren't. Some considered it heresy and severely punished the known members of the group." She paused for a moment. "The group really came into its own thanks to Prince Albert."
"Queen Victoria's Prince Consort? Really?"
"Yes. He was a bit ahead of his time. He was very interested in the sciences and the arts. And a lot of the reforms from that time owe thanks to him."
"Yeah, but, Torchwood?"
"Well, he had heard of something haunting somewhere in Scotland. He, and his friend, the Lord of Torchwood, tried to kill or stop it, but failed. Several years later, Queen Victoria visited the estate and..."
"Wait! Wait!" Rose had a sudden realisation. "Torchwood Estate," she continued excitedly, "that's where, remember I told you. That's where we, me and the Doctor, that's where we met her! Queen Victoria! The werewolf!"
"Yes, I remember you telling me that." Sarah Jane continued, after another sip from her drink. "According to the records, the Queen and her guards were attacked during her stay there, but it doesn't say from what. Only that most of her guards were killed as well as the estate's Lord who had been a member of, for want a better name, Dee's group."
"Yeah, Lord Robert did die to protect us," Rose commented.
Sarah Jane nodded. "Well, in recognition for the Lord's, Robert, was it? In his and Prince Albert's memories, she re-formed the group and named it the Torchwood Institute. With a mandate to defend the realm on all sides. And it's still going strong nearly a hundred and forty years later." The last statement was said with pride.
There was a long silence as Rose processed what she had heard. "Thanks for telling me this."
Sarah Jane grinned at her. "No problem. Anytime. Is there anything else you want to talk about before I go back to the Estate?"
Rose shook her head. "No, not anything important." She chuckled. "But now I know why you're based in that moldy old castle." Sarah Jane pretended to be insulted, but couldn't help laughing herself.
They sat in companionable silence until Rose's mobile went off. Looking at it, she sighed, "Lunch break's over. Gotta go."
"Yeah, I have to go also."
They gave each other a hug and said good-bye before going their separate ways.
FIN
============================================================
A/N: I couldn't have done this without invaluable information from:
here.
And most especially from Wikipedia, namely:
Elizabeth I, John Dee, Francis Bacon, Queen Victoria, and Prince Albert.
============================================================
============================================================
x-posted to vegasunicorn25 & dwfiction