Lilithangel: Rosary Beads (Thirteen/Jack) [PG] - SUMMER HOLIDAYS PROMPT TEN
Title: Rosary Beads
Author: Lilithangel lilithbint
Prompt: Ten - Peter/practices/a writing pad/while hiding from an enemy
Rating: PG
Pairing: Thirteen/Jack
Spoilers/warnings: spoilers for the new Doctor
* * * * *
“How many Father?” the nurse asked.
“Five more,” the priest replied as he gently placed a wounded soldier on the nearest stretcher. The ward was full of beds and stretchers and a bevy of nuns hurried from one to the other assessing the casualties that continued to stream in.
Outside could be heard the distant roar of guns and lasers as the battle for Earth Twelve continued.
“We're nearly out of room,” the nurse sighed, “not to mention food and supplies.”
“I know,” he sighed in return. “I'm heading out as soon as it gets dark. There’s a report of a supply train further east. Edward's taking a team to disable the tracks.”
“Please don't do what I think you're going to do Father,” the nurse said.
“Come now Sister Constance, it's my sworn duty to protect my flock.”
“Your flock would prefer it if you didn't put your body on the line so recklessly,” Sister Constance replied her whiskers bristling testily. “The children have been asking after you,” she added, “will you at least rest for a while and visit with them? It is story time after all.”
“Never let it be said that Father Jack would let the children down.” Father Jack smiled and headed for the door.
“Father,” Sister Constance called to him, “I meant it. It distresses many of us when you are so careless with yourself. The Creator may bring you back to us every time but we know how much it hurts.”
“I know Sister and your care makes it easier to return,” Jack said seriously. He came back over to her and brushed his cheek against hers.
“Get away with you,” she scolded lightly.
“Your wish is my command,” Jack grinned.
Adjacent to the hospital was a school building as different to the hospital as was possible. The windows faced inward to a central courtyard covered by an opaque dome. Inside the sounds of the battle were almost silent and covered by the sounds of children.
A group of them swarmed over Father Jack when he arrived and the worry in his eyes eased at their chatter, each trying to tell him about their day. He gave each of them a moment of attention letting their joy wash over him until they reached the story room.
“What’s this about a new teacher?” he asked out of the chaos as he settled in the storytelling chair.
“Madame Silver got sick,” one of them replied climbing into his lap. “Peter thinks she was just sick of us.”
“I don’t,” another child perched on his knee, “I just said she might of, Zioni.”
“Or she might just be sick and be back in a few days,” Jack said.
“The new teacher is Madame Smith,” the first child added, “Sister Faith said she came in with the last group of refugees from the city. They'd been hiding until it was safe.”
“Now, whose turn is it to pick a story?”
“Mine!” a young Catkind kit jumped up.
“And Simon, he's new,” Peter added pointing to a young boy sitting at the edge of the group.
“Alright, Janna you can pick first then Simon will know what to do,” Jack said.
Janna early reached for the rosary beads hanging from Jack's belt, carefully touching each bead and considering them closely.
“This one,” she declared caressing a deep red bead with a spiral of blue.
Jack placed the bead against his forehead and smiled. “Good choice Janna. This is a story about a very special car and the mechanic who looked after her.”
“And the Doctor?” Janna said anxiously.
“The Doctor?” Jack raised an eyebrow, “I'm not sure, he might turn up, he has a tendancy to.”
“Father Jack,” Janna scolded with a frown.
Jack grinned. “Okay, where do we start? That's right, Once upon a time and far away a lady had her car stolen.”
“That's not a nice place to start,” Peter protested.
“The start is the start,” Jack replied. “Don't worry, she gets her car back but the person who stole it liked it so much he asked for another one just like it. The closest they could find was a broken down car that nobody had cared for in a long time but he saw how wonderful she could be with a bit of love and called her Bessie.”
“Was he the Doctor?” Janna demanded.
Jack smiled. He remembered UNIT coming to his yard looking for the very car he'd been carefully looking after since the Doctor arrived on Earth. He never thought too hard about the whole wibbly wobbly timey wimey parts of his interactions with the Doctor. But he knew the Doc drove a canary yellow roadster in that regeneration so he made sure a canary yellow roadster was available when the Doctor wanted it and the parts to modify it were also available. He was never sure how the Doctor thought minimum inertia drive technology could be achieved in 1970's England. The Doctor was a good mechanic but not that good.
“And then the Doctor triggered the super drive and Bessie practically flew across the roads to stop the Master from his attempt to free Kronos from his crystal prison. He was almost too late, the Master had already reached Atlantis. In trying to stop the Master they both end up trapped in a time loop going around in circles until they both end up facing Kronos who had escaped while they were busy arguing.”
“The Master can't win though can he?” Janna said anxiously.
“Has he ever?” Jack said and she smiled with relief. “Kronos offered to keep the Master but the Doctor was merciful again giving the Master a chance to escape.”
“What about Sergeant Benton?” Peter asked, “was he still a baby?”
“Well,” Jack continued, “after the Doctor and Jo returned to Earth they found the others had been working on the machine and it overloaded turning Benton back into an adult but...” Jack poised dramatically, “when he was a baby he was too small for his clothes so when he became an adult again...”
“He was in the nude!” Peter guessed in delight and the other children shrieked with laughter.
“That he was,” Jack said, “after that the Doctor used the super drive to beat the Brigadiar back to base.”
“Did he have lots of adventures with Bessie?” Janna asked.
“Yes he did,” Jack said, “and I’m quite sure there's at least one other bead about their adventures. Maybe Simon will pick it or maybe he'll pick something completely different.”
Jack held out an encouraging hand to the young boy who came over to his shyly. “How does it work?” he whispered to Jack.
“See these beads?” Jack said. “This is my memory rosary; it contains the things I don't want to forget. You pick one and when I remember I'll tell you the story.” He kissed the red bead gently and let it fall.
“Are they all good memories?” Simon asked.
“Some are sad but they all have happy bits to them, sometimes you have to look especially close but you can find a happy story,” Jack said.
Simon reached out a tentative hand. “They're warm,” he said with surprise. His hand stopped on a small black bead.
“Keeping memories warm is important,” Jack said taking the bead Simon had picked. He put it up to his forehead and his expression softened. “This is a short story about a man who wasn't a very good man until he met two people who believed in him and made him want to be a good man.”
“That doesn't sound like a short story,” Peter said.
“You're right,” Jack said, “and it's a story that hasn't ended yet but that's the essence of it. He wanted to be a good man.”
“Was he?” Simon asked.
“Sometimes,” Jack said, “but he tries and that's all the Creator asks of us,” he added seeing one of the Sisters standing in the doorway. “That's a story for another day. It looks like it's meal time and time for me to go to work.”
Simon touched the rosary one more time his gaze thoughtful and then he stepped back to allow the other children to swarm Jack again for hugs and kisses before they dutifully left with the Sister.
“Madame Smith said the same thing,” Simon said to Jack before he followed, “only she didn't talk about the Creator, she talked about listening to your heart.”
“The heart is where the Creator speaks to all of us,” Jack said ruffling Simon's hair, “now off with you.”
“Thank you Father Jack.”
Jack watched them go and then got slowly to his feet. His fingers absently counted the beads as he left the school and headed back to his the garden that had become his sanctuary. There was a bit of time before the planned foray and he could feel another memory forming.
In the garden Jack lay down on the grass and stared up at the sky. He'd told the children the truth about memories all having happy bits but sometimes the memory was hard to keep and it took time to bring out the happiness. Those beads were strung on a different smaller rosary that the children didn’t see, that he kept close to his heart.
Slowly a tear formed in the corner of one eye as the memory came forth. It lightened as it grew and hardened. Other tears formed but they stayed liquid and flowed around the bead, washing it and easing the way. Finally Jack reached up and pulled the memory from his eye, placed it to his forehead and smiled through his tears. It was a bittersweet memory of long ago loss, of late nights and laughter, stolen kisses and last minute escapes, of hiding from the enemy and saving the world. It was a memory he was happy to carry just for him, to remember the dead and celebrate.
As time went by and the memories built up he’d been worried about what he was losing. He'd gone searching for the Memory Keepers and accepted the price for their gift, despite not being able to recall anything about their encounter or what memory they had taken. But it was worth it to never lose the Doctor.
“Father Jack is it?” A voice interrupted him crafting the bead for the rosary.
“Madame Smith,” Jack looked up, “you’re late.”
“Didn’t know I was on a deadline,” she replied offering him a hand up.
“Well you weren’t sure yourself which of you would get the message.” Jack let her pull him upright.
“Since when did you get Creation?”
“Since the survivors of Earth Twelve needed to accept I wouldn't stay dead and needed some hope.”
“Fair enough,” she said, “hope is important. Sometimes it's all there is. So,” The Doctor clapped her hands together, “what's the emergency?”
“Not sure. You said you’d need a ride and a mechanic so here I am,” Jack said. “I just have to finish one thing here and then your ride will be ready.”
“Excellent,” she said, “I’m really not sure where She landed once I fell out but I could do with a quick adventure to get back into the game. Let’s go make some more memories. Something with running, I think I still like running.”
“You'll always like running.”
“Oh, and Jack,” she grinned, “catch.” The Doctor tossed a bright orange bead to him. “It's one of mine but I think you might like it.”
Jack caught the bead and brought it briefly to his forehead. His eyes widened in surprise and he chased after the Doctor.
“When did this happen, when will this happen? Doctor!”
The End
xpost: https://wintercompanion.dreamwidth.org/258958.html
Author: Lilithangel lilithbint
Prompt: Ten - Peter/practices/a writing pad/while hiding from an enemy
Rating: PG
Pairing: Thirteen/Jack
Spoilers/warnings: spoilers for the new Doctor
* * * * *
“How many Father?” the nurse asked.
“Five more,” the priest replied as he gently placed a wounded soldier on the nearest stretcher. The ward was full of beds and stretchers and a bevy of nuns hurried from one to the other assessing the casualties that continued to stream in.
Outside could be heard the distant roar of guns and lasers as the battle for Earth Twelve continued.
“We're nearly out of room,” the nurse sighed, “not to mention food and supplies.”
“I know,” he sighed in return. “I'm heading out as soon as it gets dark. There’s a report of a supply train further east. Edward's taking a team to disable the tracks.”
“Please don't do what I think you're going to do Father,” the nurse said.
“Come now Sister Constance, it's my sworn duty to protect my flock.”
“Your flock would prefer it if you didn't put your body on the line so recklessly,” Sister Constance replied her whiskers bristling testily. “The children have been asking after you,” she added, “will you at least rest for a while and visit with them? It is story time after all.”
“Never let it be said that Father Jack would let the children down.” Father Jack smiled and headed for the door.
“Father,” Sister Constance called to him, “I meant it. It distresses many of us when you are so careless with yourself. The Creator may bring you back to us every time but we know how much it hurts.”
“I know Sister and your care makes it easier to return,” Jack said seriously. He came back over to her and brushed his cheek against hers.
“Get away with you,” she scolded lightly.
“Your wish is my command,” Jack grinned.
Adjacent to the hospital was a school building as different to the hospital as was possible. The windows faced inward to a central courtyard covered by an opaque dome. Inside the sounds of the battle were almost silent and covered by the sounds of children.
A group of them swarmed over Father Jack when he arrived and the worry in his eyes eased at their chatter, each trying to tell him about their day. He gave each of them a moment of attention letting their joy wash over him until they reached the story room.
“What’s this about a new teacher?” he asked out of the chaos as he settled in the storytelling chair.
“Madame Silver got sick,” one of them replied climbing into his lap. “Peter thinks she was just sick of us.”
“I don’t,” another child perched on his knee, “I just said she might of, Zioni.”
“Or she might just be sick and be back in a few days,” Jack said.
“The new teacher is Madame Smith,” the first child added, “Sister Faith said she came in with the last group of refugees from the city. They'd been hiding until it was safe.”
“Now, whose turn is it to pick a story?”
“Mine!” a young Catkind kit jumped up.
“And Simon, he's new,” Peter added pointing to a young boy sitting at the edge of the group.
“Alright, Janna you can pick first then Simon will know what to do,” Jack said.
Janna early reached for the rosary beads hanging from Jack's belt, carefully touching each bead and considering them closely.
“This one,” she declared caressing a deep red bead with a spiral of blue.
Jack placed the bead against his forehead and smiled. “Good choice Janna. This is a story about a very special car and the mechanic who looked after her.”
“And the Doctor?” Janna said anxiously.
“The Doctor?” Jack raised an eyebrow, “I'm not sure, he might turn up, he has a tendancy to.”
“Father Jack,” Janna scolded with a frown.
Jack grinned. “Okay, where do we start? That's right, Once upon a time and far away a lady had her car stolen.”
“That's not a nice place to start,” Peter protested.
“The start is the start,” Jack replied. “Don't worry, she gets her car back but the person who stole it liked it so much he asked for another one just like it. The closest they could find was a broken down car that nobody had cared for in a long time but he saw how wonderful she could be with a bit of love and called her Bessie.”
“Was he the Doctor?” Janna demanded.
Jack smiled. He remembered UNIT coming to his yard looking for the very car he'd been carefully looking after since the Doctor arrived on Earth. He never thought too hard about the whole wibbly wobbly timey wimey parts of his interactions with the Doctor. But he knew the Doc drove a canary yellow roadster in that regeneration so he made sure a canary yellow roadster was available when the Doctor wanted it and the parts to modify it were also available. He was never sure how the Doctor thought minimum inertia drive technology could be achieved in 1970's England. The Doctor was a good mechanic but not that good.
“And then the Doctor triggered the super drive and Bessie practically flew across the roads to stop the Master from his attempt to free Kronos from his crystal prison. He was almost too late, the Master had already reached Atlantis. In trying to stop the Master they both end up trapped in a time loop going around in circles until they both end up facing Kronos who had escaped while they were busy arguing.”
“The Master can't win though can he?” Janna said anxiously.
“Has he ever?” Jack said and she smiled with relief. “Kronos offered to keep the Master but the Doctor was merciful again giving the Master a chance to escape.”
“What about Sergeant Benton?” Peter asked, “was he still a baby?”
“Well,” Jack continued, “after the Doctor and Jo returned to Earth they found the others had been working on the machine and it overloaded turning Benton back into an adult but...” Jack poised dramatically, “when he was a baby he was too small for his clothes so when he became an adult again...”
“He was in the nude!” Peter guessed in delight and the other children shrieked with laughter.
“That he was,” Jack said, “after that the Doctor used the super drive to beat the Brigadiar back to base.”
“Did he have lots of adventures with Bessie?” Janna asked.
“Yes he did,” Jack said, “and I’m quite sure there's at least one other bead about their adventures. Maybe Simon will pick it or maybe he'll pick something completely different.”
Jack held out an encouraging hand to the young boy who came over to his shyly. “How does it work?” he whispered to Jack.
“See these beads?” Jack said. “This is my memory rosary; it contains the things I don't want to forget. You pick one and when I remember I'll tell you the story.” He kissed the red bead gently and let it fall.
“Are they all good memories?” Simon asked.
“Some are sad but they all have happy bits to them, sometimes you have to look especially close but you can find a happy story,” Jack said.
Simon reached out a tentative hand. “They're warm,” he said with surprise. His hand stopped on a small black bead.
“Keeping memories warm is important,” Jack said taking the bead Simon had picked. He put it up to his forehead and his expression softened. “This is a short story about a man who wasn't a very good man until he met two people who believed in him and made him want to be a good man.”
“That doesn't sound like a short story,” Peter said.
“You're right,” Jack said, “and it's a story that hasn't ended yet but that's the essence of it. He wanted to be a good man.”
“Was he?” Simon asked.
“Sometimes,” Jack said, “but he tries and that's all the Creator asks of us,” he added seeing one of the Sisters standing in the doorway. “That's a story for another day. It looks like it's meal time and time for me to go to work.”
Simon touched the rosary one more time his gaze thoughtful and then he stepped back to allow the other children to swarm Jack again for hugs and kisses before they dutifully left with the Sister.
“Madame Smith said the same thing,” Simon said to Jack before he followed, “only she didn't talk about the Creator, she talked about listening to your heart.”
“The heart is where the Creator speaks to all of us,” Jack said ruffling Simon's hair, “now off with you.”
“Thank you Father Jack.”
Jack watched them go and then got slowly to his feet. His fingers absently counted the beads as he left the school and headed back to his the garden that had become his sanctuary. There was a bit of time before the planned foray and he could feel another memory forming.
In the garden Jack lay down on the grass and stared up at the sky. He'd told the children the truth about memories all having happy bits but sometimes the memory was hard to keep and it took time to bring out the happiness. Those beads were strung on a different smaller rosary that the children didn’t see, that he kept close to his heart.
Slowly a tear formed in the corner of one eye as the memory came forth. It lightened as it grew and hardened. Other tears formed but they stayed liquid and flowed around the bead, washing it and easing the way. Finally Jack reached up and pulled the memory from his eye, placed it to his forehead and smiled through his tears. It was a bittersweet memory of long ago loss, of late nights and laughter, stolen kisses and last minute escapes, of hiding from the enemy and saving the world. It was a memory he was happy to carry just for him, to remember the dead and celebrate.
As time went by and the memories built up he’d been worried about what he was losing. He'd gone searching for the Memory Keepers and accepted the price for their gift, despite not being able to recall anything about their encounter or what memory they had taken. But it was worth it to never lose the Doctor.
“Father Jack is it?” A voice interrupted him crafting the bead for the rosary.
“Madame Smith,” Jack looked up, “you’re late.”
“Didn’t know I was on a deadline,” she replied offering him a hand up.
“Well you weren’t sure yourself which of you would get the message.” Jack let her pull him upright.
“Since when did you get Creation?”
“Since the survivors of Earth Twelve needed to accept I wouldn't stay dead and needed some hope.”
“Fair enough,” she said, “hope is important. Sometimes it's all there is. So,” The Doctor clapped her hands together, “what's the emergency?”
“Not sure. You said you’d need a ride and a mechanic so here I am,” Jack said. “I just have to finish one thing here and then your ride will be ready.”
“Excellent,” she said, “I’m really not sure where She landed once I fell out but I could do with a quick adventure to get back into the game. Let’s go make some more memories. Something with running, I think I still like running.”
“You'll always like running.”
“Oh, and Jack,” she grinned, “catch.” The Doctor tossed a bright orange bead to him. “It's one of mine but I think you might like it.”
Jack caught the bead and brought it briefly to his forehead. His eyes widened in surprise and he chased after the Doctor.
“When did this happen, when will this happen? Doctor!”
The End
xpost: https://wintercompanion.dreamwidth.org/258958.html