Firefly/Doctor Who crossover fic: A Different Kind of Companion (2/20)

[locker_monster]

Title: A Different Kind of Companion (2/20)
Rating: PG-13
Characters/Pairings: Ten, Rose, Ten/Rose, Mal, Inara, Mal/Inara
Timeline: A week after "Heart of Gold" for Firefly, and just before "Army of Ghosts" for Doctor Who
Summary: After an encounter in the 26th century, Inara and Rose find themselves in unfamiliar settings.
Disclaimer: Firefly and Doctor Who belong to their respective creators and showrunners. Too much awesome would happen if Joss Whedon and Russell T Davies ever worked on something together.
A/N: The biggest thank you goes out to browncoat_2x2 for betaing this story and helping with the minor changes.

Chapter One.

            Mal landed the shuttle just outside of the town. The harsh sunlight beat down on them, but Mal still wore his brown coat. Inara suspected he considered it his trademark, his symbol. Even years after the war between the Alliance and the Independents, it instantly told people, and employers, who he was and what to expect. Still, she couldn’t imagine that he was very comfortable wearing the heavy coat in such warm weather. Fortunately, she was perfectly content in a light dress.

            “Jannik owns a bar near the centre of town,” said Mal as he led the way through the dusty streets.

            There weren’t many people out, but if Inara lived in the desert she would want to stay inside at this time of the day, too. Of the handful of people they did pass, a few of them paused to take a second glance at her. She couldn’t tell if it was because they knew she was a Companion or not many women like her passed through town.

            Outside Jannik’s bar, Mal paused and stared at the building. Inara waited in the shade and watched as he walked the perimeter of the bar. When he made it back to her, he seemed satisfied. “If shootin’ breaks out–”

            “You expect Jannik to pull a gun?”

            “Stories about Jannik get tossed around. Rather walk in overly prepared than end up dead over a job prospect.”

            “Of course.” Inara almost commented on Mal's concern for her safety but it was clear he would have been concerned even if he had come here with Zoe or Jayne. Strangers on border planets couldn’t be trusted.

            Casually, Mal hooked his thumbs over his gun belt and strode into Jannik’s. Following the tails of his coat, Inara walked in, pausing to allow her eyes to adjust to the indoor lighting. About half a dozen men were lounging around, drinking, talking, or playing cards. There was a bar off to the right and a curtain at the far end of the room separated what Inara assumed were more rooms in the back. To the left, a staircase led up to the second floor where Jannik soon appeared.

            The man looked to be in his fifties, with greying red hair. His bushy moustache was also streaked with grey but as Inara had found with most greying men, it made Jannik look distinguished. Unlike the other men in the bar, Jannik wore an obviously tailored business suit and tie. His shoes were polished to a shine that made Inara wonder if the man ever actually went outside.

            “Malcolm Reynolds. It’s good to finally meet you.” said Jannik as he walked down the stairs and headed over to Mal to shake his hand. The man’s gaze shifted to Inara. “And who is this lovely lady?”

            “Inara Serra.” She held out a hand for her introduction and Jannik took it in his own, turning her hand so he could kiss her knuckles.

            "And what brings you here to our dusty planet, Miss Serra?”

            “I travel with Captain Reynolds.”

            “Captain Reynolds is a lucky man then.” Jannik held her hand for a moment longer than necessary before turning to Mal. “So, Captain Reynolds, you wish to work for me.”

            “I run a good ship. Me and mine can get any job done.”

            “Yes, that’s what I hear. Please, sit down. Would either of you care for a drink? I know it can get quite hot here.”

            Mal shook his head no and Inara refused politely as they sat down at a nearby table. Jannik took this in stride and motioned to the bartender, who quickly went to work. “But I don’t hire just anyone,” continued Jannik. “I expect efficiency and dedication from those in my employ. However, if I like what I see, you can expect steady work.”

            “That would be muchly appreciated,” said Mal, but he showed no eagerness.

            “Good, now that I’ve set out the ground rules, we can discuss the job. Are you familiar with the Alliance ship yard at New Kasmir?”

            Inara’s attention was drawn in at the word “Alliance” and though Mal showed no outward change, she knew he was interested, too. She just hoped he would think things through before agreeing to do anything.

            “Never been there myself, but I know New Kasmir.”

            “It’s a big ship yard,” Jannik supplied, pausing for a moment to allow the bartender to place his drink on the table. “Full of Alliance ships just commissioned, waiting for repairs, or ready to be junked. You’d be surprised to see the kinds of things they throw away.”

            “Let me guess. Valuable things.”

            “High technology. The latest will be installed in the new ships, but the old ones still have components worth selling, especially to the outer planets. I’ve got a list, Captain Reynolds. You get me at least half of the components and I’ll pay you and your crew handsomely.” Jannik took a sip of his drink.

            An Alliance ship yard. The last thing Mal and the others had stolen from the Alliance was medicine. Inara hadn’t been around for that escapade. But medicine was nothing compared to expensive technology.

            Mal rested his left hand on the table, but kept his right hand on his thigh, close to his pistol. “Have any intel on the place? A payin’ job sounds mighty fine, but it ain’t worth it if my crew gets arrested.”

            “Yes, that would cause problems for the both of us. I do have some limited intelligence but I’m afraid you and your crew will have to be quite ingenious.”

            “So we’re hired?” Mal asked casually.

            Jannik lifted his glass. “To our partnership.”

* * *

            “So that other planet you mentioned, uh…”

            “Argolis,” offered the Doctor. He was fiddling with the TARDIS controls as usual. Rose doubted she would ever learn what each of them did.

            “Right, Argolis. You’ve been there before?”

            “Is that a surprise?” The Doctor grinned. “It wasn’t my choice at the time. I was content to sit on a beach in Brighton. Lovely place, Brighton. Still haven’t seen the opening of the Brighton Pavilion though.”

            “Did you go with someone else?” asked Rose, recognizing the Doctor’s babbling as a way of distracting her. She knew now that the Doctor had travelled with other people long before she had come along, but it was still odd for her to picture her Doctor, with a different face, travelling with someone else.

             “It was a long time ago.” The Doctor pushed a random button. “But enough about me. Zaakros. Brilliant planet. A florist’s dream or an allergy sufferer’s worst nightmare. Did you know there are 5481 known types of daisies in the galaxy?”

            Rose let the Doctor prattle on. It bothered her sometimes that she knew so little about the Doctor’s past. Her trust in him was so complete. So why couldn’t he tell her anything about where he was from? She didn’t even know the name of his planet. But there were times when she was reminded that he wasn’t an ordinary man and she was grateful just to be in his company.

            Besides, she had all the time in the world to get to know him.

            “Any chance of us running into, I dunno, people eating plants while we’re there? Last time we were nearly eaten, I didn’t have the proper shoes.”

            “Rose Tyler. You make it sound as if every place we visit we end up running for our lives.” The Doctor paused and glanced down at Rose’s feet. “Mind you, they do have Venus flytraps the size of a double decker bus…”

            They met each other’s gaze and burst into laughter.

            “We’ll be fine,” the Doctor assured Rose as their laughter died. “In fact…” He looked up at the central column of the TARDIS. “We’re here.”

Comments

[pleiades.livejournal.com]

Your dialogue is so spot-on I can hear the characters' voices in my head when I read it. Please continue!!

[locker-monster.livejournal.com]

It's always a struggle for me to make sure the characters sound right so this is a wonderful comment, thank you. :-D

[goldy-dollar.livejournal.com]

Hooray! More crossover. (Also: hot banner! It's a new one! *G*)

Heh. I like the description of Mal's latest job, and how completely out of place Inara must look.

It bothered her sometimes that she knew so little about the Doctor’s past. Her trust in him was so complete. So why couldn’t he tell her anything about where he was from? She didn’t even know the name of his planet.

Awwww, Rose! *cuddles her* I so want to assure her that she makes him HAPPY, and to watch S3 if she doesn't believe me. :D

[locker-monster.livejournal.com]

I stopped myself at two banners. :-D You'd be surprised by how hard it is to find decent promo shots of Billie Piper/Rose.

It makes me wonder if the Doctor would have told Rose about Gallifrey eventually. It's always after the fact that you realize something and the Doctor's no exception.

[sunstar77.livejournal.com]

Did you know there are 5481 known types of daisies in the galaxy?”

I have a friend, who for her, that would be a nightmare.

[locker-monster.livejournal.com]

I can't imagine what spring would be like on that planet. I have enough problems with allergies on planet Earth. :-D

[elflore.livejournal.com]

Great continuation--love the Venus flytrap laugh, and the new banner! *g*

[locker-monster.livejournal.com]

Thanks! I hadn't planned on making a banner for Mal and Rose, but then I figured, why not. :-D