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DW/TW crossover fic: Adam's Window of Opportunity
OK, I'm not sure about this one. I've been not-writing it for a few weeks now (since BBC3 showed S1 of DW) and finally decided to just polish it off and post it, but it didn't turn out how I thought it would. *grumble* So any thoughts would be very welcome. (And corrections - this is un-beta'd, so if you come across any misspellings etc please let me know.)
Title: Adam's Window of Opportunity.
Characters: Adam, Jack.
Summary: One week after the Doctor abandoned him on Earth, a stranger came to see Adam Mitchell.
Setting: 2012, post-'The Long Game'.
Rating: PG.
Spoilers: None.
Genre: DW/TW crossover.
Word count: 2000 words approx.
Adam’s Window of Opportunity
One week after the Doctor abandoned him on Earth, a stranger came to see Adam Mitchell.
His mother knocked on the door to his room where he had barricaded himself - and how sad was it that he was hiding in his old bedroom? Was he doomed to spend his entire life here? - but unlike the other times she smiled when he looked up.
“Adam - there’s someone to see you. He says...” she took an unsteady breath, “he says he might be able to help you with... you know...”
She did a vague motion towards his head and then, after hesitating for a moment, stood aside, and a tall, handsome, dark-haired man took her place in the door frame, a superior smile on his face.
“Well then... let’s have a look at the English Kid!”
Adam’s eyes widened in shock. Judging by the accent and the nickname it could only be someone from van Statten - or Diana rather, since she was in charge now. Of course they would track him down, why had he not thought about that? ‘Help him with his head’ was just a fancy way of describing the mindwipe he’d get, so he couldn’t give anything away about his former job... He swallowed nervously and dearly wished he had one of those alien weapons he’d put aside.
“I swear I won’t tell anyone about van Statten or... anything. I’m sorry I ran away, but my work contract was very unorthodox and I got this offer... And - I’m a British citizen, you have no jurisdiction over me.”
His voice faltered as the stranger - who was dressed like a relic from the 2nd World War, where had Diana found him - slowly let his eyes travel up and down Adam’s body, before quirking an eyebrow.
“Cute and smart. Oh I can see why Rose went for you. Although - everything considered - it’s good the Doctor regenerated into someone she fancied, or she’d probably have continued to pick up amoral eyecandy from around the universe. That girl really needed a better taste in men.”
The man chuckled as though he’d told a good joke, and Adam, feeling as if he’d been slapped round the head with a large fish - a large alien impossible fish - falteringly tried to string a sentence together.
“How... how do you... who are you?”
“Captain Jack Harkness. Former companion to the Doctor, as you can probably work out. You were a cautionary tale, by the way, which is how I know about you. Would have got here sooner, but I had to go to America and salvage a lot of useful artefacts before the lovely Diana Goddard poured cement all over them. I believe you knew her?”
Adam nodded mutely, and the Captain continued - he was clearly the type who liked the sound of his own voice. “Also I thought that it might be good to give you a little time to mull things over and consider your future, what with... this...”
He held up his hand, and before Adam could stop him he’d snapped his fingers.
The reaction was not what he expected however, as the other’s eyes lit up in delight.
"Ooooh, Type Two Info Spike, just like they said. Gorgeous! I came to Satellite 5 a century too late to see these in action unfortunately."
His eyes narrowed. "Utterly useless here of course, and wildly impractical, but we might just be able to adapt it..."
Adam suddenly felt breathless. "Who's ‘we’? And - adapt? You mean you can change the opening mechanism?"
Captain Jack nodded, still focussed on his forehead - then reached into his pocket and pulled out a square contraption of some sort, before beginning to press buttons. The thing gave a series of bleeps, and the Captain smiled.
“Oh yes, we can work with that. Excellent.”
Without ever showing Adam - who was itching to find out what the gadget was - he shoved it back in his pocket, before swiftly snapping his fingers again and taking a step back, eyes shrewd and calculating. He suddenly reminded Adam of van Statten driving home a deal, knowing that he held all the good cards.
“I can fix it - on one condition.”
Adam stared, curbing his overwhelming impulse to shake him. “Anything. Seriously. Just name it.”
The Captain studied him, the shrewdness overlaid with a look Adam couldn’t quite work out, except it reminded him uncomfortably of the Doctor.
“I want you to come work for me.” He smiled, that strange look still in his eyes, as he continued. “The Doctor didn’t want you - but you are pretty much perfect for my needs.”
“What - what would I be doing?” Adam asked, nervousness edging out the sudden wild hope that had suffused him at the promise of being ‘fixed’.
“Basically what you were doing for van Statten. Except you will receive proper training, and you will be extremely closely monitored.”
“So... are you a collector?” Adam cut in, and Captain Harkness shook his head, his expression caught between amusement and distaste.
“I’m the leader of the Torchwood Institute - a secret organisation founded in 1879 to protect the British Empire, and by extension the whole Earth, against the threat of aliens. You’ll be part of a small, dedicated team, fighting hostile aliens and finding ways of using their technology to help humankind arm itself against the future.”
Adam swallowed. “When do we leave?” he asked, despite his best efforts unable to hide his eagerness - an eagerness not just born out of a desire to start this exciting new life as soon as possible, but also out of a fervent wish to put the past week-and-a-bit thoroughly behind him.
The Captain studied at him, and he had the horrible sensation of the other man being able to see right through him - making him feel like a small, impatient child. But it wasn’t every day someone came along and told you that all your childhood dreams were coming true.
Finally Captain Harkness spoke: “There is a catch.”
“Of course,” Adam nodded, trying his best to look sensible and dependable, and pretending that he wasn’t uneasy at the sudden haunted look in those blue eyes.
“You will die. Maybe sooner, maybe later, but this job will kill you. The average life expectancy is 5 years - some last longer, some shorter. 5 years is a good run.”
There was a pause, then the Captain slowly continued.
“So this is your choice: Live a quiet life here, where you might actually manage to lead a fairly normal life despite your... disability... or come with me, where you’ll be able to use every talent you posses and then some, but will with 99.5% probability meet with an early and painful end. I’ll... go chat to your mum while you make up your mind - if you want to come along, clear up this room so it looks exactly like it did a week ago.”
Not waiting for Adam to speak, he turned and walked out.
Adam sat in silence for a long moment, trying to organise his thoughts, before swiftly - almost feverishly - tidying up. There was no doubt in his mind at all, no decision to make. It was clear that this was his one shot at getting out of the fix he’d landed himself in. He’d heard it said that when God closed a door, he opened a window. Adam was not at all religious, but having seen the door of the TARDIS not only close, but disappear altogether, he would have taken any opening at all that was thrown his way: Window, cat flap, mouse hole - anything. And this window had a breathtaking view.
Having returned the room to its previous status and repacked the bag he had brought from van Statten’s, Adam walked through the house to the kitchen, where he found his new boss carefully cleaning the teapot and a couple of cups. His mother was asleep at the table, her head resting on her hands.
The Captain smiled when he saw him, eyes darting to the bag. “Coming?”
Adam nodded. He was rewarded with an even wider smile, the other not at all trying to hide that he’d known what the outcome would be from before he entered the house.
Hesitating slightly, Adam decided to ask what was the matter with his mother - he figured something had been done to her, and was a little worried. Not much, but he didn’t want her caught up in anything.
The Captain shrugged. “Retconned her. She’ll have forgotten the past week when she wakes up - we really don’t want anyone knowing about that clever spike of yours. You can call her tomorrow and tell her about your exciting new job - I’ll give you some notes, even though I’m pretty sure you’re used to lying about your work.”
“OK,” he answered, trying not to show how impressed he was. Van Statten’s mindwipes had been a lot more primitive - but then the man had liked to be bluntly over-the-top in all things.
“Oh, and Adam...” he looked up to find Captain Harkness watching him intently, eyes dark and dangerous. “If you put so much as a foot wrong, you’ll end up right back here, with no recollection of anything that happened after the Doctor left you. Don’t think you can pull a fast one on me - I’m older, smarter, and a lot more resourceful than you, understood? Torchwood is like Hotel California - you’ll never leave. Literally.”
“Got it,” Adam replied, telling himself firmly that he wasn’t scared. Lion for a day or a life as a mouse - who’d be a mouse?
“Great!” his boss replied. “Let’s go!”
After moving Adam’s mother to the sofa, and making sure there was no trace of Adam’s stay anywhere in the house, the Captain led the way down the road to a large black SUV, throwing Adam’s bag in the back before getting in. As he turned the key, he grinned.
“And it’s back to Cardiff!”
Adam’s jaw dropped. “Cardiff? I’m going to spend the rest of my life in Cardiff?”
A droll look. “It’s more interesting than your bedroom, trust me.”
Adam lowered his eyes, chastised, but then heard a chuckle. “Unless of course you have a pet pterodactyl hidden in your cupboard...”
“What?”
Jack’s laughter filled up the car, warm and rich, and Adam with a jolt realised that van Statten had never laughed. It was possible that the Doctor had, but all Adam could remember was anger and disappointment.
And just like that, without consciously noticing, he became Jack’s. By the time he became aware of it, he knew, from observing his fellow team members, that it had been inevitable - once in, Torchwood and Jack took over your life, just like he’d been warned. But he’d never thought that laughter would be what tipped the scales.
Title: Adam's Window of Opportunity.
Characters: Adam, Jack.
Summary: One week after the Doctor abandoned him on Earth, a stranger came to see Adam Mitchell.
Setting: 2012, post-'The Long Game'.
Rating: PG.
Spoilers: None.
Genre: DW/TW crossover.
Word count: 2000 words approx.
One week after the Doctor abandoned him on Earth, a stranger came to see Adam Mitchell.
His mother knocked on the door to his room where he had barricaded himself - and how sad was it that he was hiding in his old bedroom? Was he doomed to spend his entire life here? - but unlike the other times she smiled when he looked up.
“Adam - there’s someone to see you. He says...” she took an unsteady breath, “he says he might be able to help you with... you know...”
She did a vague motion towards his head and then, after hesitating for a moment, stood aside, and a tall, handsome, dark-haired man took her place in the door frame, a superior smile on his face.
“Well then... let’s have a look at the English Kid!”
Adam’s eyes widened in shock. Judging by the accent and the nickname it could only be someone from van Statten - or Diana rather, since she was in charge now. Of course they would track him down, why had he not thought about that? ‘Help him with his head’ was just a fancy way of describing the mindwipe he’d get, so he couldn’t give anything away about his former job... He swallowed nervously and dearly wished he had one of those alien weapons he’d put aside.
“I swear I won’t tell anyone about van Statten or... anything. I’m sorry I ran away, but my work contract was very unorthodox and I got this offer... And - I’m a British citizen, you have no jurisdiction over me.”
His voice faltered as the stranger - who was dressed like a relic from the 2nd World War, where had Diana found him - slowly let his eyes travel up and down Adam’s body, before quirking an eyebrow.
“Cute and smart. Oh I can see why Rose went for you. Although - everything considered - it’s good the Doctor regenerated into someone she fancied, or she’d probably have continued to pick up amoral eyecandy from around the universe. That girl really needed a better taste in men.”
The man chuckled as though he’d told a good joke, and Adam, feeling as if he’d been slapped round the head with a large fish - a large alien impossible fish - falteringly tried to string a sentence together.
“How... how do you... who are you?”
“Captain Jack Harkness. Former companion to the Doctor, as you can probably work out. You were a cautionary tale, by the way, which is how I know about you. Would have got here sooner, but I had to go to America and salvage a lot of useful artefacts before the lovely Diana Goddard poured cement all over them. I believe you knew her?”
Adam nodded mutely, and the Captain continued - he was clearly the type who liked the sound of his own voice. “Also I thought that it might be good to give you a little time to mull things over and consider your future, what with... this...”
He held up his hand, and before Adam could stop him he’d snapped his fingers.
The reaction was not what he expected however, as the other’s eyes lit up in delight.
"Ooooh, Type Two Info Spike, just like they said. Gorgeous! I came to Satellite 5 a century too late to see these in action unfortunately."
His eyes narrowed. "Utterly useless here of course, and wildly impractical, but we might just be able to adapt it..."
Adam suddenly felt breathless. "Who's ‘we’? And - adapt? You mean you can change the opening mechanism?"
Captain Jack nodded, still focussed on his forehead - then reached into his pocket and pulled out a square contraption of some sort, before beginning to press buttons. The thing gave a series of bleeps, and the Captain smiled.
“Oh yes, we can work with that. Excellent.”
Without ever showing Adam - who was itching to find out what the gadget was - he shoved it back in his pocket, before swiftly snapping his fingers again and taking a step back, eyes shrewd and calculating. He suddenly reminded Adam of van Statten driving home a deal, knowing that he held all the good cards.
“I can fix it - on one condition.”
Adam stared, curbing his overwhelming impulse to shake him. “Anything. Seriously. Just name it.”
The Captain studied him, the shrewdness overlaid with a look Adam couldn’t quite work out, except it reminded him uncomfortably of the Doctor.
“I want you to come work for me.” He smiled, that strange look still in his eyes, as he continued. “The Doctor didn’t want you - but you are pretty much perfect for my needs.”
“What - what would I be doing?” Adam asked, nervousness edging out the sudden wild hope that had suffused him at the promise of being ‘fixed’.
“Basically what you were doing for van Statten. Except you will receive proper training, and you will be extremely closely monitored.”
“So... are you a collector?” Adam cut in, and Captain Harkness shook his head, his expression caught between amusement and distaste.
“I’m the leader of the Torchwood Institute - a secret organisation founded in 1879 to protect the British Empire, and by extension the whole Earth, against the threat of aliens. You’ll be part of a small, dedicated team, fighting hostile aliens and finding ways of using their technology to help humankind arm itself against the future.”
Adam swallowed. “When do we leave?” he asked, despite his best efforts unable to hide his eagerness - an eagerness not just born out of a desire to start this exciting new life as soon as possible, but also out of a fervent wish to put the past week-and-a-bit thoroughly behind him.
The Captain studied at him, and he had the horrible sensation of the other man being able to see right through him - making him feel like a small, impatient child. But it wasn’t every day someone came along and told you that all your childhood dreams were coming true.
Finally Captain Harkness spoke: “There is a catch.”
“Of course,” Adam nodded, trying his best to look sensible and dependable, and pretending that he wasn’t uneasy at the sudden haunted look in those blue eyes.
“You will die. Maybe sooner, maybe later, but this job will kill you. The average life expectancy is 5 years - some last longer, some shorter. 5 years is a good run.”
There was a pause, then the Captain slowly continued.
“So this is your choice: Live a quiet life here, where you might actually manage to lead a fairly normal life despite your... disability... or come with me, where you’ll be able to use every talent you posses and then some, but will with 99.5% probability meet with an early and painful end. I’ll... go chat to your mum while you make up your mind - if you want to come along, clear up this room so it looks exactly like it did a week ago.”
Not waiting for Adam to speak, he turned and walked out.
Adam sat in silence for a long moment, trying to organise his thoughts, before swiftly - almost feverishly - tidying up. There was no doubt in his mind at all, no decision to make. It was clear that this was his one shot at getting out of the fix he’d landed himself in. He’d heard it said that when God closed a door, he opened a window. Adam was not at all religious, but having seen the door of the TARDIS not only close, but disappear altogether, he would have taken any opening at all that was thrown his way: Window, cat flap, mouse hole - anything. And this window had a breathtaking view.
Having returned the room to its previous status and repacked the bag he had brought from van Statten’s, Adam walked through the house to the kitchen, where he found his new boss carefully cleaning the teapot and a couple of cups. His mother was asleep at the table, her head resting on her hands.
The Captain smiled when he saw him, eyes darting to the bag. “Coming?”
Adam nodded. He was rewarded with an even wider smile, the other not at all trying to hide that he’d known what the outcome would be from before he entered the house.
Hesitating slightly, Adam decided to ask what was the matter with his mother - he figured something had been done to her, and was a little worried. Not much, but he didn’t want her caught up in anything.
The Captain shrugged. “Retconned her. She’ll have forgotten the past week when she wakes up - we really don’t want anyone knowing about that clever spike of yours. You can call her tomorrow and tell her about your exciting new job - I’ll give you some notes, even though I’m pretty sure you’re used to lying about your work.”
“OK,” he answered, trying not to show how impressed he was. Van Statten’s mindwipes had been a lot more primitive - but then the man had liked to be bluntly over-the-top in all things.
“Oh, and Adam...” he looked up to find Captain Harkness watching him intently, eyes dark and dangerous. “If you put so much as a foot wrong, you’ll end up right back here, with no recollection of anything that happened after the Doctor left you. Don’t think you can pull a fast one on me - I’m older, smarter, and a lot more resourceful than you, understood? Torchwood is like Hotel California - you’ll never leave. Literally.”
“Got it,” Adam replied, telling himself firmly that he wasn’t scared. Lion for a day or a life as a mouse - who’d be a mouse?
“Great!” his boss replied. “Let’s go!”
After moving Adam’s mother to the sofa, and making sure there was no trace of Adam’s stay anywhere in the house, the Captain led the way down the road to a large black SUV, throwing Adam’s bag in the back before getting in. As he turned the key, he grinned.
“And it’s back to Cardiff!”
Adam’s jaw dropped. “Cardiff? I’m going to spend the rest of my life in Cardiff?”
A droll look. “It’s more interesting than your bedroom, trust me.”
Adam lowered his eyes, chastised, but then heard a chuckle. “Unless of course you have a pet pterodactyl hidden in your cupboard...”
“What?”
Jack’s laughter filled up the car, warm and rich, and Adam with a jolt realised that van Statten had never laughed. It was possible that the Doctor had, but all Adam could remember was anger and disappointment.
And just like that, without consciously noticing, he became Jack’s. By the time he became aware of it, he knew, from observing his fellow team members, that it had been inevitable - once in, Torchwood and Jack took over your life, just like he’d been warned. But he’d never thought that laughter would be what tipped the scales.