FIC: Time Enough and Space 1/5: A Firefly/Doctor Who Crossover AU

[ashinae]

Time Enough and Space: A Firefly/Doctor Who Crossover AU - chapter 1
by ashinae and linden_jay
Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3 | Chapter 4 | Chapter 5


It was the dreams.

If not for the dreams, Simon knew he'd never lose his grip on the situation; that tenuous grasp on reality, control, and truth. But the dreams haunted him. They mocked him, in vivid colour, in all five senses, reminding him of a past that was just outside his reach.

He sat up in bed and leaned against the wall. The dreams were still there when he closed his eyes.

They would always be there because they weren't just dreams; they were memories. Times and places from his past that he couldn't revisit. Not without her. Not when she was like this.

He ached deep down to his very core. His maternal grandmother would have explained that was his soul crying out in agony. She believed in those sorts of things: souls, soulmates, and destiny.

Some days Simon wasn't at all sure what he believed anymore.

Grandmother believed that souls travelled together from one life to the next. She had explained to him that sometimes, two souls who belonged together would not meet until circumstances had driven them to others. Seeing their soulmate just out of reach could make someone sick, make them ache, deep down to their soul.

Simon wondered exactly what she would say about the situation he was in now. How she'd explain it to him. What sorts of words of support and encouragement she would have for him. God knew she'd be the only one to believe him, at any rate.

He tilted his head back against the wall and closed his eyes. The dreams were still there.

She walked softly. She always walked softly, even when she wore the boots that Simon insisted on when they were off the ship. But in bare feet, she was practically silent. "Simon?"

He gasped softly in surprise, then smiled at her when he recovered. "Hi, River," he said. "Can't sleep?"

River shook her head, then touched one finger to her temple. "Not me. You."

"Yeah," he said. "I had a nightmare." He shifted on the bed and stretched his legs out in front of him. The one leg--the one that had been shot--still hurt.

"I know." She always did. She frowned when he made a bit of a face to register that he was in pain, hand fluttering down to touch the same spot on her own leg, even though she wasn't looking at him.

"Are you okay?" he asked, shifting again to rise from the bed.

"Shh. No getting up. Doctor's orders," she said as she moved around the room, touching things that were his.

Smiling, he moved back to lean against the wall. "I'm the doctor, River. Do you want to come sit?"

She nodded and came to sit on the bed next to him, crossing her legs. "Your thoughts were loud."

"They were? I'm sorry, River. I didn't mean to disturb you."

River shook her head. "I wasn't sleeping."

"You need your rest," he said. "Don't forget to sleep."

She looked at him and wrinkled her nose.

"Don't make faces at me," he said, gently teasing.

River stuck out the tip of her tongue at him. "Bossy. Like Daddy," she said, turning away from him and looking at the wall, fingers playing with the tips of her hair.

"Right," he said. "Bossy." He tilted his head back and closed his eyes. His leg hurt. He thought, for a moment, about taking something for it, but decided against it. He wanted the reminder.

"You won't forget. You never forget."

"No. No, I won't. I can't." How could he?

"I can't fix it." She placed her hand very gently on his leg, and looked up at him, distressed. "Can't undo it."

He took her hand. "Maybe we can. Someday."

She shook her head, tears in her eyes. "I never wanted you hurt," she whispered. "I did it."

"River, you didn't hurt me. You could never hurt me." He stroked her hair back from her face.

A tear slipped down her face. "It's backward. Backward, and all out of order, and I can't..."

"Shhh." He wrapped his arms around her and held her close. "Don't cry. We're both all right."

"I'm sorry. I promised it would be okay. I promised," she whispered. "And now you're full of holes."

"Only one," Simon pointed out. "And it's healing." It only hurt when he thought about it. Or walked too fast. "No permanent damage at all."

"You can lie to Daddy, but you can't lie to me. Never could," she said, fingers tapping gently against his collarbone.

He took her hand and gave it a squeeze. "I'm not lying," he lied.

"Go to hell for lying. Out to the woodshed."

"Shush, you," he said. He tugged her in close again. "I'm not going anywhere."

She closed her eyes and leaned heavily against him. "Time to go to sleep," she murmured.

"I know. I should go back to sleep. And you should get some, too."

River held onto him a little tighter.

*

Simon looked not a little haggard when he and River arrived in the mess. He'd had another dream; not a nightmare, but painful nonetheless. Another memory. Memories that he couldn't share with anyone else. He needed a caffeinated beverage; River needed breakfast.

"Good morning, Shepherd," he said in greeting. His voice was still sleep-rough. "Is there still some of that oatmeal left?"

"I believe there is," Book said, smiling warmly at River. "Good morning, River."

River didn't say anything, but she smiled at the Shepherd and curtsied, still clinging to Simon's shirt.

Simon gently touched her arm. "Do you want some oatmeal, River?" he asked.

She looked up at him and wrinkled her nose.

"No?" He turned, made her to let go of his shirt, and took her hand in his. "What would you like?"

"Sunshine," she said. "Light."

"I think our River might be getting tired of being on the boat," the Shepherd suggested.

Simon couldn't blame her. He squeezed her hand. "So do I, River," he said, "but first? You need to have breakfast."

She sighed, then went up on her toes, and pointed at the oatmeal.

Kaylee had appeared from the other end of the mess. "We'll be landing soon," she said. "Me 'n Shepherd Book are going to go pick up a few supplies. Why don't you two come with us?" She smiled brightly over at Simon.

He didn't quite look at her. "I don't know... maybe," he said as he found a bowl for River.

River'd left Simon and his quest for breakfast, hair falling into her eyes as she went to sit at the table and avoided looking at Kaylee too.

"C'mon, Simon," Kaylee said, "it'd be good for both of you. Sunshine and light. Right, River?"

River lifted her head and looked at Simon. "It's not mine to give away. Not my choice. Not anymore."

He set a bowl down on the table in front of her. "Eat up," he said, very softly. Her words stung, but he tried not to show it.

He'd always be hers.

Simon kissed the top of her head, then went to find himself some tea. "Can I get you anything, Kaylee?"

"Oh, no thanks," she said, "I'm good." She sat down at Book's elbow. "Aren't you eating?"

He shook his head. "I'm not hungry."

River played with her oatmeal. "Lies," she murmured, drawing patterns in the cereal.

Despite how quiet she was, the words hung in the air. Simon pushed her to eat, but didn't have any for himself--not that there was much to be had. "You're right, River," he said after a pause. "I am a little hungry." He took roughly three spoonfuls for himself and sat next to her.

And still, River waited until he took a bite before she'd eat anything.

"You sure you won't come with us?" Kaylee urged. "I think you'd both have fun."

The last time Simon and River had stretched their legs, they'd been kidnapped. Simon still didn't look convinced.

"What are we talking about in here? Who's going places?" Mal was already talking when he walked in the door, stopping to kiss Kaylee on the top of the head and ruffle her hair as he went hunting for oatmeal.

Kaylee smoothed her hair. "We're trying to talk Simon and River into coming to town with us," she said. "It'd be good for them. Right, Shepherd?"

"River did say she wanted some sunshine," the Shepherd agreed.

"So what's the problem? Can't let getting kidnapped by crazy hill people decide the rest of your life," Mal said. "You'll go. Stick with Kaylee and the Shepherd... they'll keep an eye on you."

And now it looked like Simon was soundly outvoted. He looked at River. "Do you want to go down to the planet?" he asked.

She looked over at him and smiled. "Ground under our feet, Simon."

Ground under their feet. He took a breath, let it out, and then smiled in return. "Right," he said. "Looks like we're going planetside after all."

River smiled, and went back to her oatmeal, smoothing away the marks she'd been making.

*

Ground under their feet.

Simon suppressed memories that tried very hard to swim to the surface. He reached for River's hand. "Look at that," he said. "Sunshine."

She laughed, took his hand, then tilted her head back, enjoying the sun on her face.

She was beautiful.

"Wonderful, isn't it?" Simon asked, giving her hand a squeeze.

"Mmm," she murmured. "Warm. Everything's been so cold."

"Yes, it has. It's been a long time since we felt sunshine." Jiangyin. Simon couldn't help feeling nervous, but he wasn't going to let River out of his sight or say anything to upset Kaylee and have her leave them behind. Not this time.

"I believe that the town is in that direction," the Shepherd said, pointing toward a well trodden path.

"Looks that way, don't it?" Kaylee grinned and swung her empty bag over her shoulder. "Come on, you two!"

"We're coming," Simon called. He kept his hold on River's hand. It felt good to have the ground beneath his feet. Not that Serenity wasn't solid, but she wasn't the same. He ached to explore, to experience, but there was just no way.

It wasn't safe.

Simon might be worried, but River was happy. She kept a tight grip on his hand, but she slowed down to look at things, then moved faster so that she could look at something else. Nothing extraordinary--trees, rocks, moss. Dirt. But it meant something to her.

Do you know where we are? he thought. Does something happen here, or was someone important born here? All the way out here--so far from everything--far away and long ago. What do you know? What's trapped in your mind and unable to escape?

Simon watched her, though, a smile on his face. She was a wonder. His own wonder.

*

Kaylee and Book lagged behind Simon and River--partially to keep a protective eye on them. Kaylee looked up at Book. "They look happy, don't they?"

He made a murmur of agreement. "It can't be easy for them," he said. "Having to hide all the time. Perhaps this will help a little bit."

"I hope so. But I think they could be happy. With us. Don't you?"

Book's expression didn't change, even though he wasn't sure that Simon would ever really been what he could call 'with them'. "I think time will tell." That was safe enough.

"I hope so," Kaylee said, softly.

He gave her arm a bit of a squeeze. "Have patience, Kaylee. She's doing better, and he's relaxing."

"Right." She nodded. "River is doing better." She said nothing about Simon, but Book didn't have to guess why. Simon had only seemed more relaxed until the situation with Jubal Early. And now he barely looked at Kaylee any more.

Up the path in front of them, River laughed, then twirled in a circle, trying to get Simon to dance with her. He laughed, too, and took her hands. He'd always had two left feet, but he managed a few steps with her before his toe caught a rock and he just barely managed to keep from falling. That, of course, made River laugh more, and he reached for her, too, saying something that Kaylee and Book couldn't hear.

Kaylee sighed, very quietly.

Book knew better than to say anything at all.

*

"A little shop! I love a little shop."

Simon glanced over his shoulder. A tall, skinny man had just entered the shop with a red-headed woman at his side. His own wild hair and brown coat, as well as her clothes and jewellery, certainly made them conspicuous, but Simon always had better things to do than gawk at strangers. He quickly turned his attention back to River and cupped his hands under hers as she picked up a delicate ceramic figurine. "Do you like it?" he asked. He had a little bit of spending money saved up. He could buy it for her if he could haggle the price down some.

"It's soft... cold, and soft, look, Simon," she said. She offered it to him, then turned and sniffed at the air, almost dropping the figurine.

Simon carefully took it from her. "River?" he said.

Across the shop, the tall man had stopped, too. He stared at River.

River stared back and tilted her head to one side, then the other. "Home," she whispered.

"Hey--how many times do I have to tell you it's rude to stare," the redheaded woman said, smacking the tall man on the arm. "Sorry--he does this."

"So does she," Simon said. "River? Do you want to go back to Serenity?" He slipped his arm around her shoulders and tried to draw her away.

River became the original immovable object, and refused to go with him, gaze still on the stranger. "Home," she said again, more firmly this time.

The tall man, ignoring his companion, approached River slowly. "Who are you?" he asked.

"She's my sister," Simon said, stiffly, once again trying to get River to come with him.

"No, she's not," said the stranger.

Simon really had no idea what to say to that, so he spluttered a little.

"Can we help you with something?" Book was suddenly just there, standing beside River and Simon and looking at the strangers, a smile on his face.

And, Simon noticed, his hand suspiciously close to his pocket.

The tall man looked at Book sharply. "What?"

"Shhh," River said, touching the Shepherd's arm, and smiling at him. "Don't be afraid. It's only a storm."

The tall man looked down at River again. "I'm the Doctor," he said.

Simon frowned up at him. "Doctor... who?"

"A doctor... how interesting," Book said. "Simon is a doctor as well."

River smiled, then laughed, eyes sparkling. "Not that kind of doctor," she whispered.

"Okay--honestly, what is going on?" the redheaded woman demanded. She looked both confused and left out, and clearly those were two things that she did not enjoy.

"Donna," said the stranger. He took her by the arm and led her away. He leaned in to have a hushed conversation with her.

"I don't like this," Simon said. "I think we should get back to Serenity."

"Maybe that isn't a bad idea," Book said, setting down the things that they hadn't yet purchased.

"She's a what?" Across the ship, Donna--the red-headed woman--looked over her shoulder to stare at River. "Oh my God!"

"Donna!"

As the tall man--the Doctor--chastised his friend, Simon took River's hand and gave a gentle tug. "River? It's time to go home. Back to Serenity."

Kaylee approached them from the counter with her full shopping bag. "Who are they?" she asked.

"I don't know," Simon said, "and I really don't want to stick around to find out. River? Please. It's time go home now."

"No--no, I don't want to," River said, balking when Simon tried to get her to move, craning her neck around so that she could look at the Doctor.

"I'll help you," Book said, taking River's other hand and trying to hurry her along.

"River, we don't know them," Simon said, softly, leaning in to speak in her ear. "We aren't safe. We have to go back."

River whimpered and tried to reach back, even though she wasn't really fighting against Simon and the Shepherd moving her along. Even though people were staring.

For a little while, it seemed like the two people were following them. Simon's heart pounded in his ears. Then Kaylee announced that they had turned around a different corner, and were nowhere to be seen.

At one point, Simon thought he heard some sort of faint noise in the distance. Like the whirring of a particularly sick engine, but no one else commented on it.

As Serenity came into view, Simon thought he'd never seen anything more beautiful. And the Doctot and Donna were gone. Definitely, most assuredly, gone.

River stopped struggling sometime back, but she certainly wasn't doing anything much to help. She had a sullen expression on her face, and she dragged her boots in the dust as they walked.

Simon took River straight to her room and they stayed there even as the rest of Serenity's crew got the ship squared away for take off. She wouldn't speak to him, but he talked enough for the two of them. He closed the door, put his arm around her, and talked to her about the past. Their lives together before Serenity. Before the Alliance. Before everything had gone horribly, horribly wrong.

He didn't mention the Doctor. Not once.

*

The Doctor and Donna became the subject of choice at dinner that night. The popular theories was that they were Feds, of some sort, or bounty hunters like Early. Mal and Wash put their heads together to work out an alternate route, putting as much distance as possible between them and any potential pursuers from Newhall.

Simon sat very quietly, grateful for the work being done to keep them safe--all of them--but scared and nervous. He was probably never going to stop being scared and nervous.

River still wasn't speaking to Simon. She wasn't even sitting beside him right at that moment, choosing instead to sit beside Jayne. Proof enough that she wasn't happy with him.

"Go lay in the course, Wash," Mal said from his spot at the head of the table. As Wash got up, so did Mal, but instead of following Wash to the bridge, he started to clear the empty dishes from the table. Conversation was dying down.

That was probably why, at the same time Simon heard it, Mal said, "The hell's that noise?"

After a pause as everyone fell quiet to try to hear whatever the captain heard, Kaylee said, "That ain't the engine."

"No, it surely ain't," Mal agreed.

River lifted her head and smiled. "Storm's coming," she murmured.

Jayne gave her a look, then got up, pushed his chair back, and reached for one of his weapons. "I thought you said they didn't follow you."

"They didn't," Book said. "I'm sure of it."

"It's coming from the cargo bay," said Mal. "Jayne, you wait for me and Zoe before going down there." Mal and Zoe did not wear weapons at the dinner table. Unlike Jayne.

Probably had something to do with that incident with the butcher's knife.

"What about the rest of us?" Simon asked.

"You stay safe," Mal called over his shoulder. Captain-code for 'hide'.

"We have to go," River said. She stood up and started to follow them.

"River, no!" Simon cried as he jumped up to grab her. He knew Kaylee was right behind him.

"Simon, we... please, we have to go," River protested, struggling in his arms.

"Please, River, please listen to me." He turned her around. "It's not safe. Let the captain deal with this."

"Simon," River said, looking dead into his eyes, focused for once. "Simon, it's him."

"Him? Who?" Simon asked. His own expression started to look frightened.

She smiled like he was very, very silly, and she leaned in to whisper to him, only loud enough for him to hear: "The Oncoming Storm, Simon."

*

Mal, Zoe, and Jayne converged in the cargo bay. The noise was joined a good stiff breeze that seemed to come out of nowhere. And then the three of them all took a step back as something materialised right smack-dab in the middle of the cargo bay.

It that was blue. And tall. And box-like. With a funny light on top. The noise stopped.

Mal looked at Zoe, then at Jayne. He, of course, looked only at the blue box, eyes--and weapon--trained right in on it.

River's footsteps were light on the stairs as she ran after them. Only the soft sound of her dress brushing the metal announced her presence, which they almost noticed too late.

"River!" Zoe reached for her just as the doors of the blue box swung open, pulling her in and holding on tightly.

There stood a man just as he was described by Simon, Kaylee, and Book. Right next to him was the redheaded woman. The Doctor and Donna. Mal trained his weapon on them.

"Oh, hello," said the Doctor. After a moment, he put his hands in the air in what looked to be a delayed sort of acknowledgement of the three people pointing guns at him. "Sorry to show up uninvited."

"Doctor, that's an awful lot of guns," Donna observed, although her attention seemed distracted by Jayne. She kept looking at his arms.

Mal had to question her taste.

"Yes, it is," the Doctor agreed, "and it's really not necessary."

"I think we'll be the judge of what's necessary," Jayne said, eyes narrowing as he moved his finger toward the trigger.

And somehow, River slipped out of Zoe's grip and moved in front of Mal, Zoe, and Jayne; in front of the guns. She walked right up to the Doctor.

"Hello, there." The Doctor lowered his hands and smiled down at River. "We didn't get to finish our conversation."

"River!" The shout came from above. Simon ran so fast down the stairs it was a wonder he didn't fall flat on his face and hurt himself in horrible ways.

River smiled when she heard Simon coming, as though he was walking to her and not in danger of hurtling to his death. "That's Simon," she informed the Doctor.

"Hello, Simon!" the Doctor called cheerfully. "We weren't properly introduced earlier. I'm the Doctor, and this is Donna." He looked down at River. "And who are your tall, burly friends?" As if Mal, Zoe, and Jayne still didn't have a bead on him.

River smiled at him, rose up onto her toes (she was barefoot again), then back down. "This is Serenity. She's very pleased to meet you."

"Serenity," the Doctor echoed with a nod, looking around. "She's a beautiful ship. Now, who's her capt--"

As the Doctor was spoke, Simon skidded to a halt right beside River. And he stared, wide-eyed, mouth open--but not at the Doctor or Donna. No, he stared behind them, at the blue box and its open doors and into the space beyond. "That--" he said, "that's a TARDIS. You have a TARDIS."

"Why yes," said the Doctor. "I certainly do."

Donna poked the Doctor in the arm. "How does he know what a TARDIS is?" she asked. "You certainly do get yourself around, don't you? I'm just surprised he's not a blond."

"It's nothing like that, Donna," said the Doctor.

"You're a Time Lord." Simon looked up at the Doctor in wonder. "I'm sorry I got scared before. I thought you were..." He trailed off, then looked at Mal. "They're not here to hurt us," he said.

"Really." Mal was still highly suspicious. Actually, he was entirely dumbfounded and he didn't like that. It annoyed him. There were strangers from a blue box in the middle of his cargo hold, and they seemed entirely unconcerned about the fact that Mal and his people still had weapons pointed at them. Simon was saying things that made no sense--though Mal had to concede silently and only to himself that perhaps that wasn't entirely unusual.

And River--well, River was River.

"Mal," River spoke up, as though Simon hadn't interrupted at all, and Mal started. He wasn't used to hearing her say anyone's name but Simon's and perhaps Kaylee's on occasion.

River had her head tilted slightly to the side, and she was focused on the blue box, but her voice was perfectly clear and composed as she recited the list of the crew, flicking a finger in the direction of each person she named. "Mal Reynolds is our Captain. Zoe Washburne is his first mate. That's Jayne. Jayne and Vera. He shoots things. Wash flies Serenity, Kaylee keeps her in the sky. Inara's a Companion, Shepherd Book..." River trailed off, smiled, and turned to look up at the catwalk.

Mal didn't have to follow her gaze to know that Wash, Kaylee, Inara, and Book were there and watching the scene below.

"This is Simon. He's a doctor." River didn't introduce herself.

Mal had just about run out of patience for surprises. He would have run out of patience for surprises a few minutes ago--about the time Simon didn't hurtle to his death--except that he was far too busy being surprised.

"I'm the Doctor," said the Doctor, looking around at everyone else, "and this is Donna Noble."

"The Doctor," Mal echoed, flatly. "Doctor...?" He waited for more information.

"Just the Doctor," said the Doctor, smiling brilliantly. "We're travellers. And we ran into Simon and River on Newhall. Do you mind if we come in?" He and Donna stepped further away from the blue box, and he closed the door behind them. "Look at this ship, Donna! I told you how beautiful she'd be. Look at all this space!"

"I ask to go to some place with a beach, he brings me to a desert planet, and a cargo hold," Donna said, all loudly confidential, and aimed in Simon's direction.

"Sounds vaguely familiar, actually," Simon murmured. "Where are you from? Or rather--when?"

"Hang on--Mal, what the hell are they on about anyway?" Jayne demanded. "There's a blue box in the cargo hold, and that guy don't seem to have a name."

Before Mal could answer, Simon peered back at Jayne and said, "It's not a box, Jayne. It just looks like one. It's a space ship. And a time machine. Perhaps we can take the Doctor and Donna back upstairs. I think..." He looked at River a moment before he locked eyes with Mal. "I think we have a lot to talk about. Again."

"A time machine?" Jayne swore in Chinese, making an uncomplimentary reference to Simon's parentage.

"Now that was entirely uncalled for," the Doctor said. "It is, in fact, a time machine. Now, please, if I have to keep staring at guns, I'm going to be very cross." He looked pointedly at Vera.

Jayne narrowed his eyes, and lifted Vera up a little more.

"No touching guns," River said, waving her finger at Jayne, who looked as though the top of his head might just blow off.

"Cap'n?" Kaylee called. "I really don't think they're gonna hurt anybody. Why not bring them up? I'll make tea."

"Ah, there we go!" The Doctor looked up at Kaylee. "A good cup of tea's just what we could all use right now."

Mal suddenly had a headache. He grudgingly agreed with a curt nod of his head. "Go," he said to Simon, "but you owe me an explanation."

"You'll get it," Simon promised.

River went to stand in front of Jayne, blocking his aim and standing there, playing with her hair.

Jayne still looked pissed off.


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