Rhapsody in Blue
So my ideas for this were literally ‘Rose Tyler in a dumpster’, ‘Punch Nazis’, and ‘9 and Sarah’. Like that’s where my brain went after reading the prompt, and honestly, it was that or the marching band AU (which I’m probably gonna write too because why not. All the things for the new year). So @cherazor I hope you like your @dwsecretsanta gift. It’s not particularly shippy, but I had fun with it. So here it is, what my Birds of Prey and Star Wars obsessed brain presented me with (yes its an AU, why is anyone surprised), sorry its late and, Happy New Year (is literally posting this with half an hour left to 2018 in my time zone)
There’s something decidedly slimy working its way through her clothes and into her shoes, and it’s probably best not to think about that because the smell alone is making her want to hurl. If it were a trash compactor, at least the threat of imminent death would ward off the scent, but no, its a regular dumpster. A restaurant dumpster to be specific, and those are a special kind of hell regardless of what part of the galaxy you’re in. So the smell it is because the slime does not bear thinking about, only that she must get out of this dumpster and wash it off as soon as possible.
“Damn it Rose how do you get yourself into this shit?”
This sort of thing always looks cooler in the holos, she’d bet the stunt people don’t have to deal with the odor that comes from mixing every disgusting odor known to whatever your species is. Plus all the other universal mysteries a garbage dumpster may contain; something could probably die in one and no one would notice. With an undignified and completely disgusted groan, she leverages herself up into a sitting position and mutters some choice curses in the first language she can think of.
“If there’s anyone to blame Rose, it’s the Doctor. He does have a tendency of leading you into the oddest situations, however indirectly.” Sarah Jane’s voice comments before she looks up to see the brunette’s head pop over the edge of the dumpster. And she kind of does have a point, she wouldn’t have had to land in the dumpster if he hadn’t sent her out to “poke around”.
“It was this or a broken leg, I’m startin’ ta rethink my choice.” She deadpans to the older woman. “I could wash for a week an’ the smell wouldn’t go away.” As it is her clothes are probably a total loss unless Sarah Jane or the Doctor know a way of getting rid of horrible smells. They might, she wouldn’t put it past either one.
Sarah Jane nods, nose wrinkling at the smell. “I rather think I preferred the composter…” And she’s gonna have to get the story behind that comment, mostly because the Doctor had made a similar comment recently. But another time, preferably when not covered in dumpster and dealing with the First Order goon squad.
After she climbs out of the dumpster, and they both pick off some of the bits of stuff sticking to her, Sarah Jane passes her a blaster. Taking it, she checks it over as the older woman speaks.
“Mickey’s got us a place nearby, I’m certain you can persuade him to delay the Doctor long enough to clean up.”
“Thought he’d have that covered already, Smith’s sticking together and all that.”
“Yes, well he does need reassurance you’re in one piece, being as he’s your friend and such. Especially as he does have to eventually tell your mother.” Sarah Jane gives her this look and she’d swear that Jackie Tyler had astral projected across the galaxy to make that face at her through Sarah Jane because it is such a MOM face she’s still surprised the older woman doesn’t have a kid.
“I’ll comm him when we get there. As soon as we get there..” Rose corrects, holstering the blaster pistol as she watches Sarah Jane adjust the strap of her blaster rifle. She’s come to realize the older woman is about one of the oddest Mandalorians she’s ever come across, in fact, she’s never seen the woman in armor. Or at least the full kit, she tends to opt for a spacer look with the arm and leg guards from the armor on a situational basis. Right now it seems to be her favored rifle and messenger bag.
“Good, I hope you don’t mind if we…” The statement goes unfinished as they hear an explosion nearby. “Haar'chak kaysh mirsh solus!”
Rose nods, they both know it’s the Doctor. Seems to be a signature of his for some reason. “Yeah, he is. On the bright side, it’s not my job he blew up this time.” She’s never letting that one go, even though she didn’t particularly like the job, but it’s the principle of the thing. “Let’s go see what the damage is, bail him out, and run like hell.” Because of course he’s got to go and draw the attention of everyone in the area, including the people they’d prefer to avoid.
And with no further exchange they’re running off in the direction of the explosion, the Force seems to guide them directly through the carnage to the Doctor, who is grinning like an absolute idiot across the road from the now destroyed building next to some kid and they’re both covered in soot.
Without missing a beat Sarah Jane is yelling “Or’dinii!” and planting herself in front of him, glaring. And there’s a couple of tense moments before she breaks into a grin to match his and then they’re hugging, much to the confusion of the kid, who at best guess is maybe 13 or so.
Rose gives him a wry grin. “Don’t worry kid, s’ just how they are. Mind fillin’ me on how that happened?” She points over her shoulder at the remains of whatever the hell the building was. Probably something industrial, given the neighborhood.
When he just blinks at her and doesn’t respond she figures he’s just in shock until a girl about his age and almost as equally covered in soot comes over. “He’s sort of… new to this. I was exploring the building, which by the way until like just now I thought was abandoned, and came across him in this room with a ton of crazy tech I’ve never seen before, and I think some of it was older than me, Clone Wars old and… I dunno what he is, but he’s kind of brand new to life, and after I found him I came across the guy your friend is arguing with and he sort of, dragged us out of the building after wrecking the equipment and then it blew up.”
Okay, clearly she’s in shock and the boy doesn’t really know what he should be, but she’s still gonna go with he’s a little in shock about all this. Also, the girl is about half right, Sarah Jane and the Doctor aren’t so much arguing as they are bantering in a language she can about half decipher and that the girl clearly doesn’t know.
“Why do you smell bad?” And now the boy speaks, jeeze he’s really blunt as hell. But then, if there’s anything she’s getting out of the girl’s rambling explanation it’s that he literally doesn’t have life experience. “Fell into a dumpster. What’re your names? What’dya go by?” She adds as an explanation to him. “I’m Rose.”
“Maria.”
“I don’t have a name.” Well then. She blinks, then shares a look with Maria. She’s seriously sympathizing with the kid right now because that is so messed up. Just as she turns back to the boy to respond, the Doctor speaks up.
“Oi Tyler, grab the kids, we gotta go.” Rose snaps her head up to see Sarah Jane aiming her rifle down the road and the Doctor reaching for the blaster he stole off Jack ages ago, then turns to see a small squad of First Order troopers making their way towards them.
“My dad…” Maria breathes out even as she grabs the boy to get him to move, and Rose has to admit she’s damn brave for having not run off in what will undoubtedly turn into a firefight.
“Doctor, Rose, go. I’ve got the kids.” Sarah Jane orders, and yeah it probably makes sense that she takes the kids with her and gets Maria’s dad, she’s got her own ship and they’re not particularly after a spacer with two kids. She’s simply less wanted by the First Order than he is, and if she peels off from them identifying her becomes that much harder. “Can’t leave me on bloody Aberdeen that way.”
“Wer’cuy Sarah!”
“On your life ner burc’ya.”
“Ret’urcye mhi ramikadyc. Stay safe, listen to Sarah kids.”
As Sarah Jane moves away, both kids following, Rose brings her loaned blaster to bear on the First Order and the last she hears of them is “Please call me Sarah Jane.” “But…”
She looks over at the Doctor and grins at him, absently noting that she’s going to be hearing about the damage to his leather jacket for days, asking. “So what’s the plan?”
He’s silent for too long. “You do have a plan right?”
He looks at her and grimaces. “I have twelve percent of a plan. And a sandwich.”
“The sandwich is irrelevant at this point, unless you’re gonna throw it at the First Order.” There’s a beat of silence. “You were gonna throw it at the First Order.”
“It was the sandwich or the banana, but I realized that would be idiotic and I already gave the banana to the unnamed boy. Hope Sarah sorts that out…”
“She will, but First Order coming up fast.”
“Charge ‘em.”
“What?!” But he’s already sprinting towards them and actually tackles one of the troopers to the ground, presumably the squad commander because he has an odd knowledge of their chain of command that she can never keep straight. Mostly because their armor really doesn’t employ specific notation of rank, which is really rude because if you’re going to be taking down fodder it’s nice to know how high ranking they were, like ‘Took down this Lieutenant, he was a better shot than the others’.
And you know, that bronze was a while ago, but she feels a bit like one of those holo heroes as she leaps into the air and kicks one of the goons in the chest. Not the Force-powered ones though, one of those normal I don’t have any abilities outside my natural one’s types.
So when the guy she landed on starts yelling about superiority and racial purity and that nonsense, it feels really good when she rolls her eyes at him and punches him in the face that the knocked off bucket exposes. “Mate, you might call a lot of people scum, but from where I am you’re the worst sort of scum. Your lot lives to breed hate, we don’t need that, cause hate only breeds more hate. So call me names all ya like, but I’m proud ta be rebel scum.”