You and Me

by Schimelos

Madame Vastra and Jenny have known each other for six years. While working on a case that takes them to Japan, the pair reminisce of how they met, their early days together, and their first case. They can both see where this is going, but neither appear to be brave enough to take the leap. Just a story of how these two got together. Disclaimer: I own none of these characters

1. You and Me

Chapter 1

April 1886 – en route to Japan

Madame Vastra's POV

She's cross with me.

I am almost positive of that. It's taken me years to determine the 'signs' that usually clued me in on this.

The first always being how withdrawn she would become. That was never a good sign. Almost always, it made the situation worse. It allowed her to stew. The quieter she got, the more cross she was. Generally speaking. Questions would only draw out single word answers. If they turned into grunts of acknowledgements, I should probably sleep with one eye open.

The second sign would be the scowl that seemed to take permanent residence on her face. That sign took much longer to recognize as most human's faces were very hard for me to read. Did a smile mean they were happy? If their eyes became wet with water, was that the same as sweating? It was all very confusing to me. Eventually, I gathered that by the way her lips pursed together in a thin line, her eyes looking down, and her cheeks almost seeming to puff out... well, that meant she was angry.

Both of these signs I was able to pick up over the last two weeks. It made for a very long train ride. Across from me in the small cabin, she sat. Her arms crossed over her chest. Another bad sign, I thought. She was leaning slightly towards the window, looking out at the scenary that passed by. She seemed sad... I think. Her expression certainly didn't insinuate contentment. I paused for a moment. Goddess, perhaps I haven't improved in this...

"Ma'am," Jenny spoke in a low voice. She didn't look at me, but remained fixated on the passing trees. "Is this Russia?"

I leaned over to take a look at the scenary. "I believe it is," I answered, although I really wasn't sure. I had only traveled to Russia once since being awoken. It was just before I met the young woman in front of me.

"Suppose we have another day or two before we reach port," she murmured before sitting straight up. "From there, the boat should take a couple days to reach Toyama."

From here, I could sense her boredom and even agitation. Jenny was not one to sit around idly. It was one of the most lengthy jobs we have taken thus far. The payout was even largely so. On top of the opportunity to see another country, it had been too tempting to pass up.

She returned to her quiet state and closed her eyes. I gave a small sigh and sat back, returning to my thoughts. She's cross with me, but not so far as to ignore me completely. Small talk was a good sign.

Six years we've been together. My companion, assistant, and sometimes maid. I knew her birthday. I knew her favorite color. I knew which sword was her favorite out of the hundreds that we seemed to have collected. Her favorite tea. I knew that her favorite book was written by some female ape with the last name Austen. She hated storms. All these trivial points that seemed to connect together and they were who made Jenny who she was.

There was only one thing I didn't know about Jenny. For the life of me, I could never figure out what made her cross with me.

I could take a wild guess. Nine out of ten times, it was due to my insensitive nature. Perhaps, I offended Jenny by referring to the humans as Apes instead of people. Or accidently insinuated that my people were of higher intelligence than her own. Although it may be true, grouping all humans in a primitive category had sent a message to Jenny that said, 'You are not good enough'.

I was doing pretty good about changing my mindset on this. Humans became less and less like Apes to me. It took a long time for me to realize that. It took a lot of verbal beatings from Jenny. Not all Ap- humans were bad. Not all were malicious. Some were, of course. A bad apple in every batch, is what Jenny would say. But, then every so often, you'd get the apple that is crisp and juicy and a perfect shade of red.

Jenny had been that apple for me.

Of all the bad I've seen. This world that I found myself in was a dark one. My sisters' death aside, there was plenty of bloodshed on the streets of London that would put one of people's battles to shame. Men preying on women. Men beating other men for a few shillings. Children being sold into slavery. And, in all the darkness that I saw, she came forth, bringing with her a light that was almost blinding.

Although, our initial meeting had been the other way around. The poor girl was fourteen at the time. Barely. Being tossed around between a few male apes. I heard her scream while in the next alley over, trying to figure out what to do about dinner. I had awoken to this world only a year prior. Most of which I had traveled around the continent. Oddly enough, that night had been my first night back in London.

Her scream brought me out of my thoughts and my head snapped up, trying to figure out which direction it had come from. I ran down towards the street, making a left, crossing the street, and then turned right and found them. They were in a circle, pushing her from one male to another. All were taunting her with words. Then one pulled a knife out, cutting her shoulder. She put her arms up, covering her face. A small form of protection from the knife.

I took out one of the male apes with a quick flick of my tongue. The remaining two offered a little more resistance. I ducked from the first's fist as he swung at me. Grabbing his arm, I brought him toward me, letting his front side rest against my back for a moment. With a tug, he was flung over my shoulder, hitting the ground face first. The last of them took a step backwards, his eyes were wide open. I moved forward and let my fist sink into his stomach. He let out a loud groan and slumped over onto the ground.

I tasted fear in the air and I knew it had been the girl behind me. Turning, I found she had fallen to her knees, holding her shoulder. Her eyes were wide and her mouth agape. The fear was there, I was certain, but she didn't look afraid. More astonished than anything else.

"Bloody hell," she breathed. "I musta hit my head. I must be bloody dreamin'."

"Why do you say that?" I tilted my head as I looked at her. She didn't scream when she noticed my green complexion.

"Well," she looked down at the men. "Three men were just attacked by..." she looked me up and down, trying to determine what I was, I supposed. "A green woman. And I'm still alive."

"I see," was all I really could manage to say.

She stood, patting down her worn dress. "I thank ye all the same," she gave me the biggest grin I ever saw an Ape capable of.

"Are you alright?" I found myself asking when I noticed she was nursing her shoulder.

She looked down at the wound. "Just a scratch is all. Stings a little." She considered the three men that I had knocked down. "Are they dead?"She didn't sound too concerned, merely curious. I gave a nod. "You should probably hide them before the bobbies come. A woman takin' out a bunch of men. You'd probably leave 'em speechless, I'd reckon."

"I will... dispose of them," I told her as I felt my stomach lurch in hunger.

"Need any help?"

"No, but you should probably be on your way," I suggested. "As you say, you'd rather not be caught."

She was hesitant, but gave a nod and walked off. "Thanks again, Miss."

After she rounded the corner, I made quick work of the men. My dilemma on what to do with dinner being taken care of. I left the alley with no real direction in mind. The night was cooling down, considerably and I tugged my jacket closer. My hood was up, hiding my face from all the other Apes around. I decided to just go back to my flat.

I had rounded another corner when I finally noticed her. With a sigh, I stopped.

"What do you want?" I asked, turning to face her.

The young girl I saved gasped and moved behind a light pole as if hide. "You... ate them."

I tilted my head in amusement. "You disapprove?"

She seemed to consider this, but then shook her head. "Just surprised. Thought you were just a green woman. Never heard of a person who eats..." she paused, making sure the street was still clear. "Other people."

"I am not a person," I almost hissed. "I am a Silurian."

"A what?"

"A reptile," I say, but was met with more confusion. This girl was surely not educated. "A lizard?"

"Oh," She moved from behind the pole. "I seen one of those. At the zoo. So, you're a human lizard, eh?"

I blinked in surprise This girl didn't seem too phased by my actions nor my appearance. It left me to question, who was she? "I am not a zoo animal," I told her, a little exasperated. "I am an intelligent life form from the dawn of time," I pause, giving her a moment to digest this. More confusion. "I am from millions and millions of years ago. Before your people existed."

"You know," she began with a lifted eyebrow. "I seen one like you before. On some circus flyer. That you?"

I fought the urge to smack my face with my hand. "Probably so," I answered. "I worked at one." Only for a short while. It was how I traveled. When the circus came here just a month or so ago, I left. I had been fed up with the concept of entertaining these Apes.

"You not with them anymore?"

"No."

"Did you eat them, too?"

I growled a little. These questions were truly making me angry. "No. I left."

"Was that the first time you ate a person?" She asked, jabbing her thumb behind her.

"No."

She considered this for a moment and when she noticed my irritated look, she threw her hands up. "Sorry, Miss. Never met a man eating lizard before."

"Good night, young Ape," I say before turning around and heading down the street. I turned around corner and hissed when I noticed that she had continued following me. "What now?"

"Can you teach me?"

"To eat others of your kind?" I stopped to turn to her. My brow slightly raised.

She shook her head, slightly disgusted by my assumption. "No, to fight. Like you had with those men."

I laugh and continue on my way. "Run home, little Ape."

"I can't."

I stop again and this time it's out of curiousity. "And why is that?"

"I have none."

"None of what?"

She shrugged as if it wasn't that big of a deal. "I have no home."

"Where do you stay?"

She motioned to the area around us. "Out here."

"Where are your parents?" I demanded to know. "How can they condone having their hatchling living on the streets."

She seemed relunctant to answer and perhaps a little upset by the question. I gathered that it wasn't something she wanted to talk about. "It's unimportant as to why," was all she would say. "Been on my own for about a year now. Did alright until tonight. Those men wanted to recruit me."

"Recruit you? For war?"

She smiled at that, amused by my question. "To a pleasure house, Miss."

I had heard the term before, but it took me a moment to realize what she had meant. I looked the girl up and down one more time. She was just that, only a girl. Her brown hair was wrapped, loosely behind her neck. Her face was slightly dirty. In my world, she would have been considered an adult, ready to train as a warrior. Of what I know of the Ape society, she was just an adolescent. That strange period where a child is just starting to morph into an adult.

"You're just a child," I said, voicing my concerns of the situation.

"I'm fourteen," she said in defense. Was that suppose to mean that she wasn't a child?

"I cannot teach you to fight them," I told her, firmly.

"Can't?" there was a tone to her voice that I could only say that she was challenging me. "Or won't?"

Cheeky little ape, I thought to myself. "Pick one," I hissed before turning back to leave. I walked on, knowing full well that she was behind me. Do I try and lose her? I didn't want her to know where I live. I felt defeated. Thinking of the young ape behind me. No home. No family. Just barely avoiding a career as a prostitute. I went along, not caring if the young ape was following me or not.

I smiled a the memory as I looked back out of the train car. Jenny was always challenging me like that. She watched me murder and eat several men on the first time we met. It never scared her away. I always asked her why she stayed. Why did she follow me in the first place? She would always tell me that she never felt safer anywhere else but by my side. I had been the only person to ever stop and help her. Much like she was the only one who had not run from me. If I had meant her harm, then she'd be dead along with those men, she'd explain. She was probably right.

Six years have gone by since that night. Countless adventures. That little girl in rags was long gone. What was in her place as this beautiful young woman, dressed in a fine corset and dress, and quite ready to jump at my command. I only need to tell her how high.

If only I could figure out what I'd done, I thought to myself. With a heavy sigh, I turn down to my book. I had been reading off and on through out our journey on the train. I realize at that moment, I hadn't really been paying attention to what I had read. I turn back to the beginning of the book. It had been a present from Jenny last Christmas. I trace the cover with my fingers.

A light smile on my lips. During the last summer, she had discovered that I had a weakness for romance novels. Much to my dismay. It had been around the time that things between us had begun to... change. Well, I suppose, I had begun to change. I felt a tightness in my throat at the thought. It was something I had been trying my hardest to avoid. I continued to trace the words on the cover with a finger. Then, I flipped to the inside cover where Jenny had inscribed a message.

To a wonderful lizard. Thank you for saving me. Merry Christmas. Jenny.

The handwriting was near perfect. Another trick that I had taught her. It was the least I could do. For in a way, she saved me, too.

Jenny POV

The train ride itself was a nightmare. Three days we been on it and the boredom was eating me alive. I didn't talk much to Madame as she sat across from me. She looked plenty busy readin' that book of hers. Although, she took frequent breaks. Mostly to stare out the window and probably to wonder how much further we had to go. Often times, I caught her staring at me. A strange look on her face.

She probably thinks I'm cross with her, I realized at one point. I hadn't been much for talkin' the last few weeks. Plenty on my mind that I wanted to sort through. Most of which involved the grumpy lizard from the dawn of time. I closed my eyes again to think.

I been with Madame Vastra going on six years now. I never complained. The adventures we had were ones straight out of adventure novels. That didn't even include the ones we had with the Doctor. She was everythin' to me. My savior that liked to eat people.

I lost most of my family to consumption. The remaining few had casted me out in my thirteenth year. That first year I was almost certain, I'd be a goner. I sold matches for a long while. Hard business, that was. No one wants to deal with an urchin. I made it by with the skin of my teeth. By the time Madame found me, I was about stark mad.

Nevermind the cold and the hunger. I got used to that quickly enough. What ate me up inside was the loneliness. Not many people on the street will give ya the time of day. The other remaining few will warm up to you only to nick whatever you had in your pockets. I kept to myself mostly. I did okay, if I do say so myself. Up until that night anyway.

There was shock in her face when she realized what she had done. Her face looking over at me with slight unease. I slightly wondered if she was gonna do away with me as well. For whatever reason, she let me go on. My curiousity, of course, brought me back to her. I hadn't left her side since. I was certain that I was more of a pest than a companion to her. For the longest time, I was sure of it. Never had she casted me away She did try a few times in the beginning. Although, she hadn't tried very hard. She perhaps saw the loneliness in me, too.

But, boy, was she a looney, for sure. Goin' on about apes and talkin' like she wasn't from this world. A lizard from the dawn of time.

I followed her home that night. What exactly did I have to lose? She saved me, sure. But, it'd only be a matter of time before others would come after me. I wanted to learn how to stop them. Like she had. Trouble was, Madame didn't care much for apes. So, there I sat all night, nodding off, with my back to the wall of her apartment. Morin' came and when the sun was all the way up over the horizon, I decided to buy some breakfast. I emptied my pockets and counted my coins. I only had enough for a couple of boiled eggs and tea.

"What are you still doing here?" she asked me when she found me a short while after.

I sat on my bum, eating one of the eggs. The cup of tea sat to my left. She had opened the door to her flat and was hovering over me with a strange look on her face. "I told ya. I want to learn to fight like you."

"Surely... you have better things to occupy your time," she said with a sigh. Then she looked around. "You slept here?"

I gave a nod. Her face grew concerned. "Not to bad, actually. Better than sleepin' by the river."

I think she realized what I had meant by no home. Suppose she thought I had a bed somewhere on the streets. So daft, I thought. A defeated sigh escaped her and she sat beside me. Her dress was much finer than mine. A beautiful black lace pattern traced over the purple color of the bodice. She patted down her skirts. I got a good look at her face. Her hood was gone, of course, and with the sunshine, I could see that she was not covered in skin.

"Scales?" I blurted out before I could stop myself. I slapped a hand over my mouth. "Apologies. I gone runnin' my mouth."

She blinked a few times and tilted her head in such a strange way. "I must say. I am rather accustomed to apes running off when they see me. You haven't even let out a good scream."

"Well, I am still half convinced that I'm dreamin'," I told her with a half smile. "Scales or not. You saved my life, Miss." I gave her a smile and then broke the hard boiled egg in half. "Would you care for some?"

She looked down at the egg. If I didn't know any better, I'd think she were afraid of it. Her eyes met mine for a moment and I gave a nod of encouragement. Hesitantly, she took the half I offered and chewed. Her face contorted and it looked like she had eaten somethin' sour.

"You apes have strange notions of what is good food and what is not," she said after she swallowed.

I couldn't help but laugh. "Suppose so. But, as far as I know, we don't eat lizards."

She didn't have a response to that. She even looked a little guilty. I continued eating and when I was done, I downed the tea I had brought. "A bit left. You want some?" I offered her the last bit of my tea and she accepted. "Ah, so you like that, eh?" I grinned when she finished.

"It is acceptable," she answered.

"So, you live here alone?" I asked, trying to make some small talk. She nodded. "Nice place. Not too shabby of an area, as well. Do you work?"

I think I scared her with all my questions.

"At the moment, I am helping Scotland Yard with a case," she explained. "An arrangement that was set up by an old friend of mine."

That perked my interest and my back straightened. "You a bobby?"

"A what?"

"You work for Scotland Yard? A constable?" I asked, almost too eagarly. "I'd never met a woman bobby before."

She shook her head. "No, I don't work for them. I work with them. I'm a," she searched for the right word. "More of a detective."

"That's very interesting," I said and found the conversation had hit a dead end. "Suppose I should go out and sell some of these matches. Need money to eat, afterall." I stand and offer my hand to her. "Jenny Flint, by the way." She stared at it. Her eyes moving from my hand to my face. I think she believes I'm going to strike her, I realized. "I'm not going to hurt you," I assured her. "Only meant to help you back to your feet."

That seemed to appease her. She placed her hand against my own and I couldn't help but gasp. The scales were softer than I originally thought. There was a coolness to her skin, too. I yanked and helped the lizard woman to her feet. She straightened her dress and looked down at me. Those blue eyes searching my own.

"You truly are not afraid of me?"

I offered a sympathic smile. I could tell that this had never happened to her before. In that moment, looking into those eyes, I could almost see the loneliness that she felt. She was expecting me to run at any moment. My chest felt a little heavy. I gave her hand a little squeeze before letting go. "Not unless you give me reason to be," I murmured. "You saved my life. I owe you a debt. Not sure how I can repay somethin' like that. I reckon I can start by offerin' somethin' I think you may need."

"What might that be?"

"My friendship, Ma'am."

I opened my eyes and found my mistress lightly tracing the cover of her book. She looked somewhat sad. "Everything okay, Ma'am?" I asked, concern getting the better of me.

She looked up, surprised for a moment and then shook her head. "Just thinking of the case, I suppose."

She was never a good liar. At least not with me. I saw right through it. I looked down at the travel guide that we purchased from the bookstore before leaving London. Everything we would need to know about Japan. I read through it five times, briefing Madame after. Human customs and anything that deal with my people was something that she couldn't quite follow. My job was teach her and ensure that she didn't overstep any lines.

"We will need to bow when greeting people," I reminded her, trying to make some conversation. She looked at me, expecting me to ellaborate. "The lower the bow, the more respectful you mean to be."

"We are to meet our guide once arriving, correct?"

I nodded. "Yes, Mr. Ito. However, we should refer to him as Ito-san."

"Ito-san," she repeated. Then, she was lost in thought. Her face giving an indication that perhaps, she was trying to decide something. "Jenny, I don't want to be too forward, however, I've noticed that you've been a little withdrawn," she began, hesitantly. "Has... is everything alright?"

I thought that over for a moment before answering. Was everything alright? In terms of health and wellbeing, yes. Everything was saavy. In every other way, I'd have to answer no. I didn't want to make her worry. Especially if this was all in my head. "Yes, Ma'am. Everything is good. Just a bit bored from this train ride is all."

"We could play cards," she offered with a little hope in her eyes.

She missed my company. Perhaps avoiding her was not the best option. The trouble was, I needed to space to think. Things were changing and I wasn't sure I could keep up with it. I studied my mistress for a moment. For the longest time, when I was younger, I had been fond of her. Not in the fondness that you'd feel for a close friend or that like. A fondness that was close to an attraction. Silly schoolgirl nonsense, I told myself over and over. Those thoughts and those feelings were buried and by the time I was of age, I had managed to bottle them up and lock it away.

Truth be told, I was completely devoted to Madame Vastra. I was careful to not cross lines. It's not proper to feel for someone of the same gender. I knew this. I should marry an English fellow and start a family of my own. However, the thought of leaving my mistress would often times turn my belly the wrong way. My loneliness was quenched six years ago. Now, as I near the age of twenty, I found that I met with loneliness in a different way.

It's not like I longed for romance like the ones in the books Madame read. I cringed at the throught of some bloke riding on a stallion with a boutqiue of flowers. Although, that form of companionship was something that crossed my mind from time to time. Especially in the coldness of the night. Where was a maid, who fights crime and lives with a lizard gonna find romance?

"Aye, Ma'am," I agreed and folded out the table to cover the space between us. I watched as Madame leaned over, rummaging through her bag that lay on the bottom bunk of her bed. The doctor had taught us a few games to play from different time eras. Madame favorite was one called Crazy Eights. It was a fast paced game. We played for a few hours. Madame won three games out of five. Finally, we resigned to reading for the rest of the night. I pulled out the tour guide once more, flipping through the pages to review what I had learnt.

"Jenny?"

I looked up to find my mistress watching me. Her book was closed and placed on the table. "Yes, Ma'am?"

"Have I..." she began with much trouble. "Have I done something to upset you?"

I sighed and shook my head. "No, Ma'am."

She looked a bit flustered. Feelings and Madame were never good friends. She opened her mouth to say something, but seemed to decide against it. Her lips closed and she looked out the window at the darking sky.

"I been doing a lot of thinking," I told her. "You and me. We got a good thing going, right?"

Her blue eyes searched for my own. "Indeed. I would say that we are not merely partners. I consider you my friend, Jenny."

I nodded. That much I knew already. She may not have noticed it, but I have. The looks she's been giving me. The way her hand would linger too long upon my own. Poor Madame is so daft sometimes. Even to her own feelings. I doubt she realized her own actions. But I have. My only hope was that I hadn't been reading too much into it.

I bottled all that up years ago. I thought I put it behind me and could move on, knowing that my feelings would never be reciprocated. I was sure of that. Ol' Grumpy Lizard could never feel for a Smelly Ape like myself. That thought alone was enough to put an end to my foolish heart's desires. Yet, I couldn't help but wonder... was it truly foolish?

The answer was in Madame's face as she sat across from me. The answer was no, it wasn't. Because, there it sat, clear as day, her blue eyes watching me with such fierce fondness, it made my chest flutter. Madame Vastra was sweet on me.

Author's Note:

This is my first Doctor Who fanfic. Not only that, it is my first attempt at a lesbian romance - not to mention inter-species. I did a little bit of research, not sure how accurate. From what I understand, people would use a train through Russia. Once they arrive by the Sea of Japan, a boat could cross them to Japan. Again, not sure how accurate, so that's why Vastra is unsure of where they are.

Thought this would be a good exercise story for me to do while writing my book. I saw in a book somewhere that this pair ended up in Japan for a while, so I thought it'd be cool to write a story of them going there. I'm a big anime fan so of little that I know of the country is from watching different shows.

This is rated T for now, could change later.