Thanks to Taylor Harkness, Lauren, Xbakiyalo (where the hell did that name come from? It's brilliant!)
and speciaa thanks to Lizzle09, who seems to read every story I ever write on here; you should be my betareader!
≈ Chapter Three: Jimmy ≈
I was left feeling a cacophony of confusion, bewilderment and slight annoyance at Rose's dramatic exit. Ordinarily, I probably would've been bothered by that fact that she seemed not to care that the girl in the park- I still couldn't see her face- at all, choosing that moment to flitter off. Mentally evaluating the situation as only a superior intellect such as myself can do- I came to the conclusion that I thought Rose expected me to follow her- even though I was practically being burned by the sheer anxiety that was left in her wake.
Still. The question was, really- why had Rose decided that the park really wasn't to her taste, and buggered off to God knew where?
I had resigned myself to swallowing my Time Lord pride and indeed, following her, when I heard the first- of many- screams.
It was a scream I had heard on several other occasions, and the owner was someone I knew very well. I'd heard that voice scream when she illegally rescued her father and brought the Reapers crashing down on us; when she'd been possessed by the malignant Cassandra and we were hurtling down a lift shaft. When she had been watching the door in front of her being ripped apart by were-wolf claws. I'd heard it laugh, cry, scream my own name. But never had I heard it so terrified.
I turned- my mouth already half opened to ask how Rose had managed to sneak behind me without me seeing, and why she was so frightened- and froze.
Rose wasn't anywhere to be seen.
The scene in front of me was much the same; the park, the girl, the boy- teenagers, they were. Children.
Except children don't usually scream like that. Theirs are full of mock fear, automatically on the cusp of laughter. I knew a child's laugh- I heard them enough times from my own. But this… this was not- and never had been- the scream of a child.
This was a woman's scream when she is facing something ultimately threatening, and more powerful than she. A scream that indicates the point when the owner begins to fear for her life.
And it was Rose who was screaming. As if everything she'd ever been scared of was coming back to haunt her.
A small part of my vast mind acknowledged the small click (and subsequent pain that I did not feel) of the bones in my neck as my head snapped around, blurringly fast; pin-pointing the scream's origin within seconds. I paused, peering through the darkness- although I didn't need to. With my molecular-enlarged pupils, night was almost the same as day to me. How I loved showing off to Rose.
But tonight my mind wasn't on frivolous and superficial ponderings; because the boy- who couldn't have been more than twenty, the toddler- had reached the girl, and he was yelling at her. From my place on the other side of the park, it would be quite reasonable of you to presume that any sound I heard was incoherent. You'd be wrong, of course, but I shall forgive your misconception under the excuse that you had yet to realise just how very inferior humans are to Time Lords.
In short, I could hear every word. And now, with every probability, I will now have a bloodthirsty horde of offended, primitive (oops, forget that) humans hell-bent on my destruction.
"What the hell do you think you're doing, you little whore?!" I winced at the sheer vulgarity of the child's angry words. He seemed to be convinced that he could condense his sentences into saliva and thus cover the girl's face with it. Or at least, that's what he seemed to think- all I could see was him spitting in her face.
"How could you?!"
I felt very much like going over there and telling him exactly what the girl thought she was doing and she could, but I restrained myself. I remembered clearly what happened last time I'd tried to help someone- they'd punched me. Not really anything for me to worry about, but the guy had had splinters for knuckles for a very long time after, I guessed from the look of pure agony I'd seen on his face at the time. Best to stay right out of the way, unless it really was necessary.
"I- I"- For some reason, the girl's voice sounded familiar (at this point I still hadn't solved the riddle of hearing Rose when she wasn't there…) but then again, how much difference was there really, between human female screechings? I knew well from Jackie that 'screeching' was an apt term. Not that she would agree with me. I wasn't paying any particular attention, however- I was more interested in the murderous look I could see on the fellow's face than anything else- and so failed to see the obvious until at least another ten minutes.
The girl sobbed loudly, and I gritted my teeth. Not yet. I forced myself t stay in the shadows, unseen. If I stormed in then, I could easily escalate the situation- I knew how much human's loved to over-react to things. He might well reveal a knife and threaten her with it. Which I didn't really need right now. Not with Rose missing and the girl in front of me in danger enough as it was.
"Please," She sobbed, and for a moment my hearts stopped altogether. A dull, thudding ache resonated through my chest as the beats resumed and I was left blinking in the darkness, dazed. Didn't I know that voice? "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. Please, not here, Jimmy. Not here"-
But she didn't get any further.
With a cry of uncensored rage that was almost on the same frequency as a bat cry; 'Jimmy'- apparently- did what I could only describe (with a tremendous, age-weary sigh) as a typical human reflex of terrible anger.
His fist swung back and hit her squarely in the face.
Her head snapped backwards, blood spurting from her nose in the most unattractive fashion; the way I had found most humans preferred to live. She crumpled, clutching at her damaged- if not severely broken- nose. My jaw locked as my stomach clenched, a gesture only Rose would have recognised as me experiencing incomprehensible levels of anger. There were things I could tolerate; seeing that was not one of them. I'd held back long enough.
I was moving before Jimmy's arm had even retracted. I was beside him before the girl's limp body hit the floor.
It was my hands that stalled the impact with the floor; her weight was nothing to me at all as I supported her lifeless form with only my hands. She was like the faintest of brushes- like a butterfly's wings- against me. I felt nothing but the anger that was heating my blood as I locked gazes with Jimmy.
I did not know Jimmy, nor did I want to. He was not a nice man- I had already figured that out, what with the assault of the girl and the fact that he was displaying major issues with anger, even at me. I sniffed, gathering an air of haughtiness around me like a second skin. He was nothing to me, this fragile, anger-consumed ant that was right now sizing me up to determine whether I was a threat or not.
I think my narrow frame and handsome looks gave him the wrong perception- that I was weaker than him.
"Get off her," He snarled, and to anyone else I imagine it would have seemed a frightening prospect to be growled at by a twenty-something with tattoos on his neck, but not to me. I stood up, and resting the girl gently to the floor without so much as taking my gaze away from 'Jimmy's' to look at her, I stepped towards him.
My eyes would have been black and empty- nothing like the humorous air-light banter Rose saw- and the eyes of a predator; the eyes that I used for dangerous threats, enemies, hardly suited for dealing with an abusive toddler. And yet I hardly cared. The girl meant nothing to me, and yet a strange, almost fraternal affection rooted me to the spot to protect her.
"Jimmy, I'm guessing?" Without waiting for an answer, I carried on. Wisely, I thought, Jimmy let me finish. It was probably my expression that made him shut up and listen. "Right, 'Jimmy', here's what you're going to do- leave right now, and never, ever come near this girl again. Is that understood?"
Some on his stupidly mulish human pride had returned now. "Are you some guy she's fucking then? Wouldn't surprise me. She's a filthy little slut that's been sleeping around since we started. She deserves everything she gets-get up, you"-
"Perhaps I didn't make myself clear, Jimmy," I spat, and part of him shrank away from as I glared. I heard the small shuffle behind me as the girl regained consciousness, but I didn't look around. "If you don't back off right now, you'll have far worse than me just asking you to leave to deal with. Believe me, Jimmy- stronger men than you have lost to me and you would be wise to leave. Now."
He leaned forward, his eyes blazing like drunken streetlamps, and I could smell the alcohol on his breath. I hissed, disgusted at the state of the pampered brat in front of me. I had to hope that he would leave, or I really could do something I regretted. Humans are fragile, I reminded myself coldly. Don't do anything that will permanently hurt him. Remember, you don't like violence-
"I don't have to listen to you, pal," He spat back. I felt my shoulders beginning to shake with the effort it was taking for me not to lash out at him. I couldn't help it; anything else I could probably forgive, but some nasty, insecure little parasite beating up his girlfriend? That I couldn't take. It was the whole stronger-preying-on-the-weak-for-power circle, and it made me sick. "She's my girlfriend and I'll do what I want. So do me a favour and fuck off. Rose, get up. Now you little"-
But I wasn't listening to him anymore.
I was looking at the Girlfriend, who was still on the floor and looking up at me with a kind of feral terror, mixed with resignation.
"Please, Jimmy." She whispered, and I felt my hearts beats faster as I realised why I'd felt the recognition before, why Rose had tried to drag me away… "Please, you promised. Never again. You said… please, not here, not where they can see."
But her words were all melding together in a big, viscous soup in my head. For all of my vast intelligence, my brain couldn't fathom what my eyes were seeing. This wasn't possible. This couldn't happen, not to her, not my-
"Rose." I whispered, and felt my hearts simultaneously break as I watched a younger version of my Rose drag herself to her feet, her skin black and bruised, covered in livid cuts; blood staining her perfect face until she wasn't some celestial creature anymore. She was a fallen angel that left me as blank the canvasses I drew on. "Oh, Rose, why didn't you tell me?"
I'm very, very sorry to have to make you wait two weeks for the next update, but it's really not my fault guys! Intercut kerfuffles, you gotta hate 'em. BUT! I'm not sorry for giving you a little snippet of the next chapter- haha!!
I could have killed him then.
So many ways- thousands, billions- I could crush the life from his frail body. And leave nothing but dust on the wind.
So easily, and no-one would care. His soul could fade out of existence, and the universe wouldn't even blink.
And I could've done it. Without an ounce of regret I could have snuffed his life out like a candle, then and there.
Because of Rose.
Reviews, anyway?! *hopeful*
