Has Always Been Possible In Dreams
16th March 1888
Jenny was returned abruptly to consciousness from her sleep by a niggling feeling that something wasn't right. She rolled over in bed to find it empty of Vastra. Ignoring the sudden chill of panic that bolted down her spine at the thought Vastra had gone out without her, she got up hurriedly, her alarm increasing as she felt soil against her feet instead of wooden boards.
The room seemed to shimmer before her gaze but it was without a doubt not the hotel room at the Great Western Hotel. Jenny wasn't even sure it was a room so much as a cupboard or an alcove. As she spun gently to look at the rest of the room, she noticed her sword and grabbed at it desperately. Being lost in a strange place would probably be infinitely more survivable with that. Her belt was still attached and she buckled it round her waist over her nightgown.
It was the heat she noticed as she peered out the space where a door should've been. Stifling heat. Outside was a vast jungle and a city of walkways and tunnels interspersed with grand halls and glowing panels. Scattered at intervals were small pod structures with dark moving shadows visible through their translucent walls.
She set off down a tunnel which seemed to lead into the nearest hall, all the while trying to determine what had happened to her. The two easiest explanations were time travel or aliens. With the appearance of Jenny Greenteeth, Jenny Flint was more willing to bet on alien presence, with some considerable amount of power too.
The tunnel eventually led out into a large cavern, decorated with a large long table, clearly some kind of meeting place. A familiar figure was sat at the head of it, head resting on green scaled hands, looking pensive.
"Vastra!" Jenny cried, hastening across to the table from the tunnel entrance.
Eyes were turned on her and shock stopped in her tracks. This was not Vastra. Although it looked enough like her to be identifiable as a Silurian.
It rose with a jerk out of its seat and hissed at her. Jenny realised belatedly that it was speaking but she couldn't understand a word of the sibilant syllables being spat at her. She considered this a decided disadvantage as more Silurians poured in from other entrances, brought there by the yells. Jenny drew her sword but it was an action of futility. There were far too many of them.
The Silurian who had been so contemplatively seated, rattled off a phrase and the crowd fell silent. A name was called with a beckoning gesture. In the midst of such an unfamiliar language, it was a name that was comforting to recognise.
A Silurian stepped forwards and there was no mistaking her this time.
"Vastra!" Jenny called in relief.
Vastra turned to her but there was no hint of recognition in the affronted blue eyes that glowered at her. A reply was barked out, a shake of the head, a dismissive wave of the hand.
Jenny's heart sank and crawled to the bottom of her chest. Even without knowing Silurese, that gesture was unmistakeable. Two Silurians stepped forward at another beckon, relieving her of her sword as they took her by the arms. She felt taut with anger but allowed herself to be dragged off to what she could only assume was a cell. It was walled on three sides and the fourth was a glass panel which slid out to allow entrance and slid back behind her, locking her in.
She sat, her back against the wall, staring at the wall opposite. Her circumstances lent to the other theory that she'd travelled back in time, clearly to a Silurian city, full of Silurians. Vastra's past. And without a present Vastra. Try as Jenny might, she couldn't think of way that this ended well. Present Vastra had a clear disdain for humans, with perhaps good reason. Past Vastra probably didn't even think them worthy of that. They were food. Prey. Present Vastra had told Jenny as much herself.
Jenny laughed as she wondered what present Vastra would think, if Jenny was devoured by Vastra's past self. The scant humour of the thought was doused by the knowledge that Vastra probably wouldn't even know.
Her one hope was that Vastra had, in acutal fact, time travelled as well. But surely, if that had of been her Vastra, she would've spoken up, spoken English. Even if it had been an act in front of the other Silurians, her Vastra would've come to see her, to reassure her of that, until they could both find a way to leave.
A shadow fell across her and the cell door opened without warning. Clearly they hadn't bothered posting any guards on her. She looked up to find Vastra staring at her. Jenny's heart gave a painful twist at the way Vastra's head was tilted to one side in curiosity; it was such a familiar expression to her. It renewed her hope that maybe this was her Vastra.
"Vastra?" she asked cautiously, rising to her feet.
There was a curious click and a stream of words she couldn't understand. Despite her waning hope, Jenny grinned. This was not her Vastra. And yet it was still Vastra. The Silurian had come to see her after all. She laughed again, although it ended in a sound like a sob. The Silurian stood up with a hiss and Jenny knew precisely what that jerk backwards of the head meant.
"Sorry." Jenny apologised, her grin now fixed as it was wide.
Blue eyes narrowed. An uncertain stare. Jenny could almost predict…and there it was. The contemptuous posturing huff and flick of the head before she walked out. And left Jenny alone. Hope was snuffed out, leaving only the small consolation that Jenny knew Vastra that much at least. A wry fondness caused Jenny to sigh. She was probably going to be eaten. Once they had scanned her and decided what she was, what she was so distantly related to, well they weren't about to keep her around. She slid down the wall and the small laugh that escaped was almost hysterical now. Disbelief that such a thing could occur swamped her and she led on the warm earth, feeling exhausted. She was trapped as surely as she had been in the cellar, in the choke hole, in prison. Panic threatened to overwhelm her. Without Vastra, without the Doctor…although there was always hope surely, that there would be an escape eventually. There was a faint humming coming from the earth itself, right next to her ear and she let the sound soothe her back to sleep.
Vastra grumbled against the approach of consciousness, delving down deeper into the covers, in search of Jenny, of her lulling warmth and security. Still so bizarre that a Silurian would find safety with an ape. Particularly after her experiences with them in general. But there it was.
Or rather wasn't. She frowned as she pulled the covers around her without any of the usual resistance. Jenny was not in their bed. Not that this was entirely unusual; Jenny woke early to light the fires and make breakfast for the Paternoster Irregulars. But it was unwelcome.
With a small spit of annoyance, Vastra curled back up in the bed. The covers were abruptly thrown away from her as she realised this was their bed. In Paternoster Row. Not the small uncomfortable one of the hotel but their grand double bed with the decidedly thicker covers.
When had they arrived home? The case had barely been finished. There was still the matter of Jenny Greenteeth to clear up, Matthew to be freed, Jim to be repaid for his assistance.
Vastra moved to the window and looked outside at a snow ridden garden. And that was odd too. It was March. Nearly April, the traitorous thought came and was pushed away.
She smiled as she saw Jenny engaged in a violent snowball fight with two children, both well wrapped up against the cold. Some Irregular or other she supposed, moving her hand to support her on the windowsill as she leaned to look out more.
There was a clack, a cold hard pressure and she stood up straight, gazing at her hand. Around the fourth finger on it was a plain gold band. It wasn't very shiny, almost dull in fact. Her scales were far more iridescent. Curious then that she would choose to wear such a thing.
Still in a gentle daze from sleep and the chill, she got dressed in her warmest clothes and went to find Jenny.
The young woman was laughing as she came traipsing into the warmth of the kitchen, knocking snow off her boots as she shooed the two children indoors. They sat by the range as Jenny started to take plates out of the cupboard.
Vastra looked about her. "When did we get back?" she asked, still confused at the lack of memory of travelling home.
"Hm?" Jenny paused in bringing out a loaf from the larder.
"From Swindon."
"Swindon? We ain't been to Swindon. Not for over a decade." Jenny looked at her puzzled.
"Over a decade?" the words pierced Vastra's brain. But she was a friend of the Doctor after all, and as such the answer offered itself readily. She had time travelled.
"Well over." Jenny laughed at her. "You dreamed of it or somethin'?"
"Possibly." Vastra said cautiously. She sat down, resting her hands on the table, noticing once again the ring. "Why do I wear this ring?"
Jenny paused from cutting slices of bread and stared at her, bemused. "Cos you said the posh ones we've got might get damaged if we was on a case, remember? So we got these as our everyday ones."
"But what does it mean?" Vastra held it up to examine it, still mystified
"It means," Jenny's voice was slow and amused. "that we're married, you stupid lizard."
Vastra froze. Jenny laid down her knife and moved over to her. "You feelin' all right?" Amusement had turned to concern and Jenny leant against the table, placing a hand under Vastra's chin to lift it, gazing into her eyes.
"I…" Vastra was distracted by Jenny's face. There were a few more lines on it than she remembered. A faded scar above her right temple. And that was surely not the beginnings of grey in the fine strands of hair near her ears…
"Musta bin some dream to fuddle you up this bad."
"Married?" it came out as a whisper.
"For a good few years now." Jenny laughed, reaching out to stroke Vastra's headcrests fondly. "An' you joke my memory's goin' with age."
"You said yes?" Vastra was not sure which emotion was most dominant but surprise that Jenny would've agreed was greater than that Vastra had asked. After all, technically she already had.
Jenny nodded slowly. "Don't you remember?"
"I…don't know…" she certainly would not have forgotten such an occasion.
She was being subjected to a calculating glare which widened into amazement.
"You…carn't 'ear me."
"I most certainly can."
"No I mean…I'm…and…but you said…" Jenny trailed off and a look of understanding spread across her face. "You're from the past!" her mouth hung open.
Vastra smiled inwardly. Her Jenny was as smart as ever. Of course, Jenny too had travelled with the Doctor, probably even more so by this point. She might even have been inside the TARDIS…
"Right then." Jenny sat down opposite her in a business-like fashion.
"I have no idea what is going on." Vastra admitted immediately. "Nor where my future self currently is."
There was a silence as Jenny's face went through an interesting combination of contortions.
"What is it?" Vastra asked, mildly alarmed at her expressions.
"Weellllll…two Vastras…" There was a faint flush on Jenny's cheeks that amazed Vastra and the young woman gave what could only be described as a snigger. "An' it's not even me birthday." Vastra felt her scales darken at Jenny's grin and she coughed. Clearly in the future, some of Jenny's inhibitions disappeared. She wasn't sure whether she was pleased or shocked. "The mind boggles…"
"I would rather not think of it." Vastra said hastily. Was it possible to be jealous of one's future self?
Jenny didn't even attempt to hide her grin. "Why? You jealous?"
Vastra stood up suddenly, shocked at such openness. She was about to make some stiff reply when there was a knock at the door.
Jenny shrugged and went to answer it, pausing in the door way to half turn back towards Vastra. "I won't tell if you don't." she winked, completely flustering Vastra.
Damn time travel…still, if this was the future...Vastra let one of her smug satisfied grins appear. She could well look forward to this future.
Her grin disappeared swiftly at Jenny's yell of surprise, mixed as it was with a tone of terror and abruptly cut off.
Vastra followed her with alacrity into the hallway to find Jenny held in a chokehold by none of other than Mr Vandemar.
"Well, well Mr Vandemar." The oily tones of Mr Croup rang out from behind him. "We meet these two intrepid warriors again."
An: Vworp Vworp! The Return of Croup and Vandemar.
