Rosa
The Doctor, Annabelle and I were trying to get Graham, Ryan and Yaz back to Sheffield. On our latest attempt, The Doctor went to the door and looked out, "Nearly," she said. Then she closed the door and headed back to the console.
"Sheffield?" asked Yaz.
"Almost. Really close."
"So not Sheffield, then?" asked Graham.
Annabelle looked right at the console, "You're doing this deliberately, aren't you?"
"Who are you talking to?" asked Yaz.
"If it's me," said Ryan, "I haven't touched anything."
"I'm talking to the Tardis," said Annabelle, "because this is our ninth attempt."
"Fourteenth," said Graham, "You lot can't control this thing, can you?"
"Excuse me," said The Doctor, "Yes, we can. Most of the time. Just sometimes, like now, it has a mind of its own."
"So where are we, actually?" asked Yaz.
I looked at location display on the console, "Earth, United States. Montgomery, Alabama. 1955."
"1955?" asked Graham "Elvis. Could we see Elvis?"
"I think he's in New York this week," said The Doctor, "I could give him a call."
"You haven't got Elvis's phone number."
"Don't ever tell anyone I lent him a mobile phone."
I smiled and then an alarm went off, "Whoa, what's that?" asked The Doctor.
We looked at the screen on the wall and I couldn't believe what I was seeing, "The TARDIS is picking up traces of artron energy." I said.
"Should we know what artron energy is?" asked Yaz.
"It's the same type of energy the TARDIS runs on," said Annabelle.
"There really shouldn't be traces of artron energy here, unless they're ours, which they're not," said The Doctor.
"And now you want to check it out," said Yaz.
"Yeah, we should. Quick look, but quietly. History is very delicate. We stick together."
We were walking through a park.
The Doctor was scanning the area with her sonic trying to lock on to the location of the artron energy. Graham, Ryan and Yaz were following behind taking everything in, "Real-life 1950s," said Yaz, "Time travel's awesome."
A white woman walking past us dropped her glove. Ryan saw it and picked it up, "Excuse me. Excuse me." I saw him going to touch her to get her attention. I wanted to stop him because of where we were, but it was too late, he touched her and said, "You dropped this. "The man with her slapped Ryan hard across the face. Ryan wanted to retaliate but Graham and Annabelle rushed up to hold Ryan back.
"Get your filthy black hands off my wife!" shouted the man.
Yaz got between the man and Ryan, "Sir, please take a step back. You okay, Ryan?"
"I was just trying to give her back her glove," said Ryan, then he threw the glove back on the ground.
"Is this your boy?" asked the man to Graham.
"He's my grandson, actually," said Graham.
"Your what?"
"My grandson."
"You ain't from around here."
"We don't want any trouble," I said.
"I don't know how it goes where you folks are from, but your boy, he'll be swinging from a tree with a noose for a neckerchief if he touches a white woman in Montgomery."
"What did you just say?"
Just then a Black woman stepped in between us and the man, "There a problem here, Mr. Steele?" She looked at Ryan "Step away now. Go ahead, step away."
"These friends of yours?" asked Mr. Steele.
"No, sir. Just on my lunch break, wondering if I can help out with any misunderstanding," said the woman as she looked back at Ryan. She turned back to Mr. Steele and continued, "I believe your suit will be ready tomorrow. The alterations are going to make it look just right, sir."
The man just kept looking at Ryan, "Let's go, Lizzie." Then, they left.
The Black woman looked at Ryan, "Are you crazy?"
"He slapped me," said Ryan.
"Don't you read the newspapers? You know what they did to young Emmett Till."
"We're from out of town," said Annabelle.
"So was Emmett Till, on vacation from the north," said the Black woman, "Couple of words to a white woman in Mississippi, and the next thing, they find his body in the river. You want that to be you?"
"No."
"Did your mother raise you with no manners? I will take a 'no, ma'am'."
"No, ma'am."
"You all together?"
"Yes," I said, "We're very grateful, Miss..."
"Mrs. Parks, Rosa Parks."
"No way," said Yaz.
"You're kidding," said Graham.
"Brilliant," said The Doctor, "Rosa Parks. Lovely to meet you, Rosa Parks. Big fan."
"Excuse me?" said Rosa.
"Big fan... of Montgomery. I am... we are just visiting. Recommend anything for tourists like us?"
"I recommend you get yourselves the hell out of Alabama before you find yourselves in trouble you can't get out of." Then she turned and walked away.
I took out my sonic and did a quick scan of her, "Oh, my God, can you believe it?" said Yaz, "Actual Rosa Parks."
"We might have a problem," I said, "My sonic is picking up traces of artron energy all around her."
We went to a nearby bar to discuss and get something to eat, "We were in Rosa Parks class in primary," said Yaz. She looked at Ryan ,"Do you remember? All the Year 4, 5 and 6 classes were named after inspirational people."
"She's the bus woman, right?" asked Ryan.
"You do remember what she did."
"Yeah, first Black woman to ever drive a bus.'
My jaw dropped and Yaz said, "No, Ryan."
"What?" said Ryan.
"Your Nan would have a fit right now," said Graham, "How could you have been in a class named after the woman and not know who she is?"
"She's American."
I rolled my eyes, "She refused to give up her seat on a segregated bus to a white passenger and got arrested for it. Her arrest started a boycott of the buses in Montgomery."
The Doctor was looking at a copy of the newspaper, "Or rather, will start. Today is Wednesday, November 30th, 1955. Tomorrow, Rosa refuses to give up her seat."
"And all this basically kicked off the US civil rights movement, led by Martin Luther King," said Rosa, "See, I'm not totally ignorant. I just got confused by the whole bus thing."
"Martin Luther King is a minister here in Montgomery right now," said Annabelle.
"He and Rosa knew each other?" asked Yaz.
"Yep."
"Is it me, or has it gone very quiet in here?" asked Graham.
Just then a waitress walked up, "We don't serve negroes."
We all looked around and saw there was only white people in the bar itself. I did see some Black people peering out from the kitchen. Ryan looked at her and said, "Good… cos I don't eat them."
The waitress looked at Yaz, "Or Mexicans."
"Is she talking to me?" asked Yaz.
"Y'all need to eat somewhere else."
"Come on," said The Doctor. We all got up and left.
Once we got on the street, Us Time Ladies turned and looked at our human friends, "Okay, listen," said The Doctor, "The three of us can deal with this. You guys go back to the TARDIS and be safe."
"While you do what?" asked Yaz.
"Locate the source of these energy anomalies," I said, "We're one day out of a major tipping point in Earth history. We can't have anything disrupting that."
"Besides, it's easier for us here," said Annabelle, "It's more dangerous for you. You can walk away from this."
"Rosa Parks can't," said Ryan.
"Rosa Parks doesn't," said Yaz.
"If she can live her whole life, a couple of hours ain't going to kill me… It ain't going to kill me, right?"
"No," said Graham.
"Not if we look out for each other," said The Doctor, as she started to scan the area with her sonic.
"I'm cool with it," said Ryan. He then looked at Yaz , "What do you reckon, Mexican lady?"
"Oi. Keep that up, I'll use you as a pinata," said Yaz.
The Doctor finished her scan and said, "Epicenter of the artron readings is 1.2 miles that way. Come on."
Graham stopped her before we left, "Hey, hey, we will stop somewhere else to eat, though, won't we?
"No time, Graham," said The Doctor. Then she walked away
Graham looked at Ryan and Yaz, "Have you noticed that happens a lot? I need regular food, that's all."
"We just got thrown out of a bar and that's what you're worried about?" asked Ryan.
"Not just that."
"Not sure your stomach's compatible with time travel, Graham," said Yaz.
The Doctor's scan lead us to the city bus garage, "This is where the artron signals converge," said The Doctor.
"At the bus company," said Yaz, "All roads lead to Rosa Parks."
"Yeah. Bit of a worry. Let's have a look around."
"I'm not sure about this," said Graham.
We walked up to a door with a group of padlocks on in. The Doctor used her sonic on the locks and we went inside. It was a huge empty room. Us Time Ladies had our sonics out scanning the room. "There's nothing in here," said Ryan.
"Why padlock an empty room," asked Yaz.
"Unless it's not empty," I said.
Then, a few moments later a suitcase appeared in front of us, "That wasn't there a second ago," said Graham.
"No kidding," said Ryan.
"It was there. We just couldn't see it. Perception filter," said The Doctor, as we moved toward it.
"Why would anybody do that to a suitcase?" asked Yaz.
I noticed the suitcase had the initials 'GFB' on it. Ryan asked, "Can we open it?"
"Is the right question," said The Doctor. She walked up to in then knelt to open it. She popped open the latches and before she opened it, she asked, "Is anyone excited? Cos I'm really excited."
"You won't be if it's a bomb," said Graham.
"Don't kill the vibe, Graham," said The Doctor. She opened the case and inside five things that were defiantly of alien origin.
"Whoa, not very '50s," said Ryan.
"Now we have a problem," I said, "We're not the only ones in Montgomery who don't belong here."
"Any clues what any of that is?" asked Yaz.
Annabelle looked it over, "Information brick, multi-intercept surveillance device. It all looks pretty worn out, though."
"Well, why has it been left in here?" asked Graham.
"Wait!" Annabelle picked up one of the items, "This explains the artron signals. It's a secondary charger for a..."
Just then an energy weapon fired and a nearby chair disappeared, "Run!" shouted The Doctor. We started to run a stepladder vanished when another energy beam hit it.
We ran out into the yard and found some above ground fuel storage tanks, "In here," said The Doctor. We hid in-between a couple tanks. We heard someone climb to the top of one of the tanks. The Doctor looked at the humans, "You three. Stay here. Teddy, Annabelle with me…"
The three of us climbed up on another tank and saw a man dressed liked Fonzie from Happy Days standing on one of the tanks, "Oi, Brando, looking for us?" asked The Doctor, "We're not armed."
He turned and faced us, "Is that supposed to make me not shoot you?"
"Ideally," said Annabelle, "So, a temporal displacement weapon. I've seen a lot of weapons in my life but nothing as horrible as that thing."
"Thank you."
"It wasn't a compliment."
"Takes a lot of power to displace things in Time," said The Doctor, "I think we all know your weapon's pretty much out of juice. And I've got your spare battery." She took it out of her coat and showed it to him.
"You've been leaving traces of residual artron energy all over 1955," I said.
"And what are you lot, the Artron Police?" asked the man, "Maybe you are. The blue box in the alley. Is it a TARDIS?"
"It might be," said Annabelle, "What's it to you?"
"Well, it could be worth a lot."
"Nah, not that one," said The Doctor, "Second hand, huge mileage, one careless owner. Mind you, it's better than a Vortex Manipulator, like the one on your wrist. Cheap and nasty time travel."
The man adjusted the Vortex Manipulator on his wrist. I then saw a tattoo on the inside of his left wrist, "So, what do you want with Rosa Parks?" I asked.
"Who?" he asked.
"Oh, now you're being annoying."
"The feeling's mutual."
"How long have you been here?" asked Annabelle.
"Get out of Montgomery," said the man.
"You're not the first to say that to us."
"If I see any of you again, I will kill you."
Annabelle stared at the man, "Don't threaten us."
We climbed down off the tanks as we walked back to our friends the man said to us, "Chop, chop, on your way now."
Annabelle gave the man a quick scan with her sonic. He laughed, "What are you doing?"
"Come on, gang," said The Doctor, to our friends.
"Are we actually leaving?" said Yaz, as we made our way out of the yard.
"Not in a million years," said Annabelle.
We needed some place to plan our strategy, but we couldn't go back to the TARDIS. Unfortunately, the only place we could find what we could get some privacy was a whites only motel. We got a couple of rooms on the ground floor but Ryan and Yaz had to sneak in through a bathroom window. Once they were in the room Graham asked, "Why can't we just stay in the TARDIS?"
"Our friend with the temporal displacement weapon's got eyes on it," said The Doctor, "We go in and out of there, we're going to run into him again and I don't want to just yet. Not till we've figured this out."
"And this is better?" asked Ryan, "Smuggling ourselves into crummy motels?"
"I just need a moment to work this out."
"Yeah, like, what do we actually know?" asked Yaz.
"Well," said Graham, "1955, Montgomery, one day away from Rosa Parks refusing to give her seat up on a bus."
"Meanwhile, we've got an out-of-time impostor creeping around the bus garage with a temporal displacement weapon," I said.
"I understand 'weapon' but not sure about 'temporal displacement.'" said Ryan.
"It displaces you through time," said Annabelle, "A blast hits you and you're thrown through time to wherever the user has set it. He had it set for the extremely far future."
"That's horrible."
"Yes. And it uses artron molecules," said The Doctor, "That, plus his Vortex Manipulator were presumably what the TARDIS detected when it brought us here."
"So do we think he's trying to kill Rosa Parks or use that weapon on her?" asked Yaz.
"From the amount of residual artron energy that's around Montgomery, we can tell that he's been here a while," I said, "If he wanted to get rid of her, he would have done it all ready."
"Besides, the sonic picked up something else on him," said Annabelle, "but I'd need to go back to make sure."
"Right, what do you remember about Rosa from school?" asked The Doctor, as she jumped on one of the beds and started to write on the wall.
"Oi, whoa, whoa, whoa. What are you doing?" asked Graham, "That is vandalism. We'll have to pay for that."
"Don't worry, special pen."
"No, pack it in. You ain't Banksy."
The Doctor turned and looked at Graham, "Or am I?" She turned back the wall, "Rosa takes the bus on the 1st of December 1955. What time of day?"
"Evening," said Yaz, "She was coming home from work. I remember cos she said people thought she didn't stand cos she was tired from working, but she wasn't."
"Where did she work?" asked The Doctor.
"I think it was in a shop, like a department store."
"No, no, wait," said Graham, "Earlier she told that git that slapped Ryan his suit'd be ready tomorrow."
"That's it," said Yaz, "She did clothes repairs. She was a seamstress. I mean, is a seamstress. Can't get used to being in the past." Then, there was a loud bag on the door, "Bathroom."
"Seriously?" Asked Ryan.
"Very seriously." Then, Ryan and Yaz went in the bathroom.
The Doctor went to answer the door when Graham said, "No, Doc. The wall." She took out her sonic and cleared her notes off the wall. "Banksy doesn't have one of those. Or have I?" She opened the door and a large white man, in a police uniform, was at the door, "Oh, officer. What can I do for you?"
"Can I come in, ma'am?" He asked.
The Doctor let him in, and she said under her breath, "'Ma'am.' Still can't get used to that." She walked over to the partial open bathroom door, so Yaz and Ryan could hear, "Here we are, darling. This police officer was so keen to come in he didn't feel the need to introduce himself."
"Is there a problem, Officer...?" Asked Graham.
"Mason," said the officer, "Montgomery Police."
The Doctor reached behind her and pulled the bathroom door closed, "I'd offer you a cuppa, but the refreshment facilities are very poor. I'll be leaving a note."
"British?"
"How can you tell?" Asked Graham.
"You've been making folks uneasy," said Officer Mason.
"How've we done that?" I asked.
"Y'all happen to know a couple of... mongrels, hmm? Negro boy," he spit out the side of his mouth, "Mexican girl?"
"I don't recognize anyone by that description," said Annabelle.
"They say the negro's been going around picking fights with upstanding citizens," said Officer Mason, as he walked up to The Doctor, "Now, you appreciate it's er, an offense to harbor coloureds in a room here."
"We're not harboring anyone who doesn't have a right to be here," said The Doctor.
"Mmm-hmm," he motioned The Doctor away from the door, "What's your business here in Montgomery?"
"We're here to, er, pitch an invention," said Graham, "Yeah, er, it's a telephone... that plays music, and it's a camera also, takes photo... and it's a calendar. And it send letters."
"Sounds ridiculous," said Officer Mason.
"Yeah," said Graham, with a chuckle.
The officer took a step toward Graham, "What's your name, sir?"
"Steve... Jobs. Steve Jobs."
The took another step toward Graham, "You being disrespectful with me, Mister Jobs?"
"Steve Jobs would never disrespect a Montgomery police officer, sir."
"Uh-huh," he then turned and went in the bathroom. It was empty and the window was open. He stuck his head out and looked up and down the alley behind the motel. He then walked out of the bathroom and looked at us, "You get yourselves gone as soon as your, er, business is concluded, mmm-hmm?" Then the officer let himself out.
Once he was gone, The Doctor said, "I did not warm to him."
Graham went to get Ryan and Yaz. Once they were back in the room, The Doctor used her sonic to bring her notes back onto the wall, "Where were we?" she asked.
Annabelle stepped up and join The Doctor on the bed, "We need as much intel as we can get. If we're going to protect Rosa, we need to know the facts of her life. Home address, daily routine, where she works, the routes she takes, and the church she attends. Also, the name of the driver of the bus."
"I know that" said Graham, "It's James Blake."
"How do you know that?" asked Ryan, as The Doctor wrote James Blake on the wall.
"Well, your Nan, when she found out I was a bus driver, said to me, 'You'd better not be like James Blake. Blake the snake,' that's what she called him. And I had to ask her who he was, and she just said he gave all bus drivers a bad name."
"She said that when you'd only just met?" asked Yaz.
"Yeah."
"That's pretty hardline."
"That's me Nan."
"Yeah," said Graham, "She had a T-shirt that said, er, The Spirit of Rosa, and er, well, I wish that she was here."
We were all silent for a moment then Ryan spoke up, "I don't. She'd start a riot."
We all gave a slight laugh. Then, The Doctor said, "Right. Operation Rosa Parks."
Ryan and I gathered bus timetables. While Yaz and Annabelle searched phone books and newspapers. We gathered back at the motel to let The Doctor and Graham in on what we had learned, "I've found out where she works. Montgomery Fair Department Store," said Yaz, as she pointed at a map of Montgomery.
"And if the phone book's right, this is where she lives," said Ryan as he pointed at the spot on the map were Rosa lived.
"Right, so these bus routes don't go near Rosa's shop or house," as he looked at the timetables, "but these ones do."
"Great," said The Doctor, "If we can find Rosa's route and time today, we can keep an eye on her tomorrow. Who's up for a bus ride?"
Graham raised his hand. I laughed a little.
A short time later we were getting on a bus, "Okay, Doc," said Graham, as we sat down, "This route is one of three that goes between Rosa's home and where she works. I reckon this one is the most direct."
"So, it's most likely she takes this one tomorrow night. But we can't be certain exactly what time."
"Unless we stalk her all day," said Yaz as she struggled with having to sit in the white or colored section.
Ryan got on at the back of the bus, "This is me, on the back of the bus," he said, as he sat.
"I'm so ashamed," said Graham, softly. Then, in a normal voice he said to Ryan, "You shouldn't have to do this."
"I agree. I'm sorry, Ryan," said The Doctor.
"The driver let me on at the front of the bus," said Yaz, "What does that mean for where I sit? Obviously not a lot of Pakistani heritage around here. Does colored just mean black in 1955?"
"For the most part," I said.
Yaz sat down and said, "Guess I'll park my South Asian-Mexican backside in the white section then, and let's see what happens." Riding the bus in Montgomery. Good times."
After a short while we got off the bus. When the bus moved, Yaz looked at the building across the street, "That's where she works. This must be her stop."
"Perfect," said The Doctor, "We can wait here, then get on the bus with her when she finishes work, have a little chat."
Later that night we got on the bus with Rosa. Graham, Yaz, Annabelle and I sat in the white section. Ryan and Rosa sat in the colored section and The Doctor sat down next to Rosa. Yas looked at her and said, "Hi. Nice to see you again. Mrs. Parks, right?"
"Yes…," said Rosa.
"You helped us out earlier today with our little misunderstanding," said The Doctor.
"I remember. British."
"Yes. Funny thing, you'll never believe this, we're actually doing market research for bus companies. Looking at people's transport habits. Answer the questions, enter the raffle for a prize. You get this bus this time every day?"
"Most days. Always this time."
"And you live...?"
"Cleveland Court. Next stop. Ma'am, if you keep sitting there, we're all going to have to move."
"What do you mean?" asked Graham.
"If white folks need seats, by law, I have to give mine up," said Rosa, "This middle section is only for coloreds if white folk don't need it."
"Well, that's not right," said Graham, as The Doctor moved to my seat.
"Tell your company that, sir," said Rosa. She looked at The Doctor, "If I win your raffle, will that give me the right to sit anywhere I want on this bus?"
"No."
"I didn't think so," The bus started to slow down, "This is my stop." Then she got up and left by the rear door.
Then, Ryan stood up, "I'm going to follow her. See what I can find out. Meet you back at the motel later."
"Ryan?" said The Doctor. He stopped and looked at her, "Be careful."
"Yeah," he said, and he got off the bus.
"Do you think he'll be all right?" asked Yaz.
"I hope so," said The Doctor. "Graham, do you think you can find James Blake, the driver?"
"Er, yeah. I'll just have a talk with the bloke at the front and find out where they all drink."
"Yaz, can compile a timeline of what happens this time tomorrow evening?" I asked.
"Okay. What are you three going to do?" she asked.
"Talk to our friend," said Annabelle, "Tell him to stay out of history's way."
The Doctor, Annabelle and I went back to the bus garage. The Doctor used her sonic to open the suitcase. We were looking over the contents when we heard something behind us. The quickly closed it up, picked it up and threw it, just as the man fired his weapon. An energy beam hit it and the case disappeared. "Whoops," I said, "Looks like you just sent all your equipment to goodness knows where. 79th century, judging by the weapon setting. Which, by the way, overheats very easily." A red light lit up on the weapon and he dropped it on the ground, as he grunted in paint.
"Cheap and nasty," said the Doctor as we walked up to him, "Now we're even. First things first. Tell us about Stormcage?"
"Storm what?" he asked.
I rolled my eyes, "You are a rotten liar. You've got a Stormcage identifier on your wrist. The most secure prison facility this side of the universe. Not at this point in history, though. But I guess that's where the Vortex Manipulator comes in."
"It's amazing what you can get if you're prepared to work and barter inside that prison."
"Did you escape or were you released?" asked Annabelle.
"I did my time. I'm rehabilitated."
"What were you there in the first place?" I asked.
"If I tell you, it might color your view of me. I was young. Nobody got hurt. Well, a few people got killed. A few hundred people. A thousand, tops. Two thousand," he said with a bit of a smile.
"It was bad enough that Stormcage placed a neural restrictor in your brain before releasing you back into the universe," said Annabelle.
"How can you know that? Who are you?"
"Very good scanner, this," said The Doctor, as she held up her sonic, "I thought I detected it the first time we met, and then it started to make sense, cos we were wondering, you've obviously got a problem with Rosa, why don't you just kill her? But the answer is because you can't."
"That Neural restrictor prevents you from killing or injuring any living thing, no matter how much you want to try," said Annabelle, as she walked up to him, "So even if I do this..." She grabbed the Vortex Manipulator off his wrist, threw it on the floor and stomped on it. The man grabbed Annabelle by the throat and lifted her off her feet. Then a few seconds later, he put her down, "You can't harm me, as much as you want to."
"You better be nice to us," I said, "Because we're your best chance of getting out of this time-zone now."
"Neutered criminal on release, and you come here. Why?" asked The Doctor.
"I'm allowed a hobby," said the man.
"And yours is Rosa Parks?"
"This is where things started to go wrong."
"And you think you can put it right?" I asked.
"I had a lot of time to think in Stormcage, and I realized tiny actions change the world.
"What's your name?" asked Annabelle.
"Krasko."
"Don't like it," said The Doctor. I rolled my eyes and The Doctor continued, "Listen, Krasko, we'll give you one warning. Go somewhere else, find a beach, read a book, cos you're a criminal who's lost his kit, lost his weapons."
"You think that makes a difference? History changes when tiny things don't go to plan."
"You mean tomorrow. Won't work, not while we're here."
"Well, let's see." Krasko walked away leaving his temporal displacement weapon on the floor.
A little while later we were back at the motel, Yaz was putting the finishing touches on the timeline and Ryan was putting a bus map on the wall. The Doctor was scanning the temporal displacement weapon, "Managed to get Krasko's weapon off him, at least," said The Doctor.
Just then Graham walked back in, "James Blake is taking the day off."
"What?" said Yaz, "But he can't."
"That's what I said," said Graham, "Strangely, he didn't listen.," he looked at The Doctor, "Your mate is interfering. He's reassigned Blake's route to a driver called Elias Griffin Jr."
"He's smart, I'll give him that," I said, "He's not planning to kill anyone or breaking history. He's planning to nudge it just enough so that it doesn't happen."
"Enough of a stick in the spokes to throw everything off the rails, and now I am really mixing my transport metaphors," said The Doctor, "Well, he didn't reckon with us keeping it in place."
"And how do we do that, then?" asked Yaz.
"Now we know what our task is. Keep history in order. No changing it, just guarding it against someone who wants to disrupt it."
"Tomorrow, we have to make sure Rosa Parks gets on the bus driven by James Blake," I said, "And that the bus is full, so Rosa sits when she's asked to stand for white passengers."
Annabelle saw Ryan holding the temporal displacement weapon, "Ryan, don't mess with that!"
"How does it even work?" he asked.
Annabelle rolled her eyes, "The charger goes here. This dial here sets the temporal destination. Pretty simple, pretty deadly." She took it away from him and tossed it on the bed, "Now, focus."
"How are we supposed to keep history in order if James Blake is going to go fishing at Mill Creek and another driver is lined up to do his route?" asked Graham.
"I've got an idea," said Ryan and Yaz, together.
"Same idea?" asked The Doctor.
"Raffle winner," said Yaz.
"Fishing takedown,' said Ryan.
The next day, Graham, Ryan, and Annabelle went to Mill Creek to get James Blake go to work. While, The Doctor, Yaz and I paid Elias Griffin Jr. a visit. The Doctor knocked on the door and a man answer, "Elias Griffin Jr.?" asked The Doctor.
"Yeah?" He said.
"Congratulations! You are the lucky winner of our Raffle of the Century!"
"I don't remember entering no raffle."
"You have won an all-expenses paid trip to Las Vegas," I said, "with front row tickets to see Frank Sinatra and a VIP pass to meet Frank himself."
"My wife loves Sinatra," said Elias, as he stepped aside to reveal a picture of Frank on the wall behind him.
"Amazing! Who would've guessed?"
"Only one condition," said The Doctor, "You have to leave now."
"Right now," said Yaz.
"Oh, I can't," said Elias, "My work shift starts in a couple of hours."
"We've sorted that too. Your company's already assigned someone to cover you."
"There's a taxi coming to pick you up in thirty minutes to take you to the airport," said The Doctor.
"Thirty minutes?"
"Unless you don't want to go.
"Oh, we'll be ready, we'll be ready," said Elias. Then, he closed the door.
We walked over the front porch and The Doctor said, "Good job Elvis lent Frank that mobile phone, against everything I told him. We need to stick tight to Rosa." She then tore a seam on her coat.
We went to the department store where Rosa worked and headed to the sewing room, "Mrs. Parks, enormous clothing emergency. Can you help me?" asked The Doctor as she showed Rosa the tear in her coat.
"That is one nasty tear," said Rosa, as she examined the coat.
"Yes, it is," said Yaz, "And there is nothing us Brits hate more than a clothing emergency."
"Mrs. Parks, I have to go out in that coat this evening, and if it's torn, I'll get in such trouble.
"Can you take a look at it now?" I asked, "We are willing to pay extra."
Rosa checked her workbook, "Well, I don't have any collections until tomorrow afternoon. I guess I could fit you in. Now, if you come back just before we close..."
"I'll wait," said Yaz, "while you work. Keep you company."
"I don't need company."
"No, but my coat does," said The Doctor, "It's very valuable. I don't usually let it out of my sight." She handed it to Rosa, "Thank you. You're going to make a big difference."
"Oh, I'd best set to work, then," said Rosa, as she stepped away.
I turned to Yaz and said, "Don't let her out of your sight. We're going to go meet Graham, Ryan, and Annabelle. Remember, get Rosa out of here by 5:40 at the latest to be on that bus on time."
The Doctor and I rushed out of the room.
The Doctor and I arrived at the bus garage. We hid behind an old truck and saw James Blake and Krasko talking in front of a bus with four flat tires and a smashed windshield. Krasko told him that they were going to cancel the route. Then they walked away. We saw Graham, Ryan and Annabelle hiding behind an old car. "Do you hear that?" asked Graham. "Everything we do, Krasko's a step ahead. He must have deliberately smashed up that bus himself."
"We've got to fix this," said Ryan, "James Blake has got to drive Rosa's bus home tonight."
The Doctor and I rushed up to join the others. Annabelle looked at us, "Looks like Krasko's not giving up that easily."
"Well, neither are we," said The Doctor, "Ryan, check every bus stop along Blake's route. Tell the waiting passengers that the bus is coming, and they have to wait."
"Okay," said Ryan.
"Do not let any of the passengers walk," I said, "The bus has to be full. It must be crowded enough so that Rosa is expected to move."
"Right, got it.:
"Good luck," said Graham as he gave his grandson a pat on the shoulder before he left.
The Doctor looked at Graham, "Now, Graham. Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"
A short time later, The Doctor, Annabelle and I were all on a working bus with Graham behind the wheel. "Nicking and hot-wiring a bus from right outside the depot? Hope our friendly cop don't hear about this," he said.
We pulled up in front of the bus depot and James Blake was there. Graham stopped the buss right in front of him and opened the door, "What in the hell?" said James.
The Doctor, Annabelle and I were first off the bus, "This is your replacement bus service," I said.
"Jim boy," said Graham, as he got off the bus.
"You again?" asked James.
"I know, I literally get everywhere now. Come on, hop in, and do your job."
"You're already eighteen minutes behind schedule," said Annabelle.
"How do you know that?" asked James, "What's going on? What happened to that damned sit-in? Nobody else knew anything about it."
"Love to explain all that to you," said The Doctor, "but you know us Brits, very imperious, not prone on explaining ourselves to anyone. So, no time to chat, just get driving. A lot of people need to get on this bus tonight."
Blake got on the bus. The four of us huddled together, "Driver James Blake behind the wheel. Check," said The Doctor. Then, the four of us got on board.
We drove for a while and Graham moved up to us and said, "Hey, Doc, I don't want to be alarmist, but this bus seems a bit emptier than last night."
"No, that's bad," said The Doctor, "We need the bus to be full. Come on, Ryan."
Soon, we arrived at the department store, Yaz and Rosa got on. "Yaz, you're here. How's it going?" asked The Doctor.
"Mrs. Parks fixed your coat," said Yaz, as she handed The Doctor her coat.
"Oh, thank you, Mrs. Parks," said The Doctor, "Beautiful work. Much appreciated."
"You're welcome, ma'am," said Rosa. She looked at the back of the bus. She paid her fare then got off so she could get on using the rear door.
The Doctor stood to put her coat on. We then heard Ryan's voice, "Don't shut the door, don't drive off. One more coming on." Ryan got on, "Found you. I just got rid of Krasko."
"How?" I asked.
"I borrowed this," said Ryan, as he showed us the temporal displacement weapon, "I think I dialed the settings as far back as it can go. He's gone."
"Use the door for coloreds," said James. Ryan paid his fare, then James said, "Law's the law." Ryan then got off. Rosa got on and The Doctor said, "Let's move back." We all got up and moved the edge of the White section. Ryan got on and the bus started.
"Hey, Doc," said Graham, "Rosa's on board, Blake's driving. We're good, right?"
The Doctor looked around, "What's the matter?" asked Yaz, "What are you doing?"
"Counting seats," said The Doctor.
"Did it worked?" asked I aside, "Have we done enough?"
"I don't know."
"We get off at the next stop, right?" asked Graham.
"Yes," said Annabelle, "Empire Theatre, yeah."
The bus stopped and Graham got up, "Right, come on, then. We can go, job done, history's safe." A woman got on and took Graham's seat, "Well, come on, then."
Unfortunately, not enough people got on the bus to cover us getting off. So, we just sat there, "Doctor?" asked Yaz.
"Don't get off, Graham," said The Doctor, "If we get off, there's enough empty seats for white passengers. Rosa won't be asked to move. We have to stay on."
"But we're here," said Yaz, "We're part of the story. Part of history."
"No, no, no," said Graham "I don't want to be part of this."
"We have to," I said, "I'm sorry. We must sit here and not react to what is about to happen."
Graham had a pained looked on his face then James Blake said, "I'm going to need those seats back there." Nobody moved, "Y'all better make it light on yourselves and let me have those seats." Two Black women got up and moved to the back. Then, a man sitting next to Rosa stood to get up. Rosa stood up. She kept looking at James and James looked at her. They stood looking at each other for what seemed like an eternity. Then, Rosa sat back down.
James stood up, walked past Graham, and grabbed a "WHITE" sign from a seat a row in front of Rosa and put it on her seat, "Stand up now."
"I don't think I should have to," said Rosa, calmly.
"Are you going to stand up?" shouted James.
"No."
"If you don't stand, I'm going to have you arrested."
"You may do that," said Rosa, her voice never changing tone.
It was one of the hardest things I've ever done while traveling with The Doctor to just sit there and watch history unfold in front of us. James got off the bus and went to a phone booth. A short time later, a police car pulled up and two officers got out and got on the bus. I could tell by the look on Graham's face that he hated that he was now the reason Rosa Parks was forced to give up her seat. The officers moved past Graham and went up to Rosa. Rosa looked at the officers and without protest stood up and the officers escorted her off the bus to the police car. As she walked to the car, she looked up at those of us on the bus and nodded.
Back at the TARDIS, us Time Ladies, told our friends the rest of Rosa's story. "On Monday, the boycotts begin," I said, "Across Montgomery, people refuse to use the buses as a response to Rosa's arrest. And in just over a year, December 21st, 1956, segregation on buses in Montgomery was ended."
"So, it all worked out for her," said Ryan.
"No, life's still hard for Rosa," said Annabelle, "She loses her job, so does her husband. It's a struggle, but they keep fighting. And 1996 she receives the Presidential Medal of Freedom then in 1999 the Congressional Gold Medal from both from President Clinton, the two highest awards given to any civilian in the Untied States, recognizing her as a living icon for freedom."
"It took so long, though. Her whole life"
"Yes, it did," said The Doctor, "But she changed the world. In fact, she changed the universe. Look at this." She walked over to the TARDIS Doors and opened it we were in the asteroid belt, looking at a large asteroid, "Asteroid 284996. Also known as Rosaparks."
AN: Remember, if you like this story, Review, Favorite and Follow. It gives me motivation to keep going!