Fic: Hold On to What You Have (Supernatural/Doctor Who)

[rivulet027]

Title: Hold On To What You Have
Fandoms: Supernatural/Doctor Who
Characters: Amy, River, Missouri, Ellen and Jo. Gen
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: Jo is tied to a bed at the beginning of her scene. It’s described. Mentions canon kidnapping.
Spoilers: Early S4 for SPN and up to "A Good Man Goes to War" for DW.
Disclaimer: I own nothing to do with Supernatural or Doctor Who. Neither is my toy box and I’m merely playing. I also own nothing to do with Malley’s Chocolates, Put-in-Bay, The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame or The Science Center. I also don’t own the Quantum Mirror which I shamelessly borrowed from Stargate even though this fic doesn’t include the Stargate world and no knowledge of that fandom is needed. I also own nothing to do with Cleveland where most of this story takes place.
Summary: Jo’s been turned into a mermaid. Amy and River have fallen into a new dimension. Missouri knows how it’s all connects and Ellen just wants her daughter back.
Notes: Written for scandalbaby for the xoverexchange. Thank you to my friend James for the quick beta.


Hold On To What You Have:

The mirror was surrounded by jagged opaque rock and stood there in the corner of the room taller than she was. Rory and the Doctor had moved through the room, intent on following the lead to where her daughter was. Amy couldn’t help but linger, drawn to the mirror. It echoed her pain back at her. The fear and loss crashed into her, pulling her forward until she stood transfixed in front of it.

Would she ever see Melody again? Was her daughter safe?

River came up behind her, put a hand on her shoulder. Amy tilted her head and frowned. She still hadn’t come to terms with the concept that River was Melody all grown up. River was a flirty criminal and her daughter was a sweet baby oozing with potential. Amy’s frown deepened, ever since she’d found out who River was everything that gave her pause about the other woman seemed more extreme. Amy turned back to the mirror.

“It’s a Quantum Mirror. They’re rare,” River told her, “They allow travel between dimensions, but the dimensional walls are closed, so they no longer work. I’ve actually never seen one before.”

River reached over her to touch the mirror. River’s fingers slide easily into the mirror. Amy started as the grip on her shoulder tightened. They both lost their balance as the mirror pulled them away.

~~~~~*****~~~~~

Missouri paused as Ellen lagged behind. She frowned as Ellen stared down at the key in her hand.

“We’ll get her back,” Missouri reassured.

Ellen scowled at her, “I don’t see why we couldn’t bring the boys. Seems wrong, this was their daddy’s space.”

Missouri shook her head, “River and Dean would flirt too much or she’d eat Sam alive and that’s not something a mother needs to see.”

“I don’t care who they are as long as I get my Jo back,” Ellen told her as she joined Missouri and opened the storage unit. She frowned at all the gathered items. It was a mess, an organized mess, but still a mess and a memory of John. Ellen shook her head, “How are we supposed to find what we’re looking for? What are we looking for?”

“Just wait,” Missouri advised.

“I could be working to get Jo back right now,” Ellen snapped, “And you want me to wait?”

“You’d drown.”

“I’d be with her!”

“I sent to the boys to find her,” Missouri reassured.

“That Trickster is…there aren’t words for what I’m going to do to him,” Ellen declared.

“He’s been lost for awhile,” Missouri tried to calm, “He’s lost now, almost ready to be found.”

Ellen glared, voice low in her anger, “He gave my daughter a tail and dumped her in Lake Erie. She could be halfway to Canada by now!”

“Put-in-Bay,” Missouri told her.

Ellen’s eyes narrowed, “What?”

“It’s part of the island with Perry’s Monument,” Missouri shrugged, “Plenty of drunkards there. That is Put-in-Bay, isn’t it?”

Ellen shrugged.

“Got Sam on it,” Missouri reassured, “He’ll figure it out.”

Ellen frowned. She wanted to believe they’d save Jo, but her baby had been turned into a mermaid, a monster, a thing they hunted. What if they couldn’t save her? What if the only option was to kill her daughter?

She wasn’t going to be able to do that.

“What is it we’re looking for?” Ellen forced herself to ask. They had to try; she couldn’t live with herself if they didn’t.

“A reflection of your pain and the daughter she lost.”

“Some days you need to learn to make sense.” Ellen chided.

A loud thunk and shriek drew their attention. They moved cautiously forward.

“Amy no! You can’t go back; you might not end up in the same dimension.”

“We just came through,” Amy responded.

“But it could have changed already,” the other woman responded.

“River, we can’t stick around with all these creepy…things and I’m not waiting around to be rescued again.”

Missouri and Ellen rounded the shelf to find two women glaring at each other while standing in front of a mirror that looked like it was embedded in a large rock.

“See I told you our help would be here,” Missouri smiled. Her words startled River and Amy.

River shoved Amy behind her, reaching for a weapon. Missouri glared, “Child, put that away! That’s not going to help anyone. We need your help.”

“Our help?” River asked as Amy stepped out from behind River and gave her a glare.

Missouri took the two of them in and shook her head, “This is going to be a mess.”

“We don’t have time for a mess,” Ellen shook her head, “I have to get my baby back.”

Amy turned from River, stared at Ellen, “Your baby?”

Ellen nodded, “Thinks she’s all grown up and ready to be the heroine, but she’s in over her head and Missouri said you could help get her back.”

“I don’t see how,” River responded.

“Introductions,” Missouri prompted.

The four women looked at each other expectantly before Missouri introduced herself. After they’d all followed suit Missouri explained their dilemma.

“We’ll help,” Amy agreed, “I should say we’ll stay put until we’re found, but we’ll leave a note.”

River smirked, “I’m always up for a random adventure.”

After Amy and River had left a note near the mirror, in the line of sight of anyone coming out and while Ellen was locking the storage unit Missouri got the phone call that Dean and Sam had managed to capture Jo and we’re working on getting her back to Cleveland so they could all figure out how to turn her back.

“I told those boys we’d call when we got close and send them out,” Missouri finished reporting.

Ellen nodded, only slightly more relaxed now that they’d found her daughter. Taking a breath and trying to remain hopeful Ellen decided that she’d call and harass Bobby for information once they were settled into Missouri’s station wagon and on their way. She watched quietly as Amy and River bickered their way into the station wagon and as they traveled listened to their story, that Amy was the mother and River was the long lost daughter, even though River was older than Amy.

Ellen could hear the pain in both their voices and as they traveled to Cleveland she watched as Amy avoided River. She watched Missouri hold her tongue for once, she also understood the meaningful looks the psychic kept sending her way. Ellen saw how River watched Amy with longing, wanting to be accepted. She understood Missouri’s words, understood that Amy and her were both plagued by worry for their daughters. Amy’s pain was palpable in the way she moved, the expression on her face and the way she could barely look at River. There were also times Amy seemed to recognize their surroundings and then she’d close in on herself.

Ellen had to wonder if Missouri had it wrong, if she was supposed to help Amy. Or maybe Missouri had it right and that’s what those meaningful looks meant. Ellen waited until a rest stop. Amy had crawled into the back of the station wagon and curled up. River and Missouri had gone for snacks and bathroom breaks or rather Missouri had insisted on leaving the two of them alone. Ellen crawled into the back, not sure where to start. She wanted Jo back, but she couldn’t help but be touched by Amy’s pain.

“I keep remembering traveling through America and then remembering that it wasn’t really me, but the fake they replaced me with so I wouldn’t realize they were trying to steal my daughter,” Amy told her without turning, “I keep thinking I’ll never see her again.”

“What about River?”

“I want my baby back.”

“I can’t pretend to understand all this time travel stuff. I haven’t been living it, but wouldn’t that change who River is?” Ellen tried. Amy turned to look at her over the back of the seat. Their eyes met and Ellen admitted, “I may have to learn to live with a daughter who’s a mermaid. I may have to find and kill a trickster.”

Amy frowned, “I want to kill them too, the woman who took Melody the most, but then I think that’d I’d lose a piece of myself, that I might stop being me. Then I wonder what I’d be teaching her. I wonder if I’ll ever get to teach her anything and then I look at River.”

“Well she is one of a kind,” Ellen commented. The corner of Amy’s lips quirked in response and Ellen continued, “I think it hurts her that you can’t see how much she wants you to be her mother.”

“She’s a grown woman.”

“She’s still your daughter.”

“I know,” Amy sighed, “I just don’t know how to convince myself of that. I don’t know how to interact with her now.”

Ellen nodded, “I’m not sure what were going to find when we get to Jo, but I’m not going to lose her and you don’t want to lose your daughter a second time.”

Amy frowned, opened her mouth and Missouri bustled up to them quickly, “We have to go!”

River swung into the front seat as Missouri started the car.

“What happened?” Ellen demanded.

“Your girl almost killed Dean,” Missouri explained, “Nearly drowned him in a bathtub. I’m going to have to whap some sense into that boy.”

River laughed.

“It’s not funny,” Ellen snapped.

Amy giggled.

Ellen thought about it another moment and shook her head. Only Dean Winchester would get himself into such a mess.

“He’s fine now,” Missouri reassured.

Ellen shook her head, containing her smile, “I’ll help you knock some sense into him, after Jo beats him up for being stupid enough to let her mermaid wiles reel him in.”

Missouri laughed.

They made it to Cleveland in record time and Missouri sent the boys away, though Ellen wasn’t sure they’d stay gone for long.

“Dean’s discovered that Malley’s has ice cream parlors,” Missouri reassured, “And Sam thinks they can reason better with the trickster surrounded by chocolate.”

“Does Dean know the reason you want to keep him away is because you don’t want him to meet a woman?” Ellen questioned.

Missouri’s eyes narrowed, “That boy will listen to me if he knows what’s good for him!”

“Ignorance is bliss?” Ellen questioned.

“In this case and for him,” Missouri agreed, “Now let’s go see about helping your daughter.”

~~~~~*****~~~~~

Ellen stood frozen in the doorway of the motel as she stared at her daughter. Jo looked every inch human, except the boys had but her in a black shirt she was drowning in and boxers. She was tied to the bed with duck tape over her mouth. Ellen wanted to untie her daughter, wanted to rip the duck tape away, but knew she couldn’t.

“Can’t risk her singing or getting away,” Missouri tried to explain.

“Doesn’t make me feel better,” Ellen shot back.

Jo growled at them, glaring and those eyes were not her daughter’s eyes. They were the right color, but the hatred in their depths was inhuman. The sheer malice coming off of Jo, the need to kill them made Ellen shake her head. How were they going to save her daughter?

“Can we scan her?” River asked, “Find out if there’s a source to this change?”

“Trickster,” Ellen explained.

“But how?” River demanded, “What exactly is he and how did he do this? If we know that we should be able to reverse it.”

“You’re thinking about this scientifically,” Amy pointed out as she moved into the room, “This isn’t just another reality, but another dimension. The rules are different.”

“Let me talk to her,” Ellen decided, “Maybe…”

Ellen shook her head and waited till she was alone with Jo. She sat on the bed, started to straighten out Jo’s hair when Jo screamed, hissed at her and began trying to come out of her binding.

“That’s enough!” Ellen snapped.

Jo growled, glaring.

“You’re all I have left. I’m not going to lose you too,” Ellen told her, “So you need to fight this. I know you have to be in there somewhere.”

Jo began fighting the binding again, howling angrily and Ellen backed out of the room. Closing the door behind her she leaned against the nearest wall and let herself slide down. Even with all of their arguments Jo had never looked at her with that much anger and hatred. Ellen leaned in as Missouri wrapped her arms around her.

Amy leaned down and Ellen let herself be pulled into a hug, “Let me talk to her.”

Ellen nodded.

“No water!” Missouri reminded, “Don’t touch those bindings.”

Amy gave Ellen another reassuring pat on the arm, tried to give River a confident look and entered the room. She leaned against the doorway taking Jo in. Jo stilled, looked small, vulnerable.

“That’s not going to work,” Amy warned, “I’ve seen angels that would kill you if you so much as blinked. A mermaid that would sing me into doing anything she wanted, well that’s not so far-fetched. I’ve watched men supposedly marked for death just by a song. Your mom needs you back. She needs you safe.”

Amy glanced towards the door, suddenly glad that River was out of the room, glad that her daughter was in a small measure safe.

Amy slide to the floor, “We’ll figure this out, but if there’s some way you could help us?”

She waited and when Jo didn’t respond she continued, “You’re mother’s frantic with worry. She’s trying to figure out how to live with a daughter who’s a mermaid and might kill her at any moment. I’m…”

Trying to live with a daughter I don’t understand, but who might be married to my best friend. Amy let the thought run its course, realizing that she’d finally thought of River as her daughter. She leaned her head against the wall and closed her eyes.

“Your mom nee…” Amy startled into silence as Missouri came flying into the room and pulled a necklace off of Jo. It hung there, a thin black cord with a small white and grey, cone sea shell on the end.

Missouri held the necklace up, “This. This is how you’d turn back. All you have to do is destroy it, but you have to do it.”

Missouri place the necklace in Jo’s hand.

“Might not have to kill a certain trickster,” Ellen commented.

Jo tilted her head, watching Ellen. Ellen met her eyes, tried to convey her worry and love.
Amy looked up as River came to stand over her and offer her a hand. Amy smiled, took it and let River pull her to her feet. She pulled her daughter into a hug, “I’m sorry.”

River clung back tightly, “I wanted to tell you, but I couldn’t.”

“Spoilers,” Amy agreed.

Jo frowned at the exchange.

“Let me tell you a story,” Missouri tried, “Once there was a girl who saved the world with her husband and an alien. She got pregnant, but the baby was stolen from her, like the way you’ve been stolen from your mother right now, but now that baby’s all grown up and they have to learn how to relate to one another. Amy had to stop seeing a baby and they both have to stop seeing everything they’ve missed with each other so they don’t miss what’s to come. Break the necklace, Baby. Don’t miss your time with your mother.”

Jo tilted her head to look at the necklace.

“Please Jo,” Ellen begged, “I can’t lose you.”

Jo frowned at her mother.

River stepped into her line of sight, “You’ll regret it if you don’t, the missed opportunities.”

Jo closed her fist around the necklace slowly. It crunched easily in her palm and she was engulfed in a bright flash of light.

Ellen moved cautiously over to the bed. Jo looked at her worriedly, but with the love and exasperation she was used to. Carefully she untied her daughter and led her to bathroom, “In the tub.”

Jo nodded and set the clothes aside before she eased herself slowly into the filled tub. Ellen sank to her feet when nothing happened. Jo jumped out of the tub and engulfed her in a hug. Ellen took the duck tape off carefully. Jo winced, “I’m so sorry!”

“I’m gonna kill him for the duck tape! Maybe both of them.”

Jo laughed and buried her head into the crook of her mother’s neck, “I’m safe. It’s okay. They had to or you’d have come in to them both dead and me stuck in that tub.”

“I know, but that duck tape is…your lips.”

“They’ll heal,” Jo told her.

Ellen grabbed a towel and helped Jo up, watched as her daughter tried to get reacquainted with her legs after days with a tail and living in the water.

“Mom?” Jo asked as she finished dressing, “Who are those woman?”

“River and Amy,” Ellen told her, “River is Amy’s daughter that was stolen from her, but grew up.”

Jo shook her head, “But I thought Amy was the younger one?”

“There was time travel involved,” Ellen explained as she began draining the tub.

As they exited the bathroom Ellen put the storage key on the nightstand, “When are the boys getting back?”

Missouri grinned, “We can take a rest. They’ll call before they’re ready to head back and we can leave.”

“I might want to meet them,” River protested. Missouri glared at her. River threw her hands up in surrender. Missouri nodded.

“How do you know they won’t come back soon?” Jo questioned as she crawled into the bed she hadn’t been tied to and closed her eyes.

“Tired?” Ellen asked. Jo nodded. Ellen sat on the bed and carefully brushed the hair from her daughter’s face. Jo opened her eye and smiled at her mother before she gave Missouri a questioning look.

Missouri shrugged, “Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for Dean and The Science Center for Sam. They’re right next to each other, so it should keep them occupied.”

Ellen smiled, that sounded about right.

Amy pulled River over to the small kitchenette table, “We should get to know each other before we go home.”