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Title: Reconciliation
Fandom: DCTV/Doctor Who
Pairings: Amy/Rory
Disclaimer: I own nothing to do with DCTV or Doctor Who. Neither is my toy box and I'm merely playing. Rating: PG-13
Summary: Rip uses Chronos to find out who he really is.
A/N: Written for Willibald for the Space Swap.
Reconciliation:
Rip suspects there was a time in his life when the ends didn’t justify the means, but he can’t remember why he might think that. If there is anything all Time Masters know it’s that the ends justify the means, but the thought won’t leave him. It’s at the forefront of his mind when he betrays the institution that he remembers spending his whole life being a part of. Was it his whole life? Is that correct or is that what they want him to believe?
He tells his carefully selected crew that they’re important to history so that when he lies to some of them that they aren’t no one will be the wiser. From the moment he decides on Heatwave he knows he’s the one who hands the man to the Time Masters. He’s not sure Mr. Rory will ever forgive him, but then the time comes to send Mick to his former bosses he finds himself falling back on the one tenet that justified everything.
The ends will justify the means, they have to.
“We’re not going to be able to win against the Time Pirate,” Rip tells Mr. Rory when he takes him aside.
“Why risk the kid and the old man?” Mr. Rory challenges, leaning back in his chair.
Rip realizes, in that moment, that Mr. Rory already knows what’s being asked of him, just not how high a price he’ll pay.
“They’ll be out of harm’s way when we argue and you inevitably ‘betray’ me.”
“That’s your big plan?” Mr. Rory grumbles. “I can broker a deal, but what will they believe I want?”
“To go home.”
Mr. Rory crosses his arms. “Snart’s not going to like it. We might be arguing, but his plans…you should try one of his plans.”
“This will work,” Rip tells him.
Mr. Rory gives a disbelieving snort. “Your plans aren’t Snart’s plans.”
“Yes, be that as it may, I do know more of the situation than he does,” Rip snipes, then sighs. This isn’t going to work if he belittles Snart’s knowledge, so he changes tactics and begins fast talking Mr. Rory into the med bay for a final scan in case of injury. Rip use cognitive manipulation so Mr. Rory will forget their earlier conversation, but will remember his instructions via certain words. Then he instructs Mr. Rory, that while he’s Chronos that he should look into Rip’s past, help him find out who he was before he was Rip Hunter. The whole time Rip tries to ignore that he promised himself he’d never use the device.
His plan works perfectly, except for the guilt he feels as Mr. Snart wordlessly misses his partner. Mr. Snart’s body language is that of a man barely holding the pieces of himself together for grieving. Part of Rip wants to reassure Mr. Snart that he knows Mr. Rory isn’t dead, but as he is the one who prodded the situation so that Mr. Snart would abandon Mr. Rory, comforting him is the last thing Rip can do. Everything falls apart if Rip reveals he knows where Mr. Rory is.
What he doesn’t expect is that Chronos is back in their lives so soon, or that his first major move is to take Mr. Snart. Of course having Mr. Snart tell them to capture and not kill Chronos raises far fewer questions when it’s revealed that Chronos is in fact Mr. Rory. The crew is so shocked by the turn of events that no one thinks to question him why he has a cell that can hold Chronos, but they didn’t have that option when Mr. Rory’s loyalties were in question.
Rip attempts to reign in his brimming need for answers, especially in the face of the crew’s questions and worry. It takes time, but finally, miraculously, they’re alone. Chronos sits still and yet tightly wound in a way Mr. Rory never was.
“Would it help if I restored you to who you were before?” Rip asks, when it becomes clear he’ll need to be the first to speak.
“Your technology is old, not outdated, but you won’t be able to restore memories that were deemed not useful in a weapon of the Time Masters.”
“And yet you went after Mr. Snart,” Rip points out.
“Scaring Captain Cold into going home is one of my assignments. I have the face of his partner and threatened his sister, it stands to reason that this will cause him to leave your crew and go home, form his Rogues, and history will go on as it’s supposed to.”
“Without Heatwave?” Rip prods.
Chronos sits unblinking, unmoving for several long moments. Rip drifts closer to the cell. Chronos glances at him. “Your answers were more important.”
“Or you could…” Rip starts to reassure.
Chronos tilts his head to look at him and Rip trails off. Chronos stare is as blank at it ever was, but there is a stubbornness in his eyes that Rip never noticed before. “You’re the Last Centurion.”
Rip shakes his head, he’d been called that once or twice before growing his beard. “That’s a myth.”
“No, it’s fact. Your wife won’t be pleased when she sees what the Time Masters have turned you into, just as Captain Cold won’t be pleased if he realizes what you did to his partner.”
The ends don’t justify the means if he can’t get answers. Rip lets out a frustrated growl as he reminds, “Vandal Savage killed my…”
“Ever think that you can’t save them because they didn’t exist in the first place?”
“What?” Rip demands lost between confusion, anger, and horror. “I have proof.”
“Do you really? Or do you have video that could easily be manipulated and memories that could easily have been implanted?” Chronos challenges.
Of all his memories that have been inconsistent Rip never questioned anything to do with Jonas and Miranda.
“No, no, you’re saying this to confuse me,” Rip protests, even though he has a sinking feeling Chronos is being truthful.
“Believe what you want. Your wife and daughter are on their way to clean up the mess the Time Masters made. I…” Chronos falters then, falling silent as he goes back to staring blankly ahead.
“I don’t have a wife and daughter, I had a wife and son,” Rip holds onto stubbornly, before he demands. “Gideon, did Chronos send out a signal before we captured him?”
Gideon would’ve said something sooner. She points that out, before stating that she’s checking again, then she pauses. “Chronos’ ship is approaching in the Time Stream. Whoever is on board is requesting to speak with you.”
“Decision Time,” Chronos grumbles.
Rip repeats his words, questionably, then shakes his head.
“Revenge or family,” Chronos clarifies. “Your choice.”
“I’m going to regret what I did to you,” Rip realizes. No, the ends have to justify the means. He had to know who he was so that he could…
“They are requesting to speak to you,” Gideon repeats.
“Yes, Gideon, thank you,” Rip acknowledges, before leaving Chronos and heading for the bridge.
Dr. Palmer and Professor Stein start asking questions as soon as he gets to the bridge. They’re curious how the other ship found them if Chronos is locked up. Mr. Snart is still nursing the wound on his arm. Rip pauses long enough to ask Ms. Saunders to take him to the med bay, Gideon can direct repairs. Sara is watching him wearily, but shifts slightly to keep an eye on the departing Ms. Saunders and Mr. Snart.
“Got an explanation, Rip?” she pushes.
“That’s what I’m trying to determine,” he attempts to placate as he considers taking the call in his study.
Sara moves to stand in the doorway. Her face is stony.
“Ms. Lance,” Rip attempts to temper.
She crosses her arm and raises an eyebrow. Jax moves to stand next to her, “What are we doing?”
“Getting answers, again,” she glares.
“I’m attempting to get answers myself,” Rip admits exasperated.
“They are quite insistent that they speak with you,” Gideon reminds. “One of them appears to be the rather notorious Dr. River Song.”
“Is she currently pardoned or are they still looking to arrest her?” Rip starts to ask as Gideon pulls up the display.
“That’s not the question you should be asking,” a woman with red hair chides. “Rory Williams, you’ve become a difficult man to find.”
“It’s Rip Hunter, actually,” he corrects.
“No, it’s Rory Williams. I should know. I’m your wife.”
After that he’s not quite sure how they talk him into remote piloting the jump ship out so that they can come on board. Sara keeps drifting closer as they talk, then insists on joining him when he goes to greet them. Everyone else trails behind. Even Mr. Snart and Ms. Saunders join them, Mr. Snart still frowning at his repaired hands.
“I took scans of all of you when you came on board,” Rip attempts to clarify.
“Not reassuring,” Mr. Snart glares.
Rip runs a hand over his shirt, attempting to smooth it out. For some reason he does feel like he’s about to see his wife, even though he knows that she’s dead. He does know that, doesn’t he?
“Mom?” Sara shakes her head as the two women join them.
Rip is semi-grateful when this causes everyone to stop watching him as they turn to stare at Sara moving to hug Dr. Song. Amy moves to stand in front of him and for a moment Rip can’t move. He suddenly realizes how much he’s missed her, but that can’t be right.
“Ms. Pond,” Rip greets.
“Mrs. Williams,” she corrects. “Or you can call yourself Mr. Pond. We were always okay with either.”
“I don’t understand how you’re here,” Sara’s voice cuts through.
“Give your grandma a moment and she’ll explain,” Dr. Song grins.
“Grandma?” Dr. Palmer questions pointing at Amy. “She’s your mom? She’s younger than you.”
“Time travel can lead to some interesting consequences,” Amy grins.
“So this means Sara is Rip’s granddaughter?” Jax asks.
Mr. Snart crosses his arms. “More importantly how to we get my partner to remember who he is?”
“Can I assume you took a scan of him before you sent him away?” Dr. Song directs her question at Rip, latching onto the new topic.
“Oh, we’re not done,” Sara grumbles.
“Perhaps the hallway isn’t the best place to have what appears to be such a weighty discussion,” Professor Stein suggests.
Rip tries to protest, the sooner he gets these people off his ship the sooner they can get back to their mission. He’s suddenly not sure he wants the answers he was seeking. They talk over him and he’s overruled quickly. Amy takes his hand and gives it a squeeze, then doesn’t let go of him all the way to the bridge. Rip isn’t sure what to do with the way he doesn’t want to let go of her. He glances back, unsure of the way that Dr. Song is walking close and clearly having a conversation with both Sara and Mr. Snart with Ms. Saunders chiming in.
Eventually they settle in his study, over spilling out into the bridge, and Amy explains, “We were traveling with a friend when we were sent back to the thirties by a Weeping Angel…”
They have to pause to explain what a Weeping Angel is. Jax shudders, “That’s just creepy.”
“We did alright for ourselves for the first five years or so, but then the Time Masters found us and took you.”
Rip starts to protests, but Mr. Snart cuts in. “Chronos doesn’t even move like Mick and he threatened my sister.”
“Were you not worried about her safety before?” Professor Stein puts in.
“Is that what I implied?” Mr. Snart challenges.
“Guys, this isn’t getting us anywhere,” Sara cuts off. “Continue, please.”
“She managed to get a hold of me,” Dr. Song put in. “From there it was a matter of finding out what the Time Masters had done with him.”
“Does not explain how you’re their daughter,” Sara tells her.
“That is even more complicated,” Amy sighs.
“Perhaps you should uncomplicated it,” Mr. Snart suggests.
“I stopped on Earth for an artifact I was writing about, met your father and tried to live a normal life for a while,” Dr. Song tells Sara. “When you ‘died’ the first time I went home for a bit. I knew better. Spoilers never helped anyone and I knew I couldn’t maintain the lie that you were dead when I knew you weren’t, especially since I knew if I tried to change too much…”
Sara wraps her arms around her mom. “Hey, we’re okay.”
“Laurel’s not,” Dr. Song tells her.
“What?” Sara demands.
“Chronos contacted us,” Amy tells them. “Rory sent him to figure out who he was, how the Time Masters had manipulated him…”
“That’s not how I remember it,” Mr. Snart cuts in.
“Yes, well,” Rips starts.
“Back to my sister,” Sara insists.
Mr. Snart nods his agreement and shifts to stand closer to Sara.
“You taking some of these people from their timelines, them manipulating things so that Laurel dies, it plays into what the Time Masters want,” Dr. Song tells him. “We’ve figured out a way to save her, because she is important to way the timeline should go, but we’ll have to destroy the Time Master’s control too.”
“How do we do that?” Dr. Palmer asks.
“My guess, two teams,” Jax puts in.
“We have a plan for both,” Dr. Song nods, before she turns to Mr. Snart, “But if we could have your opinion it’s mean a great deal.”
Mr. Snart agrees, then amends, “I want my partner back.”
Chronos had been truthful: Revenge or family.
“And Vandal Savage?” Rip asks, glancing at Ms. Saunders.
“The Time Masters are working with him,” Amy reveals.
Rip turns to look at her. He’s not ready to let Miranda and Jonas go just yet. He’s not sure he believes that Amy and River are his family, yet. He glances at Sara. Granddaughter? If there is a chance that he has grandchildren, then he needs to keep them safe. Nodding he asks Amy what the plan is.
Fandom: DCTV/Doctor Who
Pairings: Amy/Rory
Disclaimer: I own nothing to do with DCTV or Doctor Who. Neither is my toy box and I'm merely playing. Rating: PG-13
Summary: Rip uses Chronos to find out who he really is.
A/N: Written for Willibald for the Space Swap.
Reconciliation:
Rip suspects there was a time in his life when the ends didn’t justify the means, but he can’t remember why he might think that. If there is anything all Time Masters know it’s that the ends justify the means, but the thought won’t leave him. It’s at the forefront of his mind when he betrays the institution that he remembers spending his whole life being a part of. Was it his whole life? Is that correct or is that what they want him to believe?
He tells his carefully selected crew that they’re important to history so that when he lies to some of them that they aren’t no one will be the wiser. From the moment he decides on Heatwave he knows he’s the one who hands the man to the Time Masters. He’s not sure Mr. Rory will ever forgive him, but then the time comes to send Mick to his former bosses he finds himself falling back on the one tenet that justified everything.
The ends will justify the means, they have to.
“We’re not going to be able to win against the Time Pirate,” Rip tells Mr. Rory when he takes him aside.
“Why risk the kid and the old man?” Mr. Rory challenges, leaning back in his chair.
Rip realizes, in that moment, that Mr. Rory already knows what’s being asked of him, just not how high a price he’ll pay.
“They’ll be out of harm’s way when we argue and you inevitably ‘betray’ me.”
“That’s your big plan?” Mr. Rory grumbles. “I can broker a deal, but what will they believe I want?”
“To go home.”
Mr. Rory crosses his arms. “Snart’s not going to like it. We might be arguing, but his plans…you should try one of his plans.”
“This will work,” Rip tells him.
Mr. Rory gives a disbelieving snort. “Your plans aren’t Snart’s plans.”
“Yes, be that as it may, I do know more of the situation than he does,” Rip snipes, then sighs. This isn’t going to work if he belittles Snart’s knowledge, so he changes tactics and begins fast talking Mr. Rory into the med bay for a final scan in case of injury. Rip use cognitive manipulation so Mr. Rory will forget their earlier conversation, but will remember his instructions via certain words. Then he instructs Mr. Rory, that while he’s Chronos that he should look into Rip’s past, help him find out who he was before he was Rip Hunter. The whole time Rip tries to ignore that he promised himself he’d never use the device.
His plan works perfectly, except for the guilt he feels as Mr. Snart wordlessly misses his partner. Mr. Snart’s body language is that of a man barely holding the pieces of himself together for grieving. Part of Rip wants to reassure Mr. Snart that he knows Mr. Rory isn’t dead, but as he is the one who prodded the situation so that Mr. Snart would abandon Mr. Rory, comforting him is the last thing Rip can do. Everything falls apart if Rip reveals he knows where Mr. Rory is.
What he doesn’t expect is that Chronos is back in their lives so soon, or that his first major move is to take Mr. Snart. Of course having Mr. Snart tell them to capture and not kill Chronos raises far fewer questions when it’s revealed that Chronos is in fact Mr. Rory. The crew is so shocked by the turn of events that no one thinks to question him why he has a cell that can hold Chronos, but they didn’t have that option when Mr. Rory’s loyalties were in question.
Rip attempts to reign in his brimming need for answers, especially in the face of the crew’s questions and worry. It takes time, but finally, miraculously, they’re alone. Chronos sits still and yet tightly wound in a way Mr. Rory never was.
“Would it help if I restored you to who you were before?” Rip asks, when it becomes clear he’ll need to be the first to speak.
“Your technology is old, not outdated, but you won’t be able to restore memories that were deemed not useful in a weapon of the Time Masters.”
“And yet you went after Mr. Snart,” Rip points out.
“Scaring Captain Cold into going home is one of my assignments. I have the face of his partner and threatened his sister, it stands to reason that this will cause him to leave your crew and go home, form his Rogues, and history will go on as it’s supposed to.”
“Without Heatwave?” Rip prods.
Chronos sits unblinking, unmoving for several long moments. Rip drifts closer to the cell. Chronos glances at him. “Your answers were more important.”
“Or you could…” Rip starts to reassure.
Chronos tilts his head to look at him and Rip trails off. Chronos stare is as blank at it ever was, but there is a stubbornness in his eyes that Rip never noticed before. “You’re the Last Centurion.”
Rip shakes his head, he’d been called that once or twice before growing his beard. “That’s a myth.”
“No, it’s fact. Your wife won’t be pleased when she sees what the Time Masters have turned you into, just as Captain Cold won’t be pleased if he realizes what you did to his partner.”
The ends don’t justify the means if he can’t get answers. Rip lets out a frustrated growl as he reminds, “Vandal Savage killed my…”
“Ever think that you can’t save them because they didn’t exist in the first place?”
“What?” Rip demands lost between confusion, anger, and horror. “I have proof.”
“Do you really? Or do you have video that could easily be manipulated and memories that could easily have been implanted?” Chronos challenges.
Of all his memories that have been inconsistent Rip never questioned anything to do with Jonas and Miranda.
“No, no, you’re saying this to confuse me,” Rip protests, even though he has a sinking feeling Chronos is being truthful.
“Believe what you want. Your wife and daughter are on their way to clean up the mess the Time Masters made. I…” Chronos falters then, falling silent as he goes back to staring blankly ahead.
“I don’t have a wife and daughter, I had a wife and son,” Rip holds onto stubbornly, before he demands. “Gideon, did Chronos send out a signal before we captured him?”
Gideon would’ve said something sooner. She points that out, before stating that she’s checking again, then she pauses. “Chronos’ ship is approaching in the Time Stream. Whoever is on board is requesting to speak with you.”
“Decision Time,” Chronos grumbles.
Rip repeats his words, questionably, then shakes his head.
“Revenge or family,” Chronos clarifies. “Your choice.”
“I’m going to regret what I did to you,” Rip realizes. No, the ends have to justify the means. He had to know who he was so that he could…
“They are requesting to speak to you,” Gideon repeats.
“Yes, Gideon, thank you,” Rip acknowledges, before leaving Chronos and heading for the bridge.
Dr. Palmer and Professor Stein start asking questions as soon as he gets to the bridge. They’re curious how the other ship found them if Chronos is locked up. Mr. Snart is still nursing the wound on his arm. Rip pauses long enough to ask Ms. Saunders to take him to the med bay, Gideon can direct repairs. Sara is watching him wearily, but shifts slightly to keep an eye on the departing Ms. Saunders and Mr. Snart.
“Got an explanation, Rip?” she pushes.
“That’s what I’m trying to determine,” he attempts to placate as he considers taking the call in his study.
Sara moves to stand in the doorway. Her face is stony.
“Ms. Lance,” Rip attempts to temper.
She crosses her arm and raises an eyebrow. Jax moves to stand next to her, “What are we doing?”
“Getting answers, again,” she glares.
“I’m attempting to get answers myself,” Rip admits exasperated.
“They are quite insistent that they speak with you,” Gideon reminds. “One of them appears to be the rather notorious Dr. River Song.”
“Is she currently pardoned or are they still looking to arrest her?” Rip starts to ask as Gideon pulls up the display.
“That’s not the question you should be asking,” a woman with red hair chides. “Rory Williams, you’ve become a difficult man to find.”
“It’s Rip Hunter, actually,” he corrects.
“No, it’s Rory Williams. I should know. I’m your wife.”
After that he’s not quite sure how they talk him into remote piloting the jump ship out so that they can come on board. Sara keeps drifting closer as they talk, then insists on joining him when he goes to greet them. Everyone else trails behind. Even Mr. Snart and Ms. Saunders join them, Mr. Snart still frowning at his repaired hands.
“I took scans of all of you when you came on board,” Rip attempts to clarify.
“Not reassuring,” Mr. Snart glares.
Rip runs a hand over his shirt, attempting to smooth it out. For some reason he does feel like he’s about to see his wife, even though he knows that she’s dead. He does know that, doesn’t he?
“Mom?” Sara shakes her head as the two women join them.
Rip is semi-grateful when this causes everyone to stop watching him as they turn to stare at Sara moving to hug Dr. Song. Amy moves to stand in front of him and for a moment Rip can’t move. He suddenly realizes how much he’s missed her, but that can’t be right.
“Ms. Pond,” Rip greets.
“Mrs. Williams,” she corrects. “Or you can call yourself Mr. Pond. We were always okay with either.”
“I don’t understand how you’re here,” Sara’s voice cuts through.
“Give your grandma a moment and she’ll explain,” Dr. Song grins.
“Grandma?” Dr. Palmer questions pointing at Amy. “She’s your mom? She’s younger than you.”
“Time travel can lead to some interesting consequences,” Amy grins.
“So this means Sara is Rip’s granddaughter?” Jax asks.
Mr. Snart crosses his arms. “More importantly how to we get my partner to remember who he is?”
“Can I assume you took a scan of him before you sent him away?” Dr. Song directs her question at Rip, latching onto the new topic.
“Oh, we’re not done,” Sara grumbles.
“Perhaps the hallway isn’t the best place to have what appears to be such a weighty discussion,” Professor Stein suggests.
Rip tries to protest, the sooner he gets these people off his ship the sooner they can get back to their mission. He’s suddenly not sure he wants the answers he was seeking. They talk over him and he’s overruled quickly. Amy takes his hand and gives it a squeeze, then doesn’t let go of him all the way to the bridge. Rip isn’t sure what to do with the way he doesn’t want to let go of her. He glances back, unsure of the way that Dr. Song is walking close and clearly having a conversation with both Sara and Mr. Snart with Ms. Saunders chiming in.
Eventually they settle in his study, over spilling out into the bridge, and Amy explains, “We were traveling with a friend when we were sent back to the thirties by a Weeping Angel…”
They have to pause to explain what a Weeping Angel is. Jax shudders, “That’s just creepy.”
“We did alright for ourselves for the first five years or so, but then the Time Masters found us and took you.”
Rip starts to protests, but Mr. Snart cuts in. “Chronos doesn’t even move like Mick and he threatened my sister.”
“Were you not worried about her safety before?” Professor Stein puts in.
“Is that what I implied?” Mr. Snart challenges.
“Guys, this isn’t getting us anywhere,” Sara cuts off. “Continue, please.”
“She managed to get a hold of me,” Dr. Song put in. “From there it was a matter of finding out what the Time Masters had done with him.”
“Does not explain how you’re their daughter,” Sara tells her.
“That is even more complicated,” Amy sighs.
“Perhaps you should uncomplicated it,” Mr. Snart suggests.
“I stopped on Earth for an artifact I was writing about, met your father and tried to live a normal life for a while,” Dr. Song tells Sara. “When you ‘died’ the first time I went home for a bit. I knew better. Spoilers never helped anyone and I knew I couldn’t maintain the lie that you were dead when I knew you weren’t, especially since I knew if I tried to change too much…”
Sara wraps her arms around her mom. “Hey, we’re okay.”
“Laurel’s not,” Dr. Song tells her.
“What?” Sara demands.
“Chronos contacted us,” Amy tells them. “Rory sent him to figure out who he was, how the Time Masters had manipulated him…”
“That’s not how I remember it,” Mr. Snart cuts in.
“Yes, well,” Rips starts.
“Back to my sister,” Sara insists.
Mr. Snart nods his agreement and shifts to stand closer to Sara.
“You taking some of these people from their timelines, them manipulating things so that Laurel dies, it plays into what the Time Masters want,” Dr. Song tells him. “We’ve figured out a way to save her, because she is important to way the timeline should go, but we’ll have to destroy the Time Master’s control too.”
“How do we do that?” Dr. Palmer asks.
“My guess, two teams,” Jax puts in.
“We have a plan for both,” Dr. Song nods, before she turns to Mr. Snart, “But if we could have your opinion it’s mean a great deal.”
Mr. Snart agrees, then amends, “I want my partner back.”
Chronos had been truthful: Revenge or family.
“And Vandal Savage?” Rip asks, glancing at Ms. Saunders.
“The Time Masters are working with him,” Amy reveals.
Rip turns to look at her. He’s not ready to let Miranda and Jonas go just yet. He’s not sure he believes that Amy and River are his family, yet. He glances at Sara. Granddaughter? If there is a chance that he has grandchildren, then he needs to keep them safe. Nodding he asks Amy what the plan is.