Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who, I do not own the song, "I Melt With You" by Modern English, and I do not own the New Jersey Devil or its folklore.
A/N Okay, so this is a brand new story. It's been bugging and nipping at my ankles for a few months now! I got tired of the dry heat and sands of Triangle so I decided to switch gears.
If you do not know about the New Jersey Devil, it's a weird story and I will be twisting it a LOT in my story here so if you're interested, google it!
This story will be set between Tooth and Claw and School Reunion.
And yes I have an obsession with pie and Doctor whump.
The Devil in the Woods
Chapter One: Impaired Judgment
Rose clutched at the Doctor's bare back, her eyes hooded with desire. The TARDIS was quiet except for the rustle of bed sheets.
It hadn't taken her long to accept this Doctor as her own, she thought vaguely. It had been a week on her timeline since the Sycorax invasion and Rose had fallen head over heels harder for the Doctor than ever before. It must be the hair. She pulled it gently and he uttered a small, throaty noise of encouragement.
He had informed her earlier over tea that because he had been born in her presence he had, like a newborn chick, grafted to her, and now couldn't bear to be separated from her. Depression and hints of the deep-seated anger within showed through when she would leave the TARDIS to visit her mum without him.
Rose hadn't meant to give in to the look in his eyes, and she felt sure that he hadn't meant to betray those feelings, but one thing had led to another, and before they had known it, their tea had gone cold and forgotten.
Scratch that. Rose's alarm hit frequencies that surely the rest of the galaxy at least could hear. Her clock was set to her own timeline to ensure continuity.
She slammed an arm on the offending object, managing to hit the correct button in the process. She sat up with a sigh, her disheveled hair sitting in a loose ponytail high and crooked on her head.
She got out of bed with determination, showered, and dressed quickly. She had work to do.
Hours later, Rose swept hair out of her eyes as she bent over the recipe sheet. Meringue left her fingers and stuck in her hair to join the butter and flower that smeared her visage. She wore track pants and a t-shirt that stated: "I love New New York."
Her lips moved as she read the recipe for what felt like the thousandth time.
As much as she tried to make her brain work, the layers of debris that littered the TARDIS kitchen was discouraging and would not let her focus.
She half-heartedly gave the slimy egg whites a poke with her spatula. Banana Meringue Pie had seemed like a good idea—easy in fact, when she and the Doctor had come back from a cooking lesson with Julia Child. Now she lay amidst the shattered dream that she could perhaps do something special for the Doctor.
Who am I kidding? She thought derisively. He'd probably be just as happy if I chucked a banana at him never mind the meringue.
"Moving forward using all my breath, Making love to you was never second best!" The Doctor's cheerful singing could be heard from the console room down the hall.
Rose raised her eyebrows. "Hope he's not singing about the TARDIS." She muttered with a shudder. That was a mental image she could do without.
She heard a clanking coming from the console followed by a stream of consciousness that could only be the Doctor as he verbally purged his mind. She smiled fondly as she listened to the manic rant, only occasionally able to pick out some phrases such as "rancid needle squall" and "Madeleine Albright."
Soon the ranting was replaced with the song he had been singing and Rose knew he must have solved whatever problem he was fixing at the console.
"I made a pilgrimage to save this human race. What I'm comprehending a race that long gone by…"
She began to notice that his singing was growing louder and hurriedly tried to hide the bowl and a dozen or so bananas into a near by cabinet.
Too late.
"I'd stop the world and melt with you! Dun dun dun dunnn dundun!" The Doctor, clothed in his brown pin striped suit, skidded into the room, his eyes wide with excitement. "You've seen the difference and it's getting better all the time!"
"Whoa there, Crazy Eyes!" Rose couldn't help but grin at his manic face as he pulled himself up to sit on the counter in one fluid motion.
Rose looked up at the Doctor and sighed. "Surprise…?" She
"I can hear a banana being peeled twenty years away, Rose Tyler. There was no way you can possibly hope to surprise me that way." He popped a slice of banana in his mouth and smiled warmly at her.
"Well, surprised or not, it's not going well." Rose reached for a bottle of white wine and took a swig. "Not very classy I know."
"Nonsense. Hand it over." He took the bottle and gave a hearty swig. "Best part of cooking, eh?"
Three bottles later, and five catastrophically unsuccessful pie attempts later, the Doctor and Rose were seated on the kitchen floor. The Doctor, his jacket and tie missing, splayed his legs, his hands limp on his thighs, and leaned his head back against the cupboard. Rose was situated nearby in the corner of the two counters, one leg over the Doctor's, the other knee raised and leaning against the counter.
"And well, you know how it was when the black chiffon landed on the Queen's marmoset –it all went to hell." The Doctor's eyes were unfocused but shone with vague humor as he gazed at the wall of the TARDIS.
Rose nodded as though she understood and shook her head when the Doctor offered her the bottle. He drained it and placed it down on the floor.
"I'm drunk." He announced suddenly. " And I don't get drunk." With a groan he slid down the wall to lie on his side.
Rose slid her leg out and nudged his bottom with her barefoot.
"No thank you not today." Was his response when his whole body moved at Rose's prodding and his shoulders began to shake.
"What's funny?" Rose said, grinning. She leaned forward and climbed over his legs. She lay on top of him and reached a finger to poke his nose. His eyes were closed but he was trying to hold in his laughter. Rose could feel herself shaking from his movement.
"I don't get drunk." He said firmly and looked up at her. "I can't be drunk."
"You're so drunk. You're so drunk you don't even think your drunk. You're so drunk you fell off the floor."
He laughed harder. "You're so drunk, you're using me as a bed. Rose… get up, I need a slash." He slurred. He turned on his back gingerly and Rose followed to lay on his chest and between his legs.
"I could go to sleep right here, this bed's comfortable."
"Is it?" He asked in genuine shock.
"Mmhm." She nestled her face in his chest.
"Hate to make you uncomfortable but you're on my bladder." Came his constricted voice. He extracted himself from below her and stumbled to the toilet.
"Don't you have a… I dunno, bladder bypass system or summat?" She grumbled to herself. Rose rolled onto her back and gazed up at the ceiling. It looked much like the console room's wall. "Doctor, tell me a story."
"From the toilet?" Came his voice.
She giggled and rolled on to her stomach to see that the door was open and that the Doctor had his back to her as he stood before the toilet. "I don't think I knew you peed." She said with another giggle. "Time Lords pee?"
"Been wondering when your curiosity would rival you perverted mother's. 'Course I use the toilet, I drink and eat don't I?"
"Tell me a story, Doctor, please?"
"You won't even remember it when you wake up." He pointed out as he flushed and zipped his fly. "What kind of story?"
"Something scary." She rolled onto her back again and listened to him washing his hands.
"I'm too drunk to tell stories."
"Rubbish. I bet you tell your best when drunk." She looked up to see him above her. "I don't even think you're as drunk as your pretending."
"A scary story, eh?" He sat down against the wall and reached foreword to tug a piece of her hair and she grinned, shifting so that her head was in his lap.
"Please?"
"Ever hear about the New Jersey Devil?"
Rose shook her head.
"Well," The Doctor started dramatically. "There is a place in your time in the U.S. called the Pine Barrens in southern New Jersey…" He broke off with a distant look in his eyes.
"Yeah… and…" Rose nudged him and he looked at her with a lopsided grin.
"Wanna take a trip?"
"I'm drunk, and you're a little tipsy, do you think that's smart?"
"2010 New Jersey is the safest place in the world! Well, I imagine it is." He sprang to his feet and helped her to hers. The Doctor clutched at her arms to help steady her. "Sober up! Off we go!" Holding her hand, he ran to the console room and began entering coordinates.
The TARDIS had only just begun its usual shaking when both the Doctor and Rose fell from their unsteady feet.
Rose giggled and leaned to the side to grab the Doctor's arm. "Driving under the influence is illegal, you know."
The Doctor waved a dismissive hand but the TARDIS stilled before he could answer. "We're here! You might want to put some warmer clothes on."
When the door of the TARDIS opened, Rose stepped out into a definitive winter wonderland.
"Good place to land. The TARDIS says we are somewhere near Atsion Lake." The Doctor commented as he stepped out behind her. The field stretched vastly before them in all directions. The trees in the distance could be seen, dark and ominous, on all sides.
"Not exactly like the Christmas pine trees I pictured." Rose pointed out, looking at the trees in the distance. They were thick trunked and warped around large bare patches near the bottom. Toward the top, the pined branches stretched out at odd angles, tangling in the other trees and shadowing the forest bed.
Snow crunched beneath their feet as they walked toward the nearest group of trees.
A dog's bark pierced the crisp air.
"This place feels creepy." Rose said softly as the Doctor strode ahead of her. "Like there's something not right."
"A sixth sense?" The Doctor called out to her from ahead, his keen ears not failing to surprise her. "Or is it the alcohol?"
"Probably a little of both."
A piercing sound like a gun shot split the air and the Doctor fell with a cry.
"Oh my God," Rose breathed and ran to him.
"Stop! Stop!" The Doctor yelled, holding out a hand from his seated position in the snow.
Rose skidded to a halt, obeying him, but not understanding why. "Doctor….were you… have you been… shot?"
The Doctor gave her a confused look. "No, I haven't been shot. Not all Americans have guns, you know."
Rose shrugged. "What's happened then?"
"The ice broke." The Doctor leaned forward to pull at his leg with both hands and grunted with pain. Now Rose could see that his leg, beneath the snow, was quite effectively trapped.
"Ice, what ice?"
"Rose, don't move, don't even breathe. The ice could shatter at any second. We didn't land near Lake Atsion. We landed on Lake Atsion."
I do love a good cliff hanger. Hope you like this so far, please tell me what you think!
Also, stay tuned for the last chapter of Triangle, which will be up shortly.
Thanks for reading!