Author's Note: Hey, guys. Not gonna lie, I don't have a great excuse for my nearly year-long absence. Life just got in the way. Anyways, I've finished my overhaul of Saving Grace and I have to say, I'm finally extremely happy with the outcome.

I've combined chapters, added some details, and taken out some of the stuff that doesn't make sense or made it to where it does make sense. I strongly encourage you to reread all of the chapters, as it should make a lot more sense.

My writing has grown a lot in the nearly three years its been since I began this story, and now all of the chapters should reflect that. Anyways, I'm going to stop writing now since this AN is ridiculously long now. I just wanted to tell everybody what's up.

New chapter sometime next week. Hopefully Monday. Fingers crossed!

~ Sarah

Chapter 1

The Doctor handed Rose a Magnaclamp and looked at her, needing to tell her how he felt. This might be the last time he would be able to. He didn't have a great feeling about this plan.

"Doctor?" Rose asked with a confused expression.

"What is it? What's wrong?" The Doctor sighed. This was so not the right time for this. He needed to get back to business. He shook his head at her and returned to the computer.

There was a loud crash to their left but it sounded far off. Rose turned to look at look at the security monitor and the Doctor sighed inwardly at the relief he felt when Rose didn't press him for an answer. However, that relief was replaced with dread when Rose spoke.

"We've got Cybermen on the way up." Rose called from across the room. She looked worried, but the Doctor was too busy to comfort her.

"What floor are they on?" The Doctor started the computer sequence.

"Rose?" He glanced at her and he noticed she was staring out the window. He followed her gaze and saw the Daleks growing in number as the thing they called the Genesis Arc opened and spouted out Daleks.

"It's a prison ship! That's what the Daleks meant!" The Doctor ran his hands through his hair. He cursed in Gallifreyan as the Daleks began to fly both towards the windows and out towards the rest of the city. They were still a long way off but they would be here soon enough.

"What do you mean it's a prison ship?" Rose asked with a worried expression on her face.

"During the Time War, the Daleks that didn't die in battle were captured and put in prison ships by the Time Lords. Rather stupid of the Time Lords, if you ask me. You would think they would have learned that Daleks are not to be underestimated with everything they've done." The Doctor pounded his fist on the table, frustrated beyond belief.

"I never saw a prison ship in person, but if I know anything, it's that Time Lord technology is always bigger on the inside, which means…there are thousands, if not millions of them in there. This is not good...so not good." He raked his hands through his hair again. Absently, he realized he had to stop doing that or else he would go prematurely bald.

"Systems operational." A computerized voice abruptly announced. The Doctor looked around with a wild grin for a moment but finally his gaze landed on Rose, who was still looking out the windows.

"Rose!" She looked up at him, startled by his yelling. "Time to save the world!" He ran past her, grabbing her hand on the way, and attached her Magnaclamp to the wall. Turning to her, he hugged her tightly and pressed a lingering kiss to her forehead.

"You don't let go of this, not for any reason, okay? I want you safe, my Rose." He smiled down at her, all the while looking serious. She nodded solemnly. Reaching up, she kissed his cheek and gave him a grin. That grin could bring hope to the most desolate of people, and it did, quite frequently.

"What else would I do, Doctor?" She patted his arm and pointed to his own clamp, sending him on his way. She looped her arm through the handle and held on tightly. The Doctor ran over to the computer and started the program.

Before he knew it, there was a strong wind at his back and he struggled to get over to the Magnaclamp. Looking at Rose, he saw her struggling to stay put. The void was trying to suck them in too, just because they had had visited that parallel world. The TARDIS was okay, however. The old girl had her brakes and grounding clamps on. Rose looked over at the Doctor and he smiled brightly at her, trying to encourage her.

Suddenly, the door to the room burst open and the Cybermen they had heard earlier marched in. Then, everything went to hell.

The Cybermen started to walk forward but before they could do anything, they began to be sucked into the void. The Daleks were pulled in through the window, but on the way into the void, one of the Daleks hit the lever on Rose's side.

The computer voice from earlier said "System offline." The Doctor knew what was going to happen before Rose even began to move towards the lever.

"No, Rose! Rose, DON'T!" The Doctor yelled to Rose as she tried to reach the lever.

"I have to Doctor! The rift is starting to close!" she shouted. She looked at the Doctor, almost apologetically. She tried to reach the lever again, only this time her grip on the Magnaclamp slipped and she was pulled closer to the void.

"ROSE!" The Doctor shouted as she screamed. She managed to grasp the lever just in time though and she pushed it back to the on position. Once more, the Daleks and Cybermen were pulled into the void, but that also meant the pull was stronger. Rose was lifted into the air and she was hanging onto the lever bar with all her might. The Doctor was horrified. This couldn't happen. With all of his strength, he prayed for a miracle. Rose looked at him, resigned to the inevitable. The Doctor could see she knew there was no escape.

"Hold on, Rose. Don't let go. I need you too much. You got under my skin. You don't get to do that and then give up. That's not how it works!" The Doctor's voice shook with the weight of his words and a tear streaked down his face. He was really afraid for her. Rose looked at him and reflected in her eyes, he could see she felt the same. Rose gasped as she felt her fingers slipping. She tried to get a better hold, but it was useless.

A flash caught his eye, and he looked towards the rift to see the most beautiful sight. Looking back to Rose, he caught a panicked look and saw that she was hanging on by her fingers. With the strongest faith he could muster, he looked deep into Rose's eyes.

"Do you trust me?" He asked, determined.

"With my life." She said without hesitation.

"Then I need you to let go." The Doctor said. Rose looked at him in surprise. He could see how thrown she was, but then the unwavering trust she had always had for him filled her eyes and she smiled. That tongue in cheek smile that made his hearts flutter appeared and then, she let go.

...

Rose didn't scream as she let go, but she kept her eyes on the Doctor as best she could. The Daleks and Cybermen were whizzing by her and they made her vision of the Doctor cut in and out. The fall into the void didn't come, however. She slammed into something hard, and the last thing she saw before she blacked out was the Doctor falling to the floor as the last creature was sucked in and the rift closed.

"Rose… Rose…" She heard the Doctor calling her but he was fading in and out. She heard him sigh, but she wasn't quite ready to get up yet. He just wanted to know if she was alright, so Rose gave him what he wanted. She twitched her fingers and he gasped in surprise.

"Rose, please wake up. I don't know how long I can play this waiting game." The Doctor pleaded. Her eyelids fluttered open and the first thing she saw was the ceiling of the TARDIS. Rose realized she was laying in an unfamiliar bed. Then, it clicked. They were in the Medbay. She had been here enough times to recognize it, being jeopardy friendly and all. She looked over towards the Doctor. He was pinching the bridge of his nose so he hadn't noticed she was awake yet. She placed a hand on his cheek and he looked up in surprise.

"Hello there." He said with a grin and wave of his spindly fingers. They amused her, but also made her curious. She wondered what all he could do with them. That though made Rose turn bright red. She cleared her throat and tried not to look guilty. The Doctor just looked confused by her reaction.

"Hello to you too." She said, finally able to speak. What happened?" The Doctor groaned and he began explaining.

"We did it. They're all gone. We saved the world, again!" Rose grinned and clapped in triumph. Finally, something had gone their way.

"As for what happened to you, you can thank the TARDIS for you even being here. She somehow materialized and was able to not only keep herself stabilized so she wouldn't be pulled in, but was able to save you as well. She showed up about forty feet directly behind you. It's like she heard me when I was praying for a miracle. I mean, we have a telepathic connection, but I didn't think it was that strong." He got a contemplative look on his face and grasped the hand that was closest to him, holding it tightly. She stroked his face gently with the other hand. He looked extremely relieved.

Rose groaned, stretching out her sore body, and then she started to giggle. The Doctor looked at her and she could tell he was thinking about the possibility that brain damage had occurred.

"I know that look, Doctor. I'm not crazy and I don't think I hit my head either, so no concussion." She scolded him. "I was just thinking about how incredibly lucky we were." She sobered as she realized exactly lucky they were. "If it wasn't for the TARDIS…"She trailed off, not wanting to finish the devastating sentence.

"Hey. It's okay. Lets just be glad it didn't happen. " The Doctor said as he pulled her into a hug. He held her tight as she nestled into his jacket. She had never felt more at home, or as safe, before in her life.

Rose didn't know she was crying until she felt the wetness on her face and the shaking of her shoulders. She had nearly been separated from the man she loved and she had lost her family. Not to mention the fact that she had almost ceased to exist. If she had fallen into the void…she would have been alone. That was a fate worse then death to her. In fact, death would have been a gift compared to the lonely darkness.

The Doctor reached down to cup her chin and tugged on her face gently so she was looking at him. She knew what he was seeing. Pain, in fresh, unbridled waves. It was like a razor, cutting deep and relentless.

Rose knew that she might never see her family again and it hurt. The Doctor was still looking at her and she could see the guilt in his eyes. He felt that it was his fault she would never see them again. That if he hadn't asked her to travel with him in the TARDIS, she wouldn't be alone. She would have her family and that killed him.

"Stop it." Rose said quietly, pulling him from his thoughts. "I know you well enough to know that your punishing yourself for all of my pain." Her voice shook but she continued, knowing it needed to be said or he would blame himself forever. She didn't want him to blame himself for something he had no control over.

"I wanted to be here with you. Even after you tried to send me away on the Gamestation, I came back to be with you. Hell, I took in the Time Vortex to be with you. The thing is, you can send me away as many times as you like, but it won't matter. I will always come back. I'm so glad you came back to ask again. Traveling with you…It's so special and I will always love it. I wouldn't have missed it for the world." She wasn't nearly finished but the Doctor had other ideas.

"Rose…all of it is my fault." He choked out. "If I hadn't come back after the first time I asked you…" The Doctor trailed off, looking at her with a depressed expression. "All I'm saying is that it wasn't my right to even ask. I was being selfish and for that, I'm so sorry." He wanted her to be happy, more than anything he could want for himself, but she decided it was his turn. He had had way too much suffering in his life.

"Doctor…you have to stop blaming yourself. For all we know, it was meant to happen. This is going to sound so cliché, but maybe the universe works in mysterious ways after all. And besides, you wanted me to see the universe in its infinite ways. That wasn't being selfish. That was being thoughtful." She desperately wanted for him to see it wasn't his fault.

"I don't blame you for a single second of it and I never will. I chose to be here, might I add, and I don't care if you don't believe me. I'm just going to have to prove it to you every day by staying right where I am. And just for the record, I would do it all over again if it meant they were safe. You aren't, and you never will be, at fault for any of this." Rose finished with a flash of determination. She would prove to him that all of it, the pain, the constant danger, the varying emotions that she felt, was worth it if her family was safe and she was in her rightful place with him.

She could see the exact moment that he finally understood why he needed her so much. She saw the good in him, even when the good was outweighed by the bad. She was the bright lantern that wandered through the dark forest that was his life. Rose was the pink and yellow human that held the key to his hearts and he finally knew it. The Doctor irrevocably understood how the best things could sometimes sneak up on a person when they least expect it.

AN: Don't forget to read and review! I would really appreciate you guys telling me what you think of the reworked chapters!