Summary: On a cold, dark night on a planet far, far away from Earth, Rose Tyler makes a choice: to forget her love of the Doctor and see him only as a friend. And when a powerful sorcerer helps her make that choice, there's no going back. Too bad the spell required more than Rose knew she had to give...
Characters: Rose Tyler, Tenth Doctor, Mickey Smith, Jackie Tyler, Martha Jones, Jack Harkness, Donna Noble, among others...
Genre: Drama/Romance/Angst/Hurt/Comfort
Timeline Setting: Series 2 Right before Army of Ghosts/Doomsday
A/N: Hi guys, got another rollercoaster of a fic here, so be prepared! This story is already finished on my computer so expect regular updates, probably twice a week. Thanks for stopping by, hope you enjoy! Y'know, if you enjoy drama...~Katy
The Black Rose
by Kathryn Hart
Prologue
"Feels like the weight of the world,
Like all my screaming has gone unheard.
And oh, I know you don't believe in me.
Safe in the dark, how can you see?
Freefall, freefall, all through life..."
~Evanescence
Rose Tyler flopped herself down wearily on her bed and stared at the blank ceiling above her. She was depressed and harboured doubts about her current choices and traveling companion. Back in her old life whenever she felt like this, usually about Jimmy or her going-nowhere life, she'd head down to her favorite pub with Shareen and a couple other mates after work and drink her sorrows long into the night. It seemed to do the job. But now...just laying in her room in the TARDIS would have to do. She didn't even have any alcohol, and she doubted she could get her hands on any without the Doctor noticing.
She'd been feeling like this for months, but lately it seemed to have escalated. She guessed it all started with meeting Sarah Jane and the journalist's harsh words towards her, like she was some sort of dumb, blonde assistant rather than the Doctor's best friend and confidant (why didn't he deny those claims rather than just telling her someday she'd die and he'd have to go on without her?). And then the Doctor abandoning her and Mickey on a dying space ship for some king's mistress. Was that some sort of punishment for letting Mickey tag along? Both her and Mickey knew by then that their relationship had died the moment she stepped foot in the TARDIS, but did the Doctor know that?
It didn't matter anyway. There was no chance, not in a million years that he'd ever have eyes for her. There had been a little hope, back when he thought the world of her and never abandoned her. He did send her away once, but he, at least she hoped he did, had done it to keep her safe. But then he had regenerated and now he didn't give a damn about her safety. And it wasn't just about Reinette or Sarah Jane. He had let her walk straight into a Cybermen factory with barely a word to stop her. He had run off and left her alone in a home with a man dealing with clear anger issues. The Doctor had chosen to fall into a deep endless pit that housed the devil (yeah, actually the devil), with the highest possibility of killing himself just to satisfy his curiosity which was clearly more important than her safety. He hadn't batted an eye when he went off to save the Olympics, letting her think he was dead and on her own, forever. Not even a phone call.
Somewhere in her mind she knew she was being a bit harsh and dramatic but at the moment, she just wanted to release every single doubt she'd ever had this past year and get a bit angry about it.
She didn't mind that he gave her more independence and trusted her more to get the job done, but recently it felt more and more like he didn't care about what her opinion might be before he did something stupid. Or even that he didn't care if something bad happened to her.
That of course, was ridiculous, but when stacked against the evidence? If he couldn't have gotten back to the space ship, if he had died defeating the Beast, if her face had been lost forever or her brain removed by metal men, what was she supposed to do? She had always been in danger, that she didn't mind, and never had. But it always caused her to wonder if her past Doctor would be appalled at just how much danger this Doctor let her get into. She missed that feeling of being protected. Of being treated like something worth keeping.
Rose felt like she had had enough, but what could she do? Her mother had been the one to give her advice about Jimmy, back then she didn't want to listen. Her relationship to Jimmy Stone was startlingly similar to what she was going through now. Of course the Doctor never verbally abused her as her ex had, but Jimmy had also been a no-go on the showing emotion towards her level. Now Jackie's words resonated in her head.
"A man that loves you wouldn't treat you like that Rose. You need to back out before you get your heart broken and find someone who actually shows that he loves you. Like Mickey. He's loved you for ages y'know." She'd scoffed at that at the moment, but of course, Jackie had been right back then about the first part, and Rose suspected she was right now too.
But she couldn't leave him, that was out of the question. He was the last of the Time Lords and needed someone to keep him grounded, no matter how much he denied the fact.
No, there had to be another way. And if there wasn't, well, she might have to take more desperate measures.
Yes, Rose has doubts that aren't exactly true (or are they?). I wanted to explore the way Ten seemed to treat her differently than Nine did and how Rose would react to that. We'll see the Doctor's side of the story in a couple chapters, after everything culminates to a very different ending to series 2. PLEASE DON'T JUDGE ME IT'S JUST FOR THE FIC. I ADORE TEN.
Yeah yeah I know, super short, but chapter one will be up in a few days. Please review! :)
