So I was on tumblr and I saw this post at: snowonthewall_tumblr_com/tagged/written (the underscores are periods) and was inspired to write this little oneshot. Enjoy!
Rose grinned, her tongue poking out between her teeth as she watched the Doctor circle the Tardis, enthusiastically slamming down levers and hitting buttons, sending them flying off into space.
"So where are we going?" She questioned, moving shakily around the console as the time machine bounced through the vortex.
"Well, after that issue on Raxicorica VI, and the whole wire incident, I figured we could take a break for a little." He glanced at her in concern, hoping that she wouldn't shoot this down. The area he was thinking of was beautiful, and he's wanted to show her it for a while.
Rose smiled. "That's perfect. I could use some relaxing." The Tardis shook again, sending her crashing into the railing. She gave a small groan before straightening up. "Not that the trip there is helping," she muttered. The Doctor either hadn't heard her comment or just chose to ignore it, because he didn't respond.
Finally the Tardis stilled, and Rose ran to the doors. She placed her back against the handles and turned to the Doctor. "So. Have we actually landed where we're supposed to?"
"Rose Tyler if I didn't know any better, I'd say you were insulting my driving skills!" He walked down the ramp toward her, placing his hands on her hips to move her back from the door. They were less than a foot away from each other now, and Rose was trying desperately to breathe. Lately she was finding more and more of these moments where she had issues doing normal actions around him. Such as breathing.
Oblivious to her plight, the Doctor placed one of his hands on one handle, using his other to grip her hand tightly. He counted down, "Five, Four, Three-,"
Rose pushed the door open early and pulled him outside, despite the protests coming spewing from his mouth. She gasped as the world around her came into view, more stunning the longer she stared at it.
They stood in an open field that seemed to be the size of a football field, stretching across the endless expanse of land. The grass was a vivid blue, lined with silver trees whose leaves' shimmered in the suns' lights. There were three suns that hung in the sky over head, but the suns were dimmer, burning a flaming crimson rather than luminous gold as on earth. One hung directly overhead, while the other two were set to the left and right of them. The sky itself was a neutral white, making the other aspects of this world stand out even more.
The Doctor strode over to her, grinning as he gauged her reaction. "This is one of the six fields of the Zorada Berinzis, otherwise known as the Fields of Heaven, or Elysium."
If possible, Rose's jaw dropped even more. "No way. They- this is technically Heaven right?"
"Well all religion is based on myth, and all myth is based on fact. These fields were actually created by Pope John XXVIX to model after Elysium, and a lot of artists in the 45th century paint these fields. I may or may have not have accidentally brought one back to 10 AD, and- wait I meant one of the paintings, not the painter. Although Amadeus was a great friend of-,"
"Okay so basically," Rose interrupted, not wanting him to go on a rant and ruin the moment with his incessant talking (although she was nearly positive nothing could ruin this), "You were the reason that Elysium and Heaven even exist?"
He shrugged. "Most likely."
"So this is just one big circle." Rose said, spinning in a circle as she spoke to really take in the view.
The Doctor chuckled. "Timey Wimey."
The Doctor yelped again when Rose spontaneously pulled him to a tree that sat on the edge on the meadow. Its silver leaves hung down in front of them, brushing softly against Rose's bare arms as they sat down. The leaves felt softer than silk and she sighed happily. She leaned her head against his shoulder, his arm winding around her body automatically.
"Just wait until it gets dark Rose. The sunset is beautiful and the stars that you can see from here…." The Doctor trailed of wistfully, glancing down at her once more. Sure the scene before him was beautiful, but he's seen it already. Rose, however, has not, and her reactions were the best part of seeing new worlds. He thought for a moment as he stared down at her, and then swiftly reached into his pocket. The movement jostled Rose a bit, who turned her head to stare at him as he dug through his pocket.
"What're you doing?"
The Doctor poked his tongue out in concentration and stared up at the blank sky as he searched through the junk. Or as he likes to think of it, his collection of unlikely helpful items. "Searching for something."
Rose rolled her eyes, "Yeah got that bit, thanks. I meant what are you searching for?"
"Ah hah! Found it!"
Rose raised her eyebrows and leaned around his shoulder to see what he was holding in his hand. "A camera?"
The Doctor beamed, "Yep! 51st century camera, equipped with projection previews, an advanced AF illuminator, and an unlimited memory card. The shutter speed on this thing is unbelievable too! It can get up to 700 pict-"
Rose chuckled at his rambling, "Doctor not that it isn't interesting or anything, but why'd you take out your camera?"
He stared at her in disbelief, "Well to take a picture of course! What you think I took it out to just stare at it?"
"Well I don't know," Rose huffed, "You do some pretty weird things. Including stroking the Tardis when you think I'm not looking."
"Wh- I do not! And even if I did, it's only because she likes it!" He sputtered out.
"Righttt… so are you gonna take the picture or what?"
The Doctor glanced at her in confusion. "If you'll let me, then yeah. I hadn't even asked yet though. Are you sure you aren't the least bit psychic?"
Rose tilted her head as she leaned back against his shoulder once more, "You don't need my- wait you want to take a picture of me?"
The Doctor shrugged and scratched the back of his neck a bit sheepishly. "I was thinking a picture of us, actually."
Rose beamed at that, giving her tongue in teeth smile that he loved so much. "Okay good. I hate being the only one in pictures."
The Doctor smiled in relief, "No need to worry then. Okay ready?" He quickly turned the camera on and flipped it around so that the lens was facing them. "Say cheese!" After the picture was taken the Doctor shook his head. "Never understood that saying 'say cheese.' I mean why say cheese while looking at the camera? There's no cheese. Cheese doesn't really make you laugh or smile for the picture. It's just-"
Rose hit him lightly on the arm in exasperation. "Are you gonna show me the picture or not?"
"Oh! Right." He fumbled with the camera for a moment until it projected a three-dimensional picture of him and Rose leaning on each other under the silver tree. It was a great photo, and he knew exactly where he was putting it. "It came out great," he said ecstatically.
Rose nodded in agreement and sighed. "It really is a great picture. Three-dimensional though?"
"Yep," he said, popping the 'p.' "Like I said, 51st century camera. It compacts the three-dimensional picture into a two dimensional plane, while still staying in three dimensions. It's a bit complicated, but you humans figured it out eventually."
Rose leaned closed her eyes in contentment, "You should give us more credit; we seemed to have invented a lot of handy things."
She felt first then heard the rumble of the Doctor's laugh in his chest, "You know what no one has invented yet? Harry Potter style photos, with a moving picture in a two dimensional plane. Not one person in the entire universe. The closest humans have gotten are videos and gifs, but those either loop or run out in the end. Not one perpetual moving picture in a two dimensional plane anywhere! That is completely unjust."
Rose laughed this time, "Why don't you just invent it?"
The Doctor shook his head, "I can't just create things and drop it on Earth or something! It would mess too much with the time lines."
"So basically you don't know how to make it."
He sniffed, "I never said that."
"Yeah but if you could invent it, even if it was just for the two of us, you would."
The two continued to bicker for the greater part of the afternoon, and when the sun set, the duo watched the stars until Rose began to fall asleep against him. After a few minutes of her snoring, he decided it was time to move them back to the Tardis. Although warm during the day, the nights of Zorada Berinzis could get quite chilly. He carefully picked her up bridal style and carried her to her bedroom on the Tardis, tucking her in and kissing her forehead.
"What did I ever do to deserve you?" He murmured, before closing the light and shutting the door behind him.
Something was brewing in the distance, he could just feel it. Something big and terrible and very, very dangerous. There was a reason he took that photo today with Rose. A reason he took a photo with Sarah-Jane the day before he had to drop her off at Aberdeen; a photo with Adric and Nyssa and Tegan and everyone after them. All of his companions leave him in the end, whether by their own hand or others, they all left. These pictures served to remind him of his companions, his friends, his extended family.
He pulled the camera out of his pocket and clicked the print button, and two seconds later pulled the photo out. Gripping the photo gently, he padded through the Tardis hallways until he stood in front of a wooden door with carved circular Gallifreyan on the front. Fishing through his coat pockets, he pulled out a small key and unlocked the door to step inside.
Rose sighed as consciousness washed over her and opened her eyes blearily to her dim bedroom. When did she get here? The last thing she remembered was falling asleep on top of the Doctor on Elysium. He must have moved her inside later. Getting out of bed stiffly, she got ready for the day. When she felt cleaned up and ready to face the day, she stepped out of her room to find the Doctor.
She searched the library, the console room, the kitchen, his bedroom, and the wardrobe room, but couldn't find him anywhere. After searching what the Doctor called the secondary rooms (such as the swimming pool, the bowling alley, and the cinema) and still not finding him, she gave up and just decided to explore the Tardis. The Doctor was good at finding her and could get her when he was ready to go somewhere.
Rose wandered down the hallway entering a few rooms that she already knew were there. As she walked though, she spotted a room she hadn't seen before. The door was made of cherry wood and had the Doctor's circular writing on it. She had no idea what it said, but she was positive the door hadn't been there yesterday. Tentatively, she twisted the small doorknob. The door swung open with a loud creek that had Rose wincing. For some reason, she felt as if this room was off limits, yet she couldn't bring herself to walk out. After a failed attempt to shut the door quietly, Rose settled on closing it halfway and instead turned to glance around the room.
The room wasn't very big and had absolutely no furniture in it at all. In fact, the only light in the room came from a small ceiling fan above her head, which lit the room easily. The walls however, weren't as sparse as the floor. Each of the four walls was covered in photos: one of a man in a ridiculous looking coat and a girl with brown hair and a bob cut; one of a man with an obnoxiously long scarf and Sarah Jane? Rose squinted at the photo, trying to figure out why all of these photos were sitting pinned up on the wall. If Sarah Jane was a past companion, these must be all of his companions, which made the men the Doctor!
Before Rose could figure out anymore, she heard someone come up behind her.
"Rose?"
Guiltily, she turned around. "Er… yes?"
The Doctor stared at her, his face unreadable. "What are you doing in here?"
"I-um. I was looking for you. But I couldn't find you anywhere, so I started wandering, and well, I found this room. It was unlocked and everything so…" Rose glanced down at her feet, nervously fingering the hem of her shirt. "Sorry if I invaded your privacy or something."
The Doctor sighed and shook his head. "It was my fault for leaving the door unlocked."
Rose bit her lip, "S'not your fault, shouldn't have been snooping. But Doctor, why do you have all these pictures in here?"
He moved further into the room as he spoke, "Rose, I'm very old. And I'm not going to lie; I've had many companions, as I'm sure you've figured out. After a while, they all begin to blur together. 'Did Mel have red hair, or was that Ace?', 'Did Jo have freckles or Sarah Jane, or both?' I hate forgetting things, Rose. And after a millennium, it just becomes too easy to."
Rose stepped over to where the Doctor was standing and laced her fingers through his, giving her wordless support.
"I miss them all, so much. They all leave me, and I know one day you will too. That's why I took the picture yesterday," he continued, turning towards her. "And you can't argue with it, because it's true. Maybe by choice, or maybe not, but you'll leave too."
Rose hugged his arm but stayed silent. There wasn't much she could do to reassure him at the moment, and she thought it would be better for the Doctor to keep speaking. It seemed like he had been holding onto this for a while. Probably somewhere around a thousand years, Rose mused.
"I take these photos because… in the end…everyone breaks my hearts," he admitted quietly. He spoke so low that Rose wouldn't have heard had she not been standing right next to him. Her heart clenched for him, and she quickly swept him into a hug. After a moment they broke apart, although Rose didn't step back or take her hand out of his. He wasn't crying, but his eyes were glassy, and he seemed to be staring off into space.
"Doctor…" She trailed off. She wasn't entirely sure what to say. She wasn't entirely sure there was anything to say. Anything she said wouldn't convince him otherwise and could just make it worse. Finally, she spoke, "Thank you."
He stared down at her in confusion. "What?"
"Thank you," Rose clarified. "For… for remembering us. For not just forgetting and moving on. God knows we don't forget you."
The Doctor gave a small smile. "You don't need to thank me, Rose." After a beat, he asked, "How long are you staying with me?"
Rose squeezed his hand and stared at the photos on the wall, finding theirs stuck up right in the middle.
"Forever."