The Domestic Approach
Summary: The days of rampaging the universe have come to an end for the Doctor, but he still has Rose by his side as they embark on an entirely new adventure together. This journey will not be as easy as it sounds, and the Doctor and Rose will face challenges they never imagined as the Old Team tries the domestic approach. Ten/Rose. (rather dark at first, but will get happier)
Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who.
Author's Note: This story is very AU. I changed the ending of Journey's End and after that the entire series is rewritten. Everything with the Master is different, and the eleventh doctor has not regenerated yet. This story is not about adventure, but about relationships and how delicate they are. This story will explore the Doctor's human qualities and Rose's strength, and will build the foundation for one of the greatest love affairs never told, because that's how I see the Doctor and Rose. They are one of those couples on television who had so much potential that was never lived up to. I want to see where it could have gone. I really hope you enjoy this, and any advice/suggestions are greatly welcome. Thank you!
I
The ceramic mug that held her tea warmed her hands. The sky outside her kitchen window was a pale gray color, full of clouds that bode a feeling of remorse. She inhaled deeply and let out a low sigh as she watched the sun dance with those clouds, playing peekaboo in the sky. She sipped her tea and swallowed hard. Her finger traced the rim of the mug as her mind began to wander and she waited for the front door to open and for him to walk in. Nothing happened.
Six months ago her life changed forever. The man who had sworn his life to time, who was an asset to all universes and made thousands of planets align perfectly, had been trapped with her in her world. His last remnant of his home planet, Gallifrey, was destroyed. He had nothing left but the memories of the last 900 years and the feel of her hand in his, but even that was only when he let her close to him. The distance that had grown between them tore her heart apart, but Rose Tyler knew that it wasn't a distance caused by a change of affections, but rather by a change of circumstance.
She had been lost. Years before now, Rose had been trapped in a parallel world and the thought of ever seeing the Doctor again was just a dream. She had worked for hours, sometimes without sleep, trying to figure out a way to get back to him. If there was anything Rose was, it was determined. When she finds something she loves, she becomes passionate about it. She lets herself get completely engulfed in it, and nothing can stop her. Rose loves the Doctor. She's known that since he stood by her side as she watched Earth explode and crumple into millions of pieces. She knew it when he wanted to help the little boy who just wanted his mummy. She knew it when he changed his face and she still wanted to be with him. Rose could count every moment, every instance with the Doctor, and pick out a reason why she loves him. When she was lost her heart was broken beyond repair, or so she thought. When she met Donna Noble and realized she had discovered a way back to him there was a momentum in her days beyond anything she had ever experienced. And she found her way back. It took a while, but Rose had made it out safe without denting the universe and had found the Doctor again.
They didn't get a proper reunion. A Dalek came and took the moment away from them. Rose blamed herself for it. She had distracted the Doctor, made him lower his guard and run to her, and the brilliant grin that lit up his face was not big enough to shield him from the Dalek's rage. She can remember the way her heart stopped beating the moment she saw the beam pierce the Doctor and he fell to the ground. She can't remember how she got to his side or how they got back inside the TARDIS. She can't remember how Jack Harkness appeared. The only thing Rose remembers about that moment was her fear, and the look of pain that contorted the Doctor's face.
He regenerated, but he put all the energy into the hand that was cut off the first time Rose was there when he did so. It was then Rose and the Doctor finally got their reunion, and she breathed in his familiar scent as she threw her arms around his neck. She was home.
The rest of the night, though, was not as pretty. Even after Donna and the metacrisis Doctor arrived and the TARDIS rejoined the group unharmed, Rose knew something bad was going to happen. Donna was brilliant and outsmarted the Daleks, but the metacrisis Doctor went against every moral the real Doctor stood for. He committed genocide, destroying the entire Dalek race. Rose can still see the look of agony on her Doctor's face when he realized what the spawn of his hand had done.
The metacrisis Doctor was the object of unanimous distain. Once they arrived back on Earth and the party went their separate ways, he had nobody. Jack had left with Martha and Mickey, Sarah Jane with her son, and Jackie wanted to return to the parallel world. When they arrived there Rose said tried to say goodbye to her mum, but the real Doctor told her she had to stay. The metacrisis Doctor needed her, he said. Despite Rose's protests and her tears, the Doctor left her with him. Before he had the chance to leave the parallel world, however, Donna collapsed. When she did, the metacrisis Doctor did too.
The Doctor would later explain to Rose that 'Doctor Donna' and the metacrisis Doctor had spawned into the human/time-lord beings at the same time by the same method. They were connected to one another, and the two hearts that belong to a Time Lord had been split between both of them. The metacrisis Doctor had thought he just had a human heart, but what he actually had was one of two Time Lord hearts, and Donna's human heart had been replaced in the regeneration. Rose remembers watching the real Doctor rush to Donna's side as she repeated the same words over and over again like a scratched record, her body writhing, and she remembers the confusion she had when the Doctor pressed his fingers to her temple and chose to erase her memory. Rose knew one thing, though. The moment Donna closed her eyes she was gone, in a way, forever.
There was a thud behind her once Donna's brain was healing. Rose turned around and saw the metacrisis Doctor had the same symptoms Donna had. He was rattling off words, repeating himself over and over again. Rose called to the Doctor and told him to do something, to save himself. It was a strange paradox Rose felt like she was in as she watched her Doctor try to resuscitate a copy of himself.
He was too late. The metacrisis Doctor was more human than he had thought, and the damage done to his part human brain was too much at once. If the Doctor had gone to him first, he probably would have been okay, but Rose watched the Doctor watch himself die. She placed her hand on his shoulder. The Doctor shook it off.
"He killed an entire race." The Doctor had said as he laid the metacrisis Doctor on the sand at Bad Wolf Bay. "He had it coming." Rose stared at him.
"You don't mean that, do you, Doctor?" she asked him. He swallowed dry saliva and took a deep breath.
"I have to get Donna back to her family. She can't wake up here and see me." The Doctor said and walked past Rose. She stopped him and grabbed a hold of his arm, whipping him around.
"I'm coming with you." She said. He shook his head.
"Rose…Your family needs you." He told her. Rose gave him a sympathetic look.
"Mum has Pete and Tony. Who do you have, Doctor?" she whispered. His brown eyes went a shade darker at her words, and her hand cupped his face.
"Rose…" he began, and his eyes met hers. "That promise of forever, you really want to keep it? You're sure? Because once we leave this world, we can't come back." The Doctor warned. Rose nodded.
"I made my decision a long time ago." She told him. He groaned.
"But you are safe here." He mumbled, his eyes wild. Rose felt frustration build inside of her and she stared the Doctor down with a look so cold it could have frozen the ocean nearby.
"Doctor, I worked too hard to find you to let you disappear again." Rose said. She had tears streaming down her face as she spoke. They were tears of joy and tears of shock, tears of pain and tears of relief. The Doctor gave a guilty smile and his eyes brimmed with his own tears.
"Rose…I…" he tried to say, but words seemed to fail him. Rose turned back to her mother and they embraced in a bone crushing hug. Jackie had tears cascading from her eyes. The Doctor watched with guilt as Rose kissed her mother goodbye, and he began to walk toward the TARDIS when Jackie yelled at him to come back. She gave him a hug as well and told him to take of her daughter or she would find a way back to kill him herself, and then she kissed his cheek. The Doctor was speechless, overcome with so many emotions. He was numb from the guilt but still happy about the destruction of the Daleks, worried about Donna, relieved the metacrisis Doctor wouldn't be around to cause more danger but sorry to see him die, and filled with a feeling he hadn't felt since Rose had left. Love.
His hand grabbed Rose's as they walked to Donna and, together, carefully lifted her up and laid her on the couch by the control panel in the TARDIS. Neither Rose nor the Doctor said a word, and Rose told herself not to cry about her mother until she was alone because it would only upset the Doctor.
They arrived at Donna's house quickly enough and the Doctor cradled his latest companion in his arms like a delicate doll as Rose knocked on the door. Donna's grandfather answered, much to the Doctor's relief, and quickly led them both inside. Donna's mother threw a fit and was screaming when she saw her daughter, and as the Doctor followed Donna's grandfather upstairs to Donna's room Rose comforted her mother, assuring her that Donna was very much alive.
The Doctor explained to both of them, and to Rose who was still fuzzy about the whole thing, why Donna had to have her memory eradicated. He explained she could never know anything about her travels with him or about any invasions that occurred. It all had to be played off as a story and she would be alright. If she was to remember, even for a second, who she used to be, she would perish. Neither one of Donna's kinsmen questioned the Doctor.
Donna awoke soon after the conversation ended. Rose watched as the Doctor introduced himself to her as John Smith, and Rose introduced herself as Jane Peters. Donna's mother glared at both of them and told Donna they were just leaving, and so they did.
Rose can still see the Doctor take one last look at Donna Noble's home, standing there in the rain. She remembers the gratitude she felt when Donna's grandfather snuck out last minute to wish both the Doctor and Rose safe travels, telling them that he would think of them whenever he looked up at the stars. With a thank you Rose watched the Doctor turn away and walk into the TARDIS, closing the door behind him. Then they were off.
The second they were alone, the Doctor broke down. He didn't cry, but he threw himself into Rose's arms and buried his head in the crook of her neck. She whispered comforting words to him and the swayed back and forth as the TARDIS floated through time and space, and she forgot what it felt like to be away from the Doctor.
They grew close again. They took trips, had adventures, laughed a lot and even cried a little. For a year that's the life Rose Tyler had been welcomed back into, and for a year it seemed "The Adventures of the Doctor and Rose" would never end.
They almost did, though, and that was the start of the downfall. Six months ago the Doctor and Rose arrived on Earth in the year 2013 and found disarray unlike anything they had ever known. They didn't realize it at first and that was the biggest mistake they could have made. When they arrived they skipped down the street hand in hand, laughing and telling jokes, but something was watching them the moment the TARDIS landed. Someone had a plan.
His name was The Master, and there was a war. So many people lost their lives, and the Doctor fought harder and struggled greater than he had since the Time War. Rose nearly lost her life and that send the Doctor over the edge. He saved her, nearly sacrificing himself in the process. The TARDIS was lost. It was blown into smithereens by the Master who told the Doctor he had to know what it feels like to lose everything.
It was the destruction of the blue box that gave Rose the ability to fight for the Doctor. When it was gone he was broken, but Rose was able to access a part of herself that she had forgotten. The destruction of the TARDIS unlocked the tiny bit of it that was embedded inside of Rose, coursing through her veins. It was there from back when she had looked into its heart, back when she had chosen to save the Doctor. Now she was to do the same.
The Master was not expecting a human girl to be his downfall. He had chosen Earth as his battle ground because humans are susceptible creatures, and once he defeated the Doctor he knew they would be an easy race to reign over. Plus, he knew how taken the Doctor was with humans and he knew it would make him suffer more, watching so many of them die.
Rose was different. She was not as susceptible and she had the knowledge of the TARDIS guiding her. She put up a fight. The Bad Wolf makes her own destiny, and the Doctor watched as Rose destroyed the machinery the Master had built and set fire to all he had gained. In the end the Master took his own life out of shame.
Rose had saved Earth, but all she could think about as the flames engulfed the room around her was the man lying on the ground with his scorched trench coat. She got him out safely and led him away from it all. They settled in Scotland, far enough away from London and the memories of that night. Far enough away from where Rose grew up, far enough away from their past.
Or so she thought.
The Doctor has not been the same since that night. He barely looks at Rose, even though he's told her a thousand times how brilliant she was. He was proud of her; there is no question about that. He was worried about her, too. He used his sonic – the only thing not entirely destroyed by the Master, to check her vitals after the war and makes sure her harnessing the TARDIS's energy didn't harm her. She was fine.
He was not. Even now, as Rose sits at the kitchen table in the small cottage she shares with the Doctor, so isolated from the rest of the world, she can't help wonder if they are actually safe. He's been gone for quite a while. Out for a walk, Rose assumes as she continues to sip her tea. It almost dark and she realizes she's been sitting at this table for hours, just watching the sky and the fields of grass that serve as her view, waiting for the Doctor.
The sun is just setting behind the mountains when she sees him appear on the pathway leading to the house. She smiles despite the fact she knows it'll be as awkward as ever once he walks through the front door, and gets up to greet him. The door creaks as he enters slowly and Rose waits by the sink in the kitchen. He walks in and sees her, and they stare at each other for a moment.
"Hi!" Rose says, trying to sound more jubilant than she feels. The Doctor nods and takes off his jacket so he is clad in a dress shirt and tie. He lays it over a chair by the kitchen table and turns back to Rose.
"I'm sorry." He whispers. Rose stares at him with her mouth agape and shakes her head.
"What?" she says. "What for?" The Doctor purses his lips and sits down in the chair. He runs his hands over his face and then leans back, slapping his thighs in frustration.
"I have not…I haven't…I've been…" he stutters. Rose walks to the table slowly and sits down across from him. She takes his hand and he, for once, doesn't shove it away.
"Doctor…" she mumbles. He swallows and tries to wash the taste of regret from his mouth. "I forgive you, for whatever it is you're beating yourself up over." She tells him. This is one of the longest conversations they've had in sixth months, and the Doctor looks at her in surprise.
"Rose…" he begins, "I was walking for hours today. Through cities with small shops, down hills and through fields and I just… it felt calm." He grips her hand tighter and looks her in the eye. "It gave me a chance to think. I mean, I've been gone on walks a lot since…" his eyes dart to the ground for a moment and Rose squeezes his hand, reminding him she is still there. "Anyway, I wasn't ready to think, I suppose. Today, though…Today the birds were singing. The sun, even with the clouds covering it, felt warmer than before. And I realized that I wouldn't be here to feel it, none of the Earth would, if it hadn't been for you." Rose shakes her head but the Doctor pushes on, not giving her a chance to speak. "No, it's true. You are the most brilliant person I know, Rose Tyler."
For the first time in sixth months, he smiles. It's not just a ruse, it's a real smile. It lights up his eyes and Rose feels her heart skip a beat as she takes in how beautiful he is. She blushes.
"You're just spinning a sentence so I forgive you." She teases. His expression turns serious and his eyebrows make a crease as they come together.
"You don't believe you saved the world, do you?" he says. Rose sighs.
"I saved you." She whispers. His expression changes into that of surprise before it softens back into adoration. He hasn't given her that look in months, Rose notes. "Where is this coming from?" The Doctor stands up and walks to the kitchen sink. He braces his hands on the tile before he turns back to Rose.
"The TARDIS…It's gone, Rose. There is nothing I can do about it. You, though. You are here. We're together, and it's time we figured out how to make this work."
Rose's eyes widened and her mouth fell open. She could not believe they were having this conversation. This morning they could barely look at each other.
It had to be more than a walk that prompted the Doctor to this. It just doesn't make sense. Rose stands up slowly and cautiously walks toward the Doctor, who has what looks like fear in his eyes. She takes his hand.
"It'll be okay." She tells him. She sees the saliva he swallows fall down his throat and it makes her smile. She gives him her infamous tongue grin for the first time in sixth months, and the Doctor gets a weird feeling in his stomach as he watches her.
"I know it will." He says in reply. "I hope." Rose's heart drops as he says this. She wishes he would have faith in this, but she knows she can't ask too much right now. The breakthrough he just gave their relationship was more than she could ever have asked for, and it's enough for her to hopefully help him feel welcome. Who knows, maybe they could join law enforcement? That's like hunting down aliens…
Rose smiles at him instead of voicing any of these thoughts and turns away. Part of her wants to kiss his cheek to say thank you for opening up to her and for complimenting her, but she doesn't want to push her luck. She puts on more water for another cup of tea as the Doctor sits at the table. Neither knows what to say now and the Doctor looks up at the moon. His hearts are still heavy and the pit in his stomach hasn't gone away, but he feels more open to the idea of staying here.
The walk was more than a walk. He talked to people. He met an old couple who have been married since they were 18. He played with a dog. He let himself take part in the world he was stuck in and he didn't completely hate it.
If there was anything he has learned in over 900 years of life, it's that you just have to make the most of shitty situations. And this isn't the worst it could be, Rose is still with him.
She had mentioned to him once the idea of settling down. He had told her in the past it was the one adventure he could never have. He groans inwardly as he remembers that terrible day and remembers his first rule. The Doctor lies.
Looks like that adventure is just beginning.
A/N: Thank you for reading! I'm thinking about 5 chapters for this story. Please review and again, any advice is greatly welcome.