Author's Notes:
Disclaimer: Not mine. No money. Saddly.
Just a bit of fluff that came to me at about 2 am. I was feeling a bit nostalgic, remembering the days of Nine. Ah well, this is how we keep it all alive, eh?
Anyway, enjoy. Remember reviews keep me going. I feel unloved if I don't get any, and you don't want that guilt on you.
Thief
By Chaimera
The Doctor cursed as the circuit he was tinkering with sparked, burning his hand. He thumped the metal box that housed the mess of wired and slid out from underneath the floor of the TARDIS control room. He looked at the main console accusingly.
"Ow!"
The TARDIS made no reply, which was not unexpected, but the Doctor had the suspicion that she was laughing at him. He rolled his eyes and picked up the sonic screwdriver, inserting himself back beneath the grating. One day, he'd get this stabiliser fixed and he'd be able to land his beloved ship without ending up on the floor, or clinging like a limpet to the nearest railing. Though, he mused to himself, the bumpy rides did have their advantages. He remembered the last time they had arrived on a planet, when he had ended up in a not entirely unwanted position on top of his young companion. He quickly shook the though from his head, as his brain began to continue the scenario in a much more risqué fashion than it had actually ended in. As he pushed these rather pleasurable but forbidden thoughts from his mind, he wondered where his aforementioned companion was. Probably still asleep. He knew that humans needed more sleep than he did. He only needed two, maybe three hours a night, and even that was a bit of a luxury, but at times, it seemed like Rose slept for days. Though he would never openly admit it, he missed her presence when she was asleep. Even when he was tinkering and she was just sitting there with a cup of tea, or reading, just the knowledge that she was in the room with him seemed to lift his spirits. The place seemed duller without her around.
He shifted his position and scratched his chest, frowning at the unfamiliar material. He was wearing his red jumper. It wasn't that he didn't like his red jumper, but it just wasn't as nice as his green one, which he'd been unable to find for days. He frowned at himself again. Who would have thought that this regeneration would be the one to have a favourite jumper. Granted, his previous regenerations had made some seriously dodgy choices where attire was concerned, but still… He sighed to himself. He had the feeling that he was pouting, but refused to admit to it. He was a Time Lord. He did not pout!
A slight shuffling across the floor and the thump of a body being thrown into the chair announced the arrival of Rose. He didn't look up at her, but he smiled all the same.
"Blimey, do you sleep for a long time. Sweet dreams?"
He got a yawn in response and heard the slosh of tea in a mug. He grinned. Rose was barely coherent until she got a cup of tea into her in the morning. He pushed himself out from underneath the grating and sat up to look at his friend and was momentarily lost for words.
Rose sat there, hair mussed and eyes heavy from sleep, her bare feet and legs tucked up underneath her and cradling her tea to her chest. She was also wearing his favourite jumper and not much else. It reached to her mid thigh and the sleeves were much to long, but she hadn't pushed them back.
She looked absolutely ravishing.
Her eyes, already seeming more alert, slid his way.
"What?"
Pushing his first answer out of the way, the Doctor finally convinced his lungs and vocal chords to resume working.
"That's my jumper."
Rose looked confused for a moment and looked down at herself.
"Oh yeah. I borrowed it. I hope you don't mind."
"I've been looking for that for days. That's my favourite jumper."
She raised an eyebrow. "You have a favourite jumper?"
He ignored her. "You little thief."
She looked vaguely affronted by the accusation, though the mischief in her eyes belied another thought.
"Give it back."
She looked thoughtful for a moment, then…
"No, I don't think I will."
"Rose, give me back my jumper."
He stood, doing his best attempt at menacing while simultaneously trying not to jump his companion.
She grinned at him, her tongue poking out from between her teeth. "You're gonna have to catch me first."
And with that, she took off out of the console room, tea left, forgotten on the floor. The Doctor only hesitated a moment before setting off in pursuit, intent on retrieving his jumper.
He followed the sound of her laughter through the TARDIS' twisting corridors until he saw her duck into the library. Entering right behind her he managed to tackle her to one of the large couches where he pinned her down, straddling her so she couldn't get up and run again.
"Aha." He exclaimed before reaching down and pulling his beloved green jumper off her.
Most coherent thought then left his brain. He realised much later, that the fundamental failure in his plan to reclaim his jumper was that he hadn't given any though to what Rose had been wearing underneath it. The answer, he had found out, was a pair of black knickers. That was it. The jumper was then dropped to the floor and forgotten about. Along with the knickers.
After that, the Doctor really didn't mind if Rose wore his favourite jumper. He quite enjoyed getting her out of it.