AUTHOR'S NOTE: Hi all, thanks for checking out my little fic. Much appreciated. This is my first Ten/Rose DW fic. I've written a couple of Eleven/Clara ones and had ideas for 10/Rose, but never quite got around to posting anything. This is the first story I've written in over a year. I used to write every day, but life got in the way for the last year or so, and I'm just trying to get the discipline back into my life. So, here we are.

This is the part where I usually over explain the story and try and convince you to read it. But, I figure you're already here, so I'm going to cross my fingers and hope you'll give this story a chance. There will be laughs, danger, jealousy, despair and feels. Lots and lots of feels. Because, you know, it's Ten and Rose. ;)

Hope you enjoy…

GREEN-EYED MONSTER

"True love cannot be found where it does not exist, nor can it be denied where it does"
― Torquato Tasso

Chapter ONE

"I can't believe we've just rescued a member of the ancient race of the Dushraki," announced the Doctor in awe, as he carefully laid their latest guest on the TARDIS down in the middle of one of the main engine rooms. "They are the stuff of legends. Incredibly rare and exquisitely beautiful."

Rose eyed the orb about the size of a basketball, which was emitting green/grey light and struggling to hover a few inches about the ground. Chunks of its greying flesh were missing and there was a disconcerting ooze coming from what looked like pustules. The smell was not good either. Rose tried to pick her words carefully. "Well, sure, I can totally see that." Maybe exquisitely beautiful meant something different in Gallifreyan - like an oozing mess that looked a blue whale with a terrible head cold had coughed up.

"She is a long way from her home world of Luvendeer," he tutted in concern.

"She?"

"Oh yes," said the Doctor, head bobbing up and down as he peered at the newcomer more closely over the top of his glasses. "Obviously a she. And quite the looker."

Rose side-eyed him after watching more of the bilious substance ooze its way down what looked like an open wound. "When was the last time you had the prescription in those glasses checked?"

The Doctor looked at her in surprise. "Why do you ask?"

"No reason," said Rose hastily, not wanting to be rude. She crouched down beside the Doctor as he hovered solicitously over what Rose couldn't help but equate to a floating scab. "What about the space station we rescued her from?"

"You saw the state of it. It's just space junk now. I scanned the entire thing; there were no other lifeforms on board other than this beautiful girl."

"What do you think happened?"

The Doctor glanced at her before turning his attention back to their patient. "I checked the ship logs. They were quite corrupted. I've taken a copy and will see if I can salvage anything. Although, I'm sure we'll just be able to ask our new friend, once she's a little more healed."

"She talks?" said Rose in surprise. She eyed the grey blob, looking for anything resembling a mouth. "I thought-"

"Thought what?"

"I dunno. Like, she was a pet or something."

That earned her incredulous look. "Rose, the Dushraki are an ancient race of revered, sentient beings that are worshiped as gods on some planets. They are the stuff of myth, of legend. In fact, they are so rare; some people do not even believe they are real. Like unicorns."

"Unicorns aren't real."

"Of course they are," tutted the Doctor.

"I've never seen David Attenborough do a special on them," commented Rose dryly.

The Doctor put out a steadying hand as the orb listed to one side. "Well, he wouldn't, would he, being a Tu'Vub, they're deathly allergic."

Rose's eyes went big. "Wait, what? You're telling me David Attenborough is an alien?"

"Yes," said the Doctor, peering more closely at the grey orb.

"Who is allergic to unicorns, which apparently are a thing now?"

The Doctor turned and smiled at her. "Yes."

"Can I see one?"

"Probably. We get TV reception here, and isn't there some kind of law in your country that an Attenborough nature show has to be showing on at least one of your channels at all time, to stave off thermonuclear war or the like?"

"Not David Attenborough," said Rose in exasperation. "The unicorn. I want to see a unicorn."

"Oh well, why didn't you say so? Nothing easier."

"Where on earth do they live?"

"Throop." When Rose continued to look at him blankly, he clarified. "In Dorchester."

Rose's mouth dropped open. "There are unicorns in Dorchester?"

"Well, their space ship crash landed near Affpuddle, but they kind of set up shop in Throop."

"Unicorns fly space ships?" asked Rose in disbelief.

The Doctor laughed. "No, of course not. That would be ludicrous." He smiled at her. "That's why they have the hedgehogs."

"Hedgehogs are from another planet?" she squeaked. After travelling with the Doctor for so long, Rose sometimes thought she was getting close to understanding how much she didn't know about what was out there. Then they'd have these conversations and she'd realise that was so far from the truth.

"Dimension. Another dimension."

Rose slapped his arm. "Get out of here!"

"It's true."

Rose's mind was racing. "How do hedgehogs fly space ships?"

"It's more or less a pulley system."

Rose's eyes narrowed, suddenly suspicious. "Are you having a lend of me?"

"Oh, I never joke about one of nature's most deadly killers."

"Unicorns?"

"Hedgehogs. They could take over the earth in a week if they put their minds to it."

"Why don't they then?"

"Intrinsically lazy little beings." The Doctor tapped her nose playfully with his finger. "Which is lucky for you little homo sapiens, I have to say."

"Hedgehogs couldn't take over the world. They're tiny," protested Rose.

"In their larval stage, sure," said the Doctor knowingly, "but you never want to see them once they pupate. Another story entirely. What do you think happened to the planet Acleon?"

"Hedgehog invasion?" offered up Rose uncertainly.

"Exactly," said the Doctor triumphantly.

Rose had a lot more questions about this whole thing. Like, if hedgehogs were so dangerous, how did they end up flying unicorns around? And she still didn't know why no one had ever seen a unicorn. However just then a bit of slime glooped off their patient and splattered on the floor, pulling her focus back to the issue at hand. "Is she going to be alright?" Rose bit her bottom lip in concern. "How can we help her?" Rose wasn't sure what this Dushrakian was meant to look like, but she suspected this wasn't it.

"Right now she's taking energy from the TARDIS, but her home planet has three blue suns. We'll find her a nice blue sun and she'll be able to soak up the energy from it. That will help her healing process no end."

The Doctor leapt to his feet. "I'll set the coordinates."

Rose glanced over her shoulder and watched the Doctor hurry from then room. She then turned her attention back to her new travelling companion. "You're going to be okay." Rose wasn't sure if the creature could hear her, but if there was a slight chance, Rose wanted to reassure their guest. "The Doctor's amazing. He saves people all the time. He's going to save you." She hesitated. "Are-are you in pain? Can I do something to help?" Rose felt particularly helpless to know how to make things better for this entity that was clearly suffering. "I'm Rose, by the way. Rose Tyler. It's nice to meet you." She trailed off, not sure what else to say. A name suddenly appeared in her head. "Eris," she breathed and then blinked. "Did you do that? Is that your name, Eris?" The name came to her again. "Are you in my head?" There was no response. "Look, just try and rest, yeah? The Doctor is going to sort this, I promise. You're not alone anymore. You have us now. We're not going to let anything else bad happen to you." Rose stood up. "I'm going, but I'll be right back." Rose backed out of the room and hurried off to find the Doctor. He was standing over the center console of the TARDIS, flicking through star maps and mumbling to himself.

Rose came to stand beside him. "I think she spoke to me." Rose wrinkled her nose. "Kind of. In my head."

"The Dushraki are capable of cellular telepathy. At least the more talented ones are." The Doctor looked at her with keen interest. "What did she say?"

"Eris." Rose hesitated. "That's her name, right?"

"Undoubtedly."

Rose rubbed her nose. "It made my nose tingle when she did that. Put her name in my head, I mean."

"Mmm, it would. Your little monkey brains are not built for that kind of high level communication."

"Oi!" Rose slapped his arm. "Do you mind? There is nothing wrong with my brain."

"No, it's a perfectly wonderful and serviceable human brain." The Doctor turned his attention back to the star maps. "As far as human brains go, which, compared to a Dushraki brain is, well, not that far."

Rose rolled her eyes at him. "Sometimes you're so rude."

"Eris is all brain," pointed out the Doctor. "You humans are only 5% brain and you use only 10% of it." He smiled brightly at her. "It's just simple mathematics, there is no competition."

"I wasn't aware I was in a competition."

"You're not."

"Good."

"Because a competition suggests you have some chance of winning, and you don't."

Rose's eyes narrowed in mock-menace. "Keep that up, and Eris isn't going to be the only one in need of medical attention, Mr. Smart Mouth."

"That's Doctor Smart Mouth to you," said the Doctor, the corners of his lips twitching as he continued to study star maps. "And I was just stating the facts."

That earned him another eye roll. "And to think I was talking you up to Eris just now. I should have told her the truth about you."

The Doctor turned his attention back to her, cocking his head to one side. "Which is?"

Rose smiled sweetly. "Not ginger and not funny."

"Hurtful."

"Just stating the facts."

"Sometimes I can't recall why I keep you around," noted the Doctor teasingly.

"Because you'd be lost without me," said Rose cheekily. "I complete you."

He half-smiled. "I didn't realise I was half-finished."

"Which is exactly why you need me." Rose looked back over her shoulder. "Is there anything I can do for Eris? Is she in pain? What would help?"

The Doctor's smile widened.

"What?"

"Nothing. I just like how you don't think twice about helping other species."

"You helped me," pointed out Rose. "Did you think twice about that?"

"I didn't think once," he admitted.

"Well, there you go then." Rose smiled up at him. "What goes around comes around."

He nodded slowly. "I suppose it does."

"Cup of tea?"

"Sorry?"

"Would Eris like a cup of tea? Would that help?" Rose grimaced at his amused look. "I'm English. We think tea fixes everything. And it helped you when you first regenerated."

"That it did," said the Doctor indulgently, "but the oxidizing agents in tea would dissolve Eris' neural links, so best not this time round."

"Okay, then I'll just go and keep her company, and you find those blue suns."

The Doctor pointed to the screen. "Already on our way. Eris will be back to her old self in no time."

"Team Rose/Ten does it again," said Rose happily, as she headed back to their patient.

"Why do you get top billing?" protested the Doctor in amusement.

Rose threw a teasing look back over her shoulder. "Because I'm the cute one. Obviously." She couldn't be sure, but Rose thought she'd heard the Doctor murmur 'obviously' as she left the room. Rose smiled to herself as she walked down the corridor back to Eris, intent on helping their new friend back to health, and then, next stop was Throop, so she could see those unicorns. Travelling with the Doctor never got old. There were always new adventures to be had, and her smile widened at the thought of the two of them sharing those adventures together.

Life didn't get much better than this.

A/N: Okay, scene established. If you're interested, there is a scene with Rose, the Doctor and a bed in the next chapter. Yes, I have no shame in exploiting your emotions to get you to read the next chapter. No shame. Remember that about me. Would love to hear where you think this is all going. Or where you'd like it to go. Hope to see you in the next chapter. :D