A cold fear grew in the pit of Rose's stomach. There weren't many things that scared her anymore, but seeing the Doctor in this state was one of them. His eyes were wide, unblinking, and filled with a calm, subdued fear.
"Rose," the Doctor said from across the console, just a few meters from the door to the hallway. "Come here." He stretched out one of his arms toward her, but still didn't meet her gaze.
She didn't question him. There was no trace of joking anywhere in his face. She ran the short distance to him, grabbing his hand and pressing herself close to him. Being near to him made her feel much safer.
The Doctor reached into his jacket pocket and produced his sonic screwdriver. He extended his arm out behind her, and she heard the buzz of the tool a few seconds later.
"How in the universe..." he mumbled in disbelief.
"Doctor?" Her voice came out as a squeak. "Why can't I look?"
He squeezed her hand. "You have to trust me. Don't let go of me. Whatever you do, don't let go." Letting out a shaky sigh, the Doctor winked one eye at a time. "I need you to run to your room, as fast as you can, and don't look back."
"How are we going to get in if the power's down?"
The Doctor tilted his sonic screwdriver toward her, and she grabbed it from his hand. Rose fiddled around with it for a few seconds before figuring out the button that made the familiar buzzing.
"When do I run?" She looked up at him, though his gaze was still fixed behind her.
He steeled his jaw. "Now."
Rose turned and ran, expecting some sort of alien beast to tackle her to the ground any second, or to feel sharp claws rake down her back...
She shook the thoughts away, the Doctor's hold helping to keep her sane. Their footsteps echoed through the hallway, dimly lit by the white floor. Rose held up the sonic as she reached the door to her room, pressing the correct button. It buzzed, and the door slid open a moment later. She ran inside, still dragging the Doctor behind her. Before she could turn around to sonic it shut, the screwdriver was torn from her hand and its hum sounded a second later.
For a minute or two, Rose couldn't see anything. The floor in here was a metallic silver instead of the white outside, which had made it brighter. Now, everything was pitch black. She could feel the Doctor just in front of her, but couldn't clearly see his face. His breathing was rapid and shaky.
As Rose waited for her eyes to adjust, she felt the Doctor release his hand from her hold. He caressed her cheek gently and ran his other hand through her hair. His lips pressed against her forehead for a few seconds, and then he pulled away from her, taking her hand in his again. He breathed a quiet sigh of relief, and then slumped against the wall, finally looking at her. He tucked the sonic back into his pocket with care.
"What was it?" Rose asked, able to see his face now, and wondering at the sudden show of affection. "Why can't I look at it?"
"Do you really want to know?" His eyes told of some sort of deep fear, but his normal confidence almost outshone it.
"Yeah," she said softly, not sure that she really did. She reminded herself that whatever it was, it had broken into the TARDIS.
The Doctor's eyes searched hers, and his eyebrows furrowed together. "A weeping angel."