It had been almost two months since Bad Wolf Bay 2.0. Two exhausting, confusing and emotional months since Rose and the Doctor had been brought back to Pete's World. Two months of talking at Rose's kitchen table over midnight snacks and getting to know each other again. Two months of playing with Tony at the park. Two months of laundry and grocery shopping and bills and work schedules. After everything she had seen traveling with the Doctor, Rose had always thought she would never be happy living on the slow path but she had never felt more settled or been happier than she was right now.
Rose shouldered open the front door to their London flat while balancing a bag of chips in one hand and holding her work bag in the other. "Doctor, I'm home!"
She dropped her bag by the front door and toed off her shoes before heading into the kitchen. She heard the Doctor make a noise that she assumed was a greeting but as he hadn't actually said any words, she couldn't be sure. She dropped the chips on the counter and headed into the living room where the Doctor was seated on the couch with his feet propped up on the coffee table. His new sonic screwdriver was clenched between his teeth while he twisted the wires of a walkie-talkie together.
Rose plopped on the couch next to him, removed the sonic from his mouth and kissed him on the cheek before asking, "What are you doing to your walkie-talkie?"
"Tony and I were picking up some stray signals so I'm adjusting the receivers so we don't get any interference."
Rose had been telling her little brother stories about the Doctor since birth so it came as no surprise that immediately after having met the Doctor, Tony became enamored with him. It also came as no surprise to any of them that the Doctor got along famously with the hyperactive and rambunctious 5-year-old because well…sometimes he was one himself. They went to the park together, did science experiments together and had matching converse. Tony had even asked Jackie for a tube of hair gel so he could do his hair like the Doctor's.
During one of the Doctor and Rose's weekly visits to the Tyler mansion for dinner, the Doctor had put Tony to bed and began telling the boy one of his stories. The next day, the Doctor had delivered a modified long range walkie-talkie to the Tyler mansion so that he would be able to tell Tony bedtime stories any day of the week.
Rose smiled and shook her head. His relationship with her little brother was one of the many things she adored about this Doctor.
"Speaking of Tony, I talked to Dad today while I was at work." Rose said apprehensively. "Next friday is Tony's day for show-and-tell."
"Oh, fantastic! What is he taking," the Doctor asked excitedly as he plucked the sonic from Rose's hand and continued working on the walkie-talkie.
"Well, he told Dad that he really wants to take you." Rose looked pointedly at the Doctor to gauge his reaction.
The Doctor sat up straight and looked at Rose with wide-eyes and a toothy grin.
Rose giggled, "I take it that means you're okay with that?"
"Of course I'm okay with that! I love show-and-tell! One time I took my pet Hazuki for show-and-tell. Everyone was so impressed. I was the most popular Time Tot for the rest of the year!"
"Time Lords had show-and-tell?"
"Of course we had show-and-tell! Time Lords practically invented show-and-tell!"
Rose laughed. "I should have known. We basically had show-and-tell every day for 2 years on the TARDIS."
The Doctor smiled mischievously, wiggled his eyebrows and then sprang up off the couch.
"Where are you going," Rose yelled after him as he headed for the kitchen.
"I have to get my walkie-talkie put back together so I can tell Tony I'll come to show-and-tell!"
XxXxX
The following Friday morning found Rose sitting on their bed leaning back against the headboard with her laptop resting on her lap. It was show-and-tell day and the Doctor had been up since 6 am. The Doctor stood in front of the mirror adjusting his tie. He was dressed in the blue suit he had been wearing when the other Doctor had dropped them off in Pete's World. He hadn't worn it much since then. He had told Rose he was saving it for special occasions. Since settling into life in this universe he had adopted a more casual look of trousers and t-shirts for every day. He squeeze a dollop of hair gel into his palm and rubbed his hands together to coat them.
Rose smiled at him fondly from over her laptop,"You're taking this whole thing rather seriously."
The Doctor met her eye in the mirror as he ran his gel covered hands through his hair, "Show-and-tell?"
"Yeah."
He ruffled the front strands making them stand on end until he was satisfied. He wiped his hands on a towel and then turned and made his way towards the bed and settled himself on the bed next to Rose's feet. He placed a hand on her leg just below her knee and looked into Rose's eyes. "Well, Tony really wanted me to come and he's so excited!"
Rose giggled, "He's not the only one."
The Doctor smiled at her and looked down at his hand which still rested on Rose's leg, "No, he's not, you're right." He was quiet for a moment and became serious. "It's important to me, that Tony and I get along; that he knows that I'm here for him."
Rose could feel the tears gathering in the corners of her eyes. She gave him a watery smile, "He's got you wrapped around his tiny little finger."
The Doctor slid further up the bed and placed his hand on the side of her neck and caressed the side of her face with his thumb, "He's not the only one."
XxXxX
The Doctor stood in front of Tony's class later that morning with his hands in his pockets and Tony mirroring his stance directly to his right. Tony had shown him his cubby and the playground and the rest of his classroom and it was now time for show-and-tell. Tony had been bouncing with energy all morning but now, as he stood in front of his classmates the Doctor could practically feel the nervousness radiating off of him.
Tony's teacher, Mrs. Spencer, addressed the class, "Tony has brought someone very special for show-and tell today. Tony, do you want to tell us who this is?"
Tony shook his head shyly. "This is my…" He paused, thoughtfully and looked up at the Doctor who smiled down, reassuringly.
Tony took a deep breath and squared his shoulders towards his class. "This is my Doctor."
The Doctor was astonished. He looked down at Tony; brow furrowed and mouth open as he remembered hearing those words from a different Tyler's mouth such a long time ago. He smiled to himself amazed at how far they had come since Bad Wolf Bay. It had been trying at first. There had been plenty of apprehension to go around. Rose had had her doubts and trepidations regarding his identity and as it turned out, he had needed some reassurance as well. But who would have guessed that the final boost of confidence would have come from little Tony Tyler?
"He's not the type of Doctor who gives you shots and stuff. He travels around and saves people and his pockets are bigger on the inside so he hides extra candy in there for me." The longer Tony talked the more excited and animated he got. "He knows the name of every single star and he tells the best stories, with the funny voices." Tony turned to the Doctor "Will you tell one?"
Several little voices rang out from the class urging him to tell a story. The Doctor glanced towards Mrs. Spencer for affirmation. She nodded and smiled, "By all means!"
He pulled up a tiny sized chair and seated himself somewhat awkwardly and pulled Tony onto his knee. He told them about the TARDIS. He told them the story of a lonely traveler who had found a best friend in the unlikeliest of places; of how he had grabbed her hand and said, "run." He told of plastic creatures and mannequins coming to life and of the traveler trying to save the world only to be saved by her instead.
A little girl in the back row asked quietly, "Did they live happily ever after?"
The Doctor smiled and nodded his head. "They're working on it."
XxXxX
The Doctor had agreed to take Tony out for a treat after school was out. The Doctor wandered down the street with Tony's hand gripped safely in his own. Tony bounced along beside him commenting on something in every shop window.
"Doctor, can you make my school bag bigger on the inside?"
The Doctor laughed. "Can I? Yes. Would I? Yes. Should I? Debatable. Would your mum kill me? Most definitely!"
"Mum might not care!" Tony said hopefully.
The Doctor admired Tony's optimism but knew that it was unfounded. "Remember how we talked about how there were things that I could do but that I shouldn't since I'm part human now and I need to make sure that people aren't suspicious of me?"
Tony sighed, "Yes."
"Well that is one of those things. What would Mrs. Spencer think if you started pulling toys out of your bag that shouldn't be able to fit in there?"
His face lit up, "That would be awesome!"
"Well, no disagreement from me, but don't you think Mrs. Spencer would be a little worried about where you had gotten such an awesome backpack?"
Tony's shoulders drooped in defeat. They continued walking down the street both lost in thought until Tony broke the silence.
"Are you and Rose going to get married?"
The Doctor's steps faltered but he found himself, surprisingly, not completely panicked at the mention of marriage.
"I don't know. We haven't really talked about it. Why?"
"Well, Mummy said if you and Rose get married then we'll be brothers."
The Doctor stopped and was quiet for a moment. Not because of fear or worry or anxiety but because it suddenly hit him. He had a family; an honest to goodness family. He had considered the Tyler's a sort of family while traveling with Rose in the other universe but there was a difference between staying in someone's flat and eating at their table when invited and truly relying on a group of people over a long period of time. A smile he had half-heartedly been trying to squelch appeared unbidden on his face. He glanced down at Tony who had a worried expression on his face.
Tony's voice sounded small and frightened when he asked, "Do you want to be my brother?"
The Doctor knelt down beside him and placed his hands on Tony's upper arms, trying to convey his seriousness. "Tony Tyler. There is nothing on any planet in any galaxy in any universe that would make me happier than being your brother."
Tony's resulting smile lit up his entire face and he threw his arms around the Doctor. They stayed that way for a moment until the Doctor pulled Tony away and looked into his eyes.
"Now, I have a very serious question for you Tony."
Tony's eyes got big in response and he waited for the Doctor to speak.
The Doctor narrowed his eyes at Tony and said, "Chips or Pizza?"
Tony smiled and responded enthusiastically, "Chips!"
As the Doctor stood he nodded his head, "You are definitely your sister's brother, that's for certain!"