Chapter 1

Rose stared at the Doctor in horror as he told her he was changing. She didn't want him to change. Time was running out. How, how could save him? The Tardis, the Tardis was a time machine right? She could help.

Rose closed her eyes and spoke telepathically to the Tardis. Please, help me. One more time. I know you love the Doctor. I don't want him to change. How can I protect him?

The Tardis showed her a picture of herself touching the Doctor. There was a flash of blinding light and then nothing but blackness. Rose opened her eyes and felt the Tardis nestle inside her mind. She slowly walked towards the Doctor who started waving at her frantically. She could only hear the beat of her own heart. It pounded like a drum in her mind. She reached out and touched his hand. When her skin contacted with his skin there was a flash of golden light so blinding it seared the inside of her eyelids.

After the light faded everything was black, there was pain, pain so intense it felt like everything inside her was being ripped apart and rearranged. Then, after what felt like an eternity, she finally opened her eyes. It was a struggle like pushing through thick syrup. She opened her eyes and blinked rapidly even in the dim light above her head. She couldn't sit up yet. Everything felt like lead. Like she was still asleep and numb.

There was movement across the room and she saw the back of a leather jacket. The cracks and worn look of the jacket came into sharp focus. Everything was so vivid. So bright. Colors, black, brown, and hints of gold glittered in the leather. There were even colors inside the black that she couldn't name. It made her head swim. She lay her head back and groaned.

The figure turned quickly and walked over to her cautiously as if she were a wounded animal. His sharp nose was flared as if testing the air and piercing blue eyes were full of worry. Who was this man? He looked familiar. When he finally stopped next to her bed she could see hundreds of different blues swirling in his beautiful eyes. Sad eyes, so very, very sad. She closed her eyes against the colors. It still made her head swim. She felt a hand on her forehead. It was cool and felt nice against her skin. She sighed and relaxed into the touch.

When she opened her eyes again her head had stopped spinning. The strange man had a stethoscope out and had it pressed to her chest. He checked first one side and then the other. Wait, why would he be checking both sides? She opened her mouth to voice the question but all that came out was a hoarse moan.

The man turned towards her and said quietly, "It's all right. Don't try to talk. You're not done yet. It'll be a few more hours before you'll be able to speak. I know. Everything is hazy isn't it? Do you remember what happened after you touched me? Don't answer that question. You just need to relax and rest. Your recovery time is to be expected. A week you've been in the medbay."

The man's face scrunched in pain. "Rassilion, your...screams. Never want to hear that again. Horrible sound. Anyway. Rose, go back to sleep. It'll help. A healing coma. Go on close your eyes."

When she heard him address her as Rose she felt a memory nudge her conscious. She grasped it and then everything came flooding back.

Absorbing the Time Vortex, seeing all of Time and Space, saving Jack, the Doctor kissing her...wait! She had brought Jack back to life! And...and the Doctor had kissed her? Why the hell had he done that?

She suddenly felt energy rush through her body and her heart pounded. No, not heart. Hearts! She, the Tardis, had helped her to save the Doctor. Kept him from...what was the word? Regenerating. That's what the Tardis had said. The Tardis had spoken to her somewhere between the darkness and the pain.

Take care of him, take care of my Doctor. He needs someone. You. Don't let him fall further into depression. Now, finally, he won't be alone anymore.

She felt the Tardis hum inside her mind in acknowledgement of their conversation. Rose, yes that was her name, spoke and asked the first thing that came to mind.

"Doctor, you kissed me. Why?" Her voice came out a whisper, but she knew he could hear her. Big ears like a bat.

The Doctor turned towards her from his place halfway across the room. He cocked his head, furrowed his eyebrows, and asked, in a voice just as quiet, "What do you mean...kiss you? Wait, you remember that? That's not possible. You would've forgotten everything that happened when the Time Vortex was inside of you. So how...?"

Rose covered her mouth and hid a smile. The Doctor noticed and came striding back over to her. He moved so fast that had she not had such good eyes she would have missed him. He pulled her hand down and stared her intently in the eyes. It suddenly dawned on him and he stared up at the ceiling with the look of the 'Oncoming Storm' on his face.

'You, you, you brilliant...damnable machine! You gave her back her memories. Didn't you? Why? She doesn't need that in her head. Not seeing all of Time and Space. The Time Vortex would kill anyone else. Yes, I know it didn't kill her. You rewrote her bloody DNA. All Time Lord now. You brilliant old girl! Now, what was I saying? Oh, right. Rose, all that pain? That was you regenerating. You've been in a coma for a week but all the while cooking. Turning into a Time Lord. Brilliant, that. Genius. Wish I'd thought of it myself."

He was rambling and Rose found it endearing. She finally giggled and the Doctor turned to look at her with raised eyebrows. "Well, what's funny then? Me or the Tardis?"

Rose shrugged. "You. I already knew all that. The Tardis kind of...upgraded me while I was asleep. I had to take your regeneration energy into myself and change. I did it because I don't want you to change. We're best mates. I wanted you to have more time as well...as you. And no one. Not even genetics is going to take that from me. So, anything I should know about being a Time Lord?"

The Doctor was speechless at how utterly unselfish Rose was. He opened and closed his mouth a few times before going to a table and pulling some scans off of it. He held them up in front of her. She studied one. It looked like a human DNA strand. The other looked like DNA also but with a fourth strand added in. It was gold. She raised her eyebrows.

He smiled at her and shrugged, "Well, this scan is of your human DNA before you changed...regenerated," he said holding up the left scan. He handed her the right one and went on, "This one is your Time Lord DNA. Each of the links in the golden strand represent one regeneration cycle. You've got twelve. With this initiation cycle you've, technically, got thirteen. Every young Time Lord has to go through an initiation cycle. It's the body's way of testing to make sure everything is working. You've just gone through your initiation cycle. A test run. Now, moving on. You've got a binary vascular system. Two hearts! And a respiratory bypass. Means you can store oxygen in your lungs and go without breathing for a period of minutes."

He paused here to make sure she was following and, when she nodded, went on. "Now, you also have two extra ribs, thicker skin, and very, very sensitive eyes. And your temperature sits at around 15 degrees Centigrade. You can see colors that don't even have names. Ears are sensitive too. Hearing like a bat. Now, any questions?"

She studied him for a moment before asking, "Has there ever been a Time Lord born by Tardis before?"

The Doctor paused and thought about this for a moment before shrugging. "Dunno. Anything's possible. You had the Time Vortex inside your mind. You destroyed thousands of Daleks. I mean, if you can rewrite Time, then you can do anything. Anything. Fantastic. So, I would suggest resting. You've probably got regeneration sickness. Happens to every Time Lord first time around the bend. Are you feeling ill?"

Rose shook her head. Yes, things were more vibrant and she could hear the different pitches in the Doctor's Northern accent, but she didn't feel sick.

Instead she asked him again the question that had first been on her mind. "Doctor, you never answered my question. Why did you kiss me? I know it was to swallow the Time Vortex, but did it mean anything? I mean, did you feel anything when you did it? Happiness? Sadness?...Love?"

The Doctor frowned and there was a flicker of emotion in his eyes. It was gone too quickly for Rose to process. He cleared his throat and rubbed the back of his neck. "Why don't you try getting some sleep. You'll be feeling the effects of the illness in a matter of hours. I have medicine to help with that. Now, why don't you go back to sleep?"

Rose sighed in frustration and lay back on the bed. She stared about the room. There were white beds lining the walls and round lights glowed from the walls. It was clinical. Clean and sanitary. Even the table that sat in the middle of the room next to the advanced medical equipment was white. It hurt her eyes. She closed them and soon fell into a deep, dreamless sleep. Before she was completely out she felt a hand touch her chest. First over one heart and then the other. It lingered over the second for a moment before moving to her forehead. It was cool like her own skin. No, not cool. The exact same. They were the same temperature now. She sighed, and, just for a moment, thought she felt lips brush her forehead.

Rose fell into blissful unconsciousness with one thought on her mind. Why did he avoid the question? Is he hiding something?