Disclaimer; I do not own the rights to Doctor Who, nor do I mean to infringe on BBC's copyright for publishing this work of fanfiction.
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"It is something that grows over time, a true friendship. A feeling in the heart that grows even stronger..."
-Legend of Zelda
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In all his infinite wisdom, the Doctor had no idea what to do.
Whilst flying about aimlessly through space and time — the TARDIS seeming emptier than ever with Donna back on Earth — he had stumbled over a little blip on his monitor, just a tiny group of pixels all clustered in a minuscule area. Normally he would have simply ignored it and been on his merry way, but curiosity overwhelmed him, and he spent the next half-hour mulling about the TARDIS console room, trying to find the right scanner to examine the unusual happening.
When he finally found the correct tool, he ran a few quick tests and waited eagerly for the results. Had he been prepared for what would come up on the TARDIS monitor, he would have not ended up spitting the tea he had made earlier all over his suit.
It was a tiny hole between the universe and its parallel twin, completely natural and just big enough to fit a TARDIS projection through. As if a switch had been thrown in the Doctor's mind, his brain raced as he checked, rechecked, and checked again to make sure that the hole really did exist.
It hadn't taken long to take Donna back to Earth and explain everything to her family. If he worked quickly, he might be able to catch Rose and the rest before they left the inlet. Suddenly, the Time Lord froze.
But should he? Should he really drag out their goodbye? They had already said goodbye once, and that had been difficult enough. Could he really stand another one?
For once in his nine hundred years, the Doctor had no idea what to do.
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"Pete Tyler, stop mucking about and fly the bloody helicopter!" With an annoyed huff, Jackie Tyler snapped her flip phone shut. As if just noticing her daughter and the Doctor's twin standing beside her, Jackie waved her cellphone at the pair.
"Can you believe the nerve of that stupid bloke?" Rose and the Doctor merely laughed at Jackie's annoyance, eventually making the blonde break out in a smile. Rose continued the chuckle as she looked up at the Doctor, expecting him to look back down at her with a big goofy grin. Instead, his brow was creased and he had a puzzled look on his face. He sniffed once, then twice.
"Do you two smell that?" Jackie and Rose shared a puzzled look before the both simultaneously inhaled deeply, letting the Doctor do his thing.
"Like a sort of... Metal smell?" Rose asked, confused as to what she was supposed to be smelling.
"Atmospheric disruption," the Doctor nodded, making Rose smile just a bit in triumph.
"Oo, good deduction!" A voice commented from behind. "I'm quite proud of myself!" The flabbergasted group turned to regard the slightly transparent image of their Doctor in pinstripes.
"Doctor!" Rose cried, unbelieving.
"Me!" The other Doctor cried, smiling broadly at his counterpart.
"Hello, everyone," the pinstripe Doctor grinned. "How are we doing?" Rose was dumbstruck.
"Doctor, how are you—?"
"Found another little gap in the dimensional walls, thought I'd drop in and see how you all were getting along without me." The Time Lord flashed a toothy grin.
"Doctor," Rose laughed. "It's barely been six minuets."
"Six minuets is a long time!" The Doctor defended. "A lot can change in three-hundred and sixty seconds!" Rose just laughed again, making the Doctor's grin stretch even further.
"But you said that this reality was sealing itself off, that the dimensional walls were closing for good," Rose puzzled, happy but extremely confused.
"Well, Time Lord," the pinstripe Doctor grinned broadly, shrugging as he slid his hands into his pockets. "I can do whatever I want, including holding the holes open just enough for me to pop in." Rose just shook her head and chuckled.
"So, where's Donna?" Rose asked brightly. A dark look passed over the Time Lord's face, and he looked off into nothingness for a few moments.
"She, well, she had to go," the Doctor managed, scratching his ear. Rose's smiled faded, and she gave the Time Lord an apologetic look.
"I'm sorry," she said simply. The Doctor nodded and ran his fingers through his hair.
"I'd love to have you back on board, Rose," the Doctor began, mistaking Rose's silence for mulling over the her potential return. "But..." The Doctor trailed off as he noticed Rose shaking her head.
"I wasn't thinking that, Doctor," Rose smiled sadly. "You don't have to try and explain it to me. I understand why you and I can't live in the same world." Rose paused for a moment to take a deep breath. "And about this new Doctor..." The Time Lord waited for Rose to continue, his chestnut eyes searching.
"It's like you said," Rose said shakily. "He needs me, and that's very you." The Doctor looked down at Rose with a smile, hiding the sadness in his eyes as he watched his duplicate take Rose's hand. Rose smiled at the true Doctor weakly before a frown began to form on her forehead.
"Just one more question," Rose said finally, holding up a finger with her free hand to reiterate her statement. Letting her arm fall back to her side, Rose looked up at the Doctor, tears brimming in her eyes.
"Who's gonna hold your hand now?" The Time Lord's twin hearts broke with Rose's sincere question, and his chest began to ache.
"I don't know," the Doctor said finally, shaking his head. The tears held in Rose's eyes spilled out and her lips trembled.
"Then," Rose managed beneath her tears, "promise me that you'll find someone." The Doctor smiled sadly and nodded, his sad brown eyes reflecting Rose's tears.
"You have to promise, Doctor," Rose scolded tearfully, making the Doctor smile just a bit wider.
"I promise, Rose Tyler." And understanding passed between Rose and the Doctor at that moment; an unspoken vow that both would move one, but never forget.
"And," the Doctor added with a broad smile, "I can always project my image through a hole in the void."
"Aren't you supposed to make sure the holes between worlds are closed?" Rose asked, puzzled.
"Well," the Time Lord shrugged. "Yeah, but that doesn't mean I can't pop in for a bit to say 'hello.'" Rose burst out laughing at the Doctor's cheeky grin, making the smiling Time Lord chuckle himself. Shaking her head, Rose looked back up at the Doctor's image, still beaming. Extending her arm, Rose held out her hand as if she her fingers were a cradle for his.
"Rose, I'm just an image," the Doctor reminded, puzzled by the knowing smile on Rose's face. "I'll pass right through you."
"Doctor, come one," Rose begged, tipping her head to the side. "Just pretend." The time Lord gave a crooked smile and complied, and as their hands met, the Doctor could almost feel the warmth of Rose's palm.
"The connection's going," the Doctor said sadly as he and Rose dropped their arms to their respective sides. "Looks like this is goodbye."
"Well, for now," Rose smiled knowingly, cocking her head to the side. "We'll see each other again." The Doctor gave a genuine smile to Rose and his duplicate, who grinned and winked back at him.
"Well, off I go!" The Doctor gave one last smile to Rose, prepared for her image to fade. "Allons-y!"
But nothing happened.
After a few moments of no sound but the waves crashing against the beach, the Doctor and Rose began laughing uncontrollably, buckling over and filling the bay with echoes of their laughter. Even when the connection was lost, the two continued laughing, tears streaming down their faces.
The Time Lord always did have such bad timing.