Title: Return of the Lycan

Author: JForward

Summary. Follow on of lycan. Rose has a headache and they discover that the Doctor scratched her. Will she have become a lycan with him? Only one way to find out. 10Wolf + Rose. Major part of WolfDoctor series.

I don't own Doctor who. Oh sigh…

Time passed slowly, a few lazy days spent in the TARDIS. One day, Rose sat on the seats of the TARDIS watching as the Doctor sat inside a grate, messing about with wiring and fixing things. Rose stood, stretching out her legs, and walked over to the grate. She could just see the top of his head, and he hadn't noticed her. Grinning slightly, she silently pulled the grate over partway, so it was directly above his head. "Hey, Doctor!" she said loudly, and then laughed out loud.

He had jumped, and, as expected, whacked his head on the grate. He glared at Rose, who was snorting with laughter. He rubbed his head, eye's running. "Ow! That's not funny, Rose, that's mean!" Rose was almost rolling on the floor with laughter, as he pushed the grate out of the way. "I just wanted to ask you if you wanted a cup of tea" she sniggered. He nodded, and went back to the wiring, muttering half-hearted curses at her in gallifreyan.

She returned, and he poked his head out of the grate. She placed the two warm mugs on the floor and offered him a hand out, which he reached up to take. As soon as their skin made contact, Rose let him go and staggered back, and he fell back inside the hole. "Rose?" he didn't complain, hoisting himself out and going to her side. She swallowed several times and looked at him.

The headache had come from nowhere. It was a blistering, searing pain in her head and there was also a scorching on her chest which had come from nowhere. "Rose?" The Doctor's voice stung her ears, too loud, everything was too bright, too strong smelling, she could taste the air. She squeezed her eyes shut and the Doctor watched her, worried. "I'm sorry bout this, Rose. Just block off anything you don't want me to see" she felt the warmth of his hands either side of her head.

She felt, oh so softly, that he was sorting through her mind, trying to find her memories that would let him help her. She then realised there was a kind of opening nearby, almost visible. A path to his memories. As much as she didn't want to intrude, she knew he kept them hidden away, knew he never spoke of his life on Gallifrey. She allowed herself to slip down into his memories, and found herself watching through his eyes.

XxX Memory XxX

She watched through the eyes of a child. A beautiful, green planet, with a red sky streaked with pinks and golds, childish happy shouts in an unintelligible language renting the sky. And then, a shout, the person she was watching through- the Doctor's eyes- turned. "THETA!" she saw a thin, half mad woman coming towards them, what looked like a cane in her hand. She felt panic, screams of the fearful friends as they fled. The Doctor took a step back. "mum, not again…" the memory changed.

A view from space, watching on the TARDIS monitor. That same planet, beautiful and earth-like but with the same red sky just visible, heated by a supernova. Daleks and their ships filled the skies, and other TARDISes, now like battle ships, in their true form she supposed, shot the Daleks from the sky in droves.

A huge rip appeared in the sky, golden bright, and daleks flooded through. She felt a jolt of memory-pain, as the void was used badly. A hand pressed on a single button, and flames encased the planet and the area around it, everything dying, all because of the single button being pressed….

XxXMemoryXxX

"Rose? Rose!" Rose's eyelids flickered and she looked up to see the Doctor looking into her eyes. She blinked, pulling away. Too bright…

"Rose…" his voice was gentle, and she felt his hands cup her chin. She opened her eyes. He was right in front of her. "I scratched you" his voice was hoarse, and thick, like he was barely holding back tears. "What?" she whispered. "Those marks on your chest. You didn't recognise them. I…" he swallowed. "I scratched you." Rose covered her hand with her mouth.

"but doesn't that mean I'm a…" he shook his head violently, not saying no, but meaning he couldn't stand to hear those words. "we have to find out, Rose. And there's only one way" Rose nodded, only half understanding. Her mind was caught up in the whirl of what she had just seen

"Don't follow me out" she whispered to the Doctor as they stood at the door of the TARDIS, which was shut. "Even if I do… change, I don't want you to come out. You go through enough pain already. I can face it." He nodded, but she could see the unsure-ness in his eyes. "I'll be fine" she touched his hand lightly, and they turned, opening the doors, and stepped into the moonlight night. The Doctor watched, out of the glare of the moonlight. Rose seemed to shiver, and stumbled away, crying in pain.

"Rose!" out of his concern and love for her, the Doctor forgets what he says, and darts to her side. She looks at him. "Doctor! You stupid…!" He whirls, stumbling towards the TARDIS and swearing in Gallifreyan. Only a few meters from the TARDIS he drops to his hands and knees, gasping and swearing in pain. Rose touches his back, and then helps tug his jacket and tie off as he begins to transform. She had felt the pain, like something writhing inside her, trying to get out, make her like it, but its hold was not enough, the infection not deep enough.

Was this how the Doctor felt, whenever he transformed? Or was it worse? She knew she had it mild; it had to be so much more painful for him, and he transformed, too. She realised the acorn around her neck was hurting, but only a little twinge, not bad enough. It wasn't scorching her skin like it had scorched his.

"Doctor, how can you stand this pain?" she asks him, and he doesn't reply, thrashing his head back and forth in the pain of transforming. Rose helps him get his trousers off and he shivers slightly, whether from being on the floor in his pants or transforming she doesn't know. Quite fit for a 900 year old… Rose! Stop it! She orders herself. It doesn't matter- he's transforming now, thick fur pushing through his skin and cheeks cracking into their new shape. his eyes snap open, the deep brown of the Doctor's eyes- he has control! his face it fully transformed and his body almost is. She watches his legs reconstruct and his tail appear, cracking loudly.

"Oh, Doctor, how could you be so stupid" she asks him as he finishes transforming, shaking slightly, whether from shock, fear or fighting for control she didn't know. Sorry, Rose… I can't stand to see you in such pain. And stop thinking dirty thoughts about me in my pants!

Rose turns red. "I wish you wouldn't mind read" she grumbles.

Rose, you wanted to know how it feels? He asks. She nods, as he sits up dog-style and she sits cross-legged next to him. They can do nothing about this until morning. She nods at his question, and looks across the fields. The knowing feeling is still inside of her but now strong enough to break free. I could show you… with my telepathy. But you wouldn't be able to endure it… I don't want you hurt, Rose. But I don't want you trying to find out on your own.

"I could take it, Doctor. I can't let you go through it without me knowing. I just wouldn't be able to stand you going through that…" he nods his wolfish head.

Place your hands either side of my head and fan your fingers. Yeah, like that. Just close your eyes and focus. You see a door?

"yeah" she could. A sort of wooden door. Walk through it. You'll be guided. Don't look at anything I have hidden. I'll trust you.

She stepped through the door, but was aware she was still sat. She could feel the Doctor's warm fur under her fingers. She saw doors, all around, but there was a wooden path at her feet. She followed it, and it guided her to an open door. She stepped through.

XxX Memory XxX

She stared out at the setting sun, feeling dread rise in her mind. She saw HERSELF stood next to her, gripped her hand. She realised she was looking through the Doctor's eyes. The sun sunk below the ground, and the sky darkened into velvety black, and the moon appeared slowly.

She felt pain sweep her body, like knives slashing at her skin and fell forward from the pain, dizziness clouding her head and her vision blurring in and out of focus. She felt her gums scorch as sharp teeth pushed through, replacing her old ones. The feeling like her ears was being cut with a scalpel, into the pointed wolf shape. The feeling of claws slashing her face as the muzzle formed, the endless feeling like her skin was being scrubbed with a sharp brush broom from the inside. The cloak she had been wearing fell away from the fur.

The pain was endless, she could feel her bones almost melting except from when they were violently jerked into a new position. The feeling like she was being squeezed in every muscle as she bulked up in strength, the overwhelming light and smells and sound. She felt like a knife slid down every finger as claws emerged and the most painful crack as her tail emerged. Finally, the pain faded, but there was still the niggling feel of the wolf clawing her mind.

She felt as it seemed to come forward, and began forcing her away from her movement. It was unbelievably strange, loosing control and regaining it, fighting with every inch of her will but she was weak and tired. No will left to face it she seemed to slip into unconsciousness but she could still see…

She gasped, pulling away from the Doctor, hands falling to her sides. She stared at him, swallowing. "That was the time you lost control, that time in the woods." She whispered. He nodded. "How can you stand that, Doctor?" he sighed visably, staring at the horizon. Because I must, Rose. I almost did kill myself before, that time… you know. But I know I can't do that to you, Rose. I endure because I must. For you. Rose turned away from him, looking over the hills to the horizon, mind burning with that pain. And she thought silently, how lucky she was to have someone loving her that much.

END