Chapter 2

Doctor? Doctor who?

"I can't believe you," I grinned, unable to even pretend to be annoyed. "You did all this, just to surprise me… how did you get me back? I thought the universes were like… closed? More importantly, why? Not that I'm not thrilled or anything, but I'm guessing there's a reason you went to the trouble of shifting parallel universes… other than just to… see me." I walked toward him eagerly, not really wanting answers. He could explain it later, if he was going to. "Like the new face… shame you're still not ginger."

"Pardon?" He spluttered, but I barely listened.

"I've missed so much! Fill me in. Go on. Tell me all about your adventures since I last saw you."

"I really don't know what you're talking about… Who are you, by the way?" He asked, tilting his head slightly.

I smiled, ignoring the trickle of uneasiness down my spine. "Nice. No 'Welcome back'… No, 'I've missed you'… Thanks!"

He didn't smile back, but instead looked rather… perturbed. "What is this place? It's not like any police box I've seen… Actually, I haven't seen any police boxes, except in museums. They're not normally like this, though, are they?"

"Doctor, please!" I said, trying to keep hold of my waning smile. I'd found him again. I'd found the Tardis.

"Hah, I'm not actually a doctor, as such." He said sheepishly. "More of a professor. Wait, how do you know?" He stared at me in confusion, like reclaiming a lost memory. "…You weren't at my high school, were you?"

"What? Seriously?" I stared at him, the feeling of panic growing. "Who are you? You're not the Doctor, are you? You've never met anyone who went by the name of the Doctor?"

"I told you, my name's John Smith. I'm not a doctor, no, and of course, I've met several doctors, but none known as 'The Doctor'." He said, thinking.

"Yes, but who is John Smith? And what do you have to do with… all this?"

"I'm John Smith, I'm twenty four years old, I've just recently graduated, and I'm currently doing a study on astronomy. I've moved up here from England… and that's all I can think to tell you, stranger." He said warily. "Who are you again? I've forgotten, apologies."

"Rose, Rose Tyler." I said, fighting back tears. The Tardis said he was the Doctor, but he certainly didn't know it. At least, he certainly didn't know me. "I'm from London, originally. I'm looking for a friend. This is normally his… house." I turned back to the Tardis controls, and tried to reignite my memory. How could I get it to explain? Could it explain? "Help, please, something is really, really wrong," I muttered under my breath, somewhat hoping the Tardis itself would help.

"Wow! What's this?" 'John' said, appearing next to me suddenly. "Where are we, by the way? Surely the space occupied cuts into the neighbour's house…"

"This is the Tardis." I said bleakly, once again drawing up the slideshow of the Doctor's appearances. "You should know this," I sighed, but he didn't hear, or didn't listen.

"Am I allowed to… press any of these buttons?" He asked, eyeing the controls enthusiastically.

"No. Look. Do you recognize this face?" I asked, showing him what should have been the Doctor's last look. A long, proud face, with a spiked quiff of chestnut brown hair and a dull brown jacket. And of course, the customary Converse.

He stared at it for a long time, eyes intent and thoughtful; like the answer was just one memory away. "…Should I know him?"

"I think so…" I told him, flicking on to the next picture, his picture. "This is you. That means that he" - I flicked back to the previous image again –"Is also you. But that means you're the Doctor. And the Doctor doesn't forget. He doesn't forget anything, especially not himself." I was panicking now, blinking furiously so not to cry. I half expected him to run at me with a sweeping hug, and tell me not to be ridiculous – how could he forget?

"How do you have my photo?" He asked; suspicion thick in his voice. "And what on Earth are you on about?"

"I don't know how I can explain it. You explained things to me. And I don't even know." I huffed. A final idea came to me; a clawing hope. "Go on, press some buttons, mess around with it. Whatever feels… natural, just press the button, flick the switch." I said, moving away slightly. Despite his clear enthusiasm, he didn't do anything. "Go for it. I know you don't understand now, but if this works, you'll know what I was talking about."

He glanced between me and the controls, before stepping forward in an almost familiar fashion, and staring at the various buttons and switches. I prayed the Tardis wouldn't let him do anything stupid, but knew it was the only other thing I could do. Maybe some habit would come forth, and tell me everything, or remind him. Stuck in my thoughts, I didn't realize at first, that he'd went for the large travel switch. The machine instantly came to life, flashing golden and blue lights, and jerking upward slightly, like a lift.

"Woah!" He yelled as we took flight. Almost as soon as it started, it stopped. We weren't travelling anymore. Worriedly, I walked to the doors, and peeked outside. We were floating somewhere in the stars above Britain, near the Moon.

"You're into astronomy, are you?" I asked, looking back and opening the door wider.

"Bloody hell!" He cried, stumbling forward. "What… what sort of circus tent is this?"

"It's the Tardis, and that out there, it's real."

"No it's not." He said quickly, shaking his head.

"It is." I said, looking at him and raising my eyebrows challengingly. "Before we start experimenting again, let's get back to Earth, at least, shall we?" I said, leaving him to moon over, well, the Moon. "Close the door again, please," I said, not enjoying the feeling of telling him what to do, in what essentially was his own house. Obediently, he shut the door, and looked over at me expectantly. I reached for the lever when I caught his expression. "What would it take, to show you that this is real?"

"I don't know. Nothing. I don't believe it. How, why, et cetera? It doesn't make sense." He frowned. With a heavy, exasperated sigh, I pulled the lever, and we whizzed back to his garden.

"Ok. This time – yep, check outside if you want, we're back home – you can touch anything but that lever. Go." I said, and after a quick look outside, he walked back to the controls.

"They always say… 'Do not press the red button'," He said to himself, just as he pressed the red button.

"Wait!" I yelled, too late. As expected, the whole police box rattled, lights flickering before finally switching off. I sighed heavily, "Press it again."

"What, really?" He asked, and through the dark I could see his silhouetted head swivel around to face me.

"Yes…" I groaned. "You should know this!" I said, frustration evident in my tone.

"Well I don't, I'm afraid." He said petulantly, pressing the button once more. The Tardis shuddered again – which was something new – before bursting back to life. "Ow!" He cried, jumping back. "It stung me. Like, a static shock." He grumbled at the machinery, and turned back to me, rubbing his hand. "Care to get out of this… magician's box? It makes me uneasy. And I'd quite like you to tell me what the hell is going on, and what you're looking for."

"Right. Ok. Let's go back outside… and then inside… and let me try figure it out." Things were a lot more complicated than I'd ever have thought; but that was usually the case with the Doctor.

We walked back outside, and reluctantly, I locked the door again. The rain had got heavier since we'd been inside, and now was bouncing off the concrete, forming puddles in dips in the ground. During the short time we were outside, I was already soaked to the bone. "Come on," He said, running to the house and opening the door.

Minutes later, we were sitting on the small sofa in the main room… well, he was, while I sat in front of the fireplace, trying to dry myself off.

"So…" He started, staring at the brown carpet with a small frown.

"Do you remember… anything exceptionally strange happening in your life?"

He looked up, thoughts flickering across his face. "The oddest thing that ever happened to me was when I decided to move up here. I don't know why I did, I just upped and went. But no, nothing out of the ordinary… why, what do you mean?"

"I mean like Daleks in the streets, ghosts who were Cybermen… flying through space and time, solving the mysteries of the universe!"

He just blinked at me. "I'm sorry. I don't understand."

"Alright look. There's a whole universe past this tiny world, and it's often hostile. Fortunately, there's always been someone looking out for us. It seems you can't remember, but that's you. You were - you are - the time travelling superhero from a place far away, the eccentric who found joy in mystery, the encyclopaedia of a being who remembered everything!" I cried, hugging my knees. He stared at me with wide eyes, unsure what to make of my outburst. I inhaled shakily, and asked quietly,"What happened before you came here? Do you remember? Tell me all about your life."

"I was at university in London, studying astronomy." He started hesitantly, as if afraid to upset me. "I just graduated this summer, and decided to come up here. There was nothing weird about it." He stated simply. "Once again, I apologize, but… I don't believe a word you're saying. I can see that you believe it…" He shrugged.

"Are you saying I'm crazy?" I asked, smiling sadly, as my mind tore to shreds. I had no idea what was happening and it was almost actually driving me insane. "How could you go into that tiny police box, into a room that can only be described as being of mansion proportions, and not believe me? How can you look out of the door to what should have been the garden, and see nothing but stars and space, yet not believe me? How can you be the Doctor, and not believe me?" I asked, my voice crumbling. I had a slight urge to punch him, or just knock sense into him, somehow. "…Are you sure you're not just acting?" I asked quietly. "Because if you are, I want you to stop. No matter if you're really the Doctor or not, I'm staying. Not only because I have to, but because I want to get to the bottom of this. And… I want to come back."

"I'm not pretending. I'm sorry, I just don't know you."

"Really?" I asked, feeling the tears spill over for the first time. I rubbed them away furiously, not breaking eye contact. I couldn't see the Doctor in his eyes. But I could see something…

Fear. Of what?

"Are you… are you ok to leave?" He asked, as though sensing I could see his anxiety.

I blinked. This changed everything. Part of me wanted to go stay in the Tardis, or use it to go home. I could take him to London and back in seconds, further proof of the reality of the Tardis. "Ok. If you remember anything, I'm at the bed and breakfast across the road. Ask for Rose Turner." I said, turning to leave, regretting what I'd said already.

I wasn't going to go back to the inn, not tonight. As soon as I was outside his front door, the lock clicked shut, leaving me alone in the Scottish rain. It was an obvious sign that I wasn't a welcome presence. It didn't matter what he thought now, though. Mind set, I walked around to where the garden wall was connected to the street, looking for a way up. I spotted a bin, and a thin fence of the house next door, and had my route. With no regard for myself, or the things I stood on, I leapt up on to the bin, and then immediately hopped up on the wall, the rough stone biting into my palms. Awkwardly, I shuffled around and dropped down onto the concrete ground. Fumbling for the key again, I glanced over to the house. There he was, the Doctor, or whoever he was, watching me through the grimy back window. I expected him to come and tell me to leave, but he never moved, only to close the blinds. Taking it as a sign I could go on, I opened the Tardis and stepped in eagerly.

It had changed a lot since I had seen it. There were various 'rooms' set around, like stepping from the original control room into a museum. There were several artefacts I guessed he shouldn't have; a Mona Lisa painting with a winking eye, crumbling letters with signatures that made me look twice, a peculiar twig with vibrant yellow berries and string, and there were pictures. Pictures of everywhere. Not like the ones the Tardis could easily recall, but old fashioned, store developed pictures. There was one of me. I could remember it being taken. I was stood next to a Cat Person, one of the Sisters of Plenitude, still in awe at the strange cat face.

I remembered the day. Cassandra, the infected patients, The Face of Bo… An overwhelming feeling of nostalgia hit me. I wanted to be back, more than anything. I had missed so much, and done so little with my own life. Taking the picture, I wandered back to the controls, feeling lonely again. "I want to come back," I said, as though the Tardis could make it happen. "I want the Doctor back. Are you hiding him? Keeping his mind and memory?" I asked hopelessly. "Cause if you are, I want it back. I think he needs it back." Was it too much to ask, to see a jar appear, labelled 'Doctor's Brain'?

I sat down; mind churning like a hurricane, and thought of something else. What was happening at home? Was Mum still looking for me in that police box? Had the mortal Doctor finally decided I wasn't worth his time? This was his new, mortal life, free to experience the world without duty; he had been pining to go for months. Would Mickey finally ask that girl from the shop for a date? He had wanted to talk to her for at least three weeks, but I guess he was still unclear of our relationship – he worried what I thought too much. And Mum and Dad? And Tony? I hoped they weren't too worried. Because, even if I were desperate to return, I didn't know how long it would take, or even if it was possible. I wondered if the fake police box was in this universe's London, too, and if I'd remember where it was. Starting from the flat, I mentally walked out toward where it had been, trying to remember. Unfortunately, I got lost in my own mind and hometown, and somehow fell asleep, trying to think my way back.

AN: Alright, another chapter here, hope you enjoy it! If you do, review. If you didn't, feel free to review! :D

Anyway, thanks for reading (: xxx