Chapter 3

The Doctor stood at the window of his room on the second floor peaking down at Rose's still form in the garden below, his mildly aching hand parting a pair of silk brown curtains. He didn't know where else to go or what else to do. It wasn't like him to feel so... helpless. Oh what he would do if he could only have his TARDIS again! He hated feeling stuck in one place and in one time. He hated relying on the generosity of Pete and Jackie for everything. He hated having a room at all with carpets and curtains and... doors. Most of all though, he hated seeing Rose like this. More than anything he wanted to whisk her away, to take her back home on the TARDIS and make her smile again. But he couldn't. Not anymore. Not ever again.

With relief, he watched as she finally stood and went back inside. Thank goodness. He didn't want her out there in her susceptible condition. Didn't she know it drove him mad to see her like that? Instinctively he turned to go to her but forced himself to stop. As much as he wanted to, she needed space. And time, he thought wryly smiling at the irony. What good was he then, a Time Lord, well part Time Lord he reminded himself, who couldn't fix this?

Turning again he looked at his new home. Temporary home, he affirmed. He was not going to live in Jackie's house indefinitely. He shuddered at the thought.

Still though, it was a nice enough place. A bit overdone but comfortable. His king sized bed stood before him, carved out of wood and covered with a cream comforter. A brass lamp sat beside the bed on a coordinating table. On the other side of the room stood a matching wardrobe it's door still open from this morning which held nothing but that pair of Pete's pajamas and a borrowed robe.

A quick knock at the door startled him as he whirled around. Pete gently pushed the door open ever so slightly. "Sorry," he said taking a step back. "Didn't mean to sneak up on you."

"Oh no, not at all!" he grinned widely at him, taking a few purposefully steady steps forward to open the door. "Please, do come in. And thank you so much for your hospitality."

Pete entered waving his hand. "Oh it's nothing. Least I can do. After all I have you to thank for the safe return of my wife and daughter." He lowered his shining head slightly. "Thank you for that," he spoke, the sincerity in voice evident.

The Doctor simply nodded. "Of course. Yes," he reaffirmed. "Glad it all worked out," he finished exuberantly.

"I don't understand though," Pete began, placing his hands on his hips and shifting his weight. "Jackie said... well she said you weren't really him."

The Doctor's brows fell. "Well... yes and no. I was the Doctor, but I was fatally wounded two days ago. Instead of dying Time Lords regenerate. They physically change bodies while their minds, their memories, their essence, remains. Well I didn't want to change, so to avoid regenerating I used the energy to heal and then siphoned off the extra regeneration energy into my hand here," he explained wriggling the fingers on his right hand with a smile. "This hand had been cut off in a sword fight by a nasty fellow a while back. Never mind him, anyway, the old me grew another hand but ended up keeping this one on the ship. After the energy which contained my essence poured into this hand my companion Donna touched it starting a chain reaction resulting in the creation of this body. Voila! Instantaneous biological meta-crisis," he finished triumphantly, placing his hands in his pockets with a grin.

After seeing the confused look upon Pete's face, he continued. "Basically, I was him and now I'm me. There's two of me. We're the same, except I am part human. I took on my companion's DNA. There are some physical differences, but the man inside hasn't changed."

Pete looked him over, sizing him up. He let his thoughts churn for a moment before extending his hand with a smile. "Well then, it's good to see you again, Doctor."

The Doctor cheerily returned his grasp. "And you!"

"To business then! May I speak with you in my office?" he asked, gesturing toward the door.

"Lead the way." He had an inkling as to what this was about, but he kept his suspicions to himself.


Finally succumbing to the cold, Rose sought the privacy of her room on the second floor, relieved to have avoided any unwanted encounters along the way as she felt a desperate need to sort out her thoughts uninterrupted. She curled herself up onto a floral armchair in the corner, hugging her knees to her chest.

So what now?

The last six years of her life had been dedicated to finding her way back to him. Maybe it was time to finally accept the truth. This was her world now. Her... home. Unlike before, she had her answer and the answer was no. There was nothing pushing her forward to get back to him any longer. The sting of rejection could either drive her into another tail spin, or she could use to catapult her into action. And Rose Tyler was a fighter. If she had learned anything from the Doctor, anything at all, it was to not just let things happen but take matters into her own hands. So she would do what she had done before: throw herself at her job with wild abandon, put her life on the line to make a difference, and try to grasp some echo of the life she had before while traveling the stars.

And what of this new man? The man who whispered the most amazing words in her ear? She hugged her legs even closer to her, resting her chin upon her knees deep in thought.

Those words weren't his to give. Neither was the kiss she planted upon his lips meant for him.

Yes, for a moment she found comfort in this new man's presence, but whatever she thought she felt during that kiss was not love for him but for someone else. She couldn't let the shadow of love for another influence her feelings for this new man. That wasn't fair to him.

Besides, after things had broken off with Mickey she had come to a realization: there would never be anyone else after the Doctor. How could there be? What could compare to that? She had promised her doctor forever and she meant it. She was done.

He needs you.

His words echoed in her mind. As bad as things were for her, it would have to be worse for him. He was stranded here without his TARDIS, his constant companion. The real Doctor abandoned him too.

Rose took in a deep breath and sat up. Whoever this man was, it didn't matter. Her Doctor said he needed looking after. At least she could do that much. She would put on a brave face for both of them because this man had undoubtedly been hurt too. The Doctor had left this man here with absolutely nothing to his name and no way to reclaim the only life he knew, a man who was terrified of mortgages and domestics, a man with stars in his blood. Now he was stuck on a foreign earth a universe away from home. She would help him pick up the shattered pieces of his life. She could show him friendship and temper his excesses if he let her, so long as he didn't hurt her, because once was bad enough, twice was hell, but three times... three times might just break her permanently.

Suddenly the door flew open and a bouncing blond boy in a blue-striped shirt came barreling toward her waving a sheet of paper.

"Look, Rosie! I wrote you a letter!" he said, nearly shouting with excitement. "See?" he explained, pointing out the corresponding blobs of crayon- an 'I' next to what she assumed was a heart, and a rather lenient spelling of her name.

Rose smiled. "Oh how lovely! What a lovely brother you are," she said scooping him up into a hug. "Thank you so much, Tony." Of all the things she was glad to have back again, he was the most precious.

His eyes shone with excitement. "Did it make you feel better? Mum said if I made you something would feel better and maybe you would come back out of your room."

With a healthy flush to her cheeks, she managed a small smile. Was it that obvious to everyone? "Of course," she replied, patting his head affectionately. "How could I not like such a nice present from my favorite little brother?"

He beamed at her. "Can you help me draw a picture for the blue man? He seems sad too."

And just like that, her grin evaporated. Uncertainty mixed with guilt inside her as she forced another smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. "Sure. Let's go find the crayons, shall we?" She stood, letting Tony lead the way.


"Well I'll get straight to the point," said Pete as he and the Doctor entered his study. "You'll need a proper life now that you're living here." He sat down in his leather office chair as the Doctor did the same in one of the two chairs in front on the desk. "I'm offering you a job."

The Doctor raised an eyebrow. That didn't take long, he smirked to himself.

"You are an extraordinary man, Doctor. There's no better expert than you when it comes to alien life. As head of Torchwood I am extending to you the position of senior consultant."

The Doctor took in a deep breath. Oh what to do? Did he want to work for an organization that nearly caused the collapse of two universes? Well... no. But Rose was there. That in and of itself told him it had to be different than the version he was acquainted with back home. And where Rose was he would follow- if she'd have him.

"It's just a title," said Pete encouragingly attempting to judge his reaction. "You can do anything you want really. And judging by what I know of you and what Jackie and Rose have described about you, that's all you ever do anyway."

He laughed imagining the colorful tales Jackie must have spun about his many personality quirks. "Well, they'd be right. I've worked as a consultant of sorts in the past. But..." He stopped, tugging his ear as he leaned forward. "I'm not too keen on being Torchwood's mad scientist. I won't be your weapon and if I don't like something, it stops."

He could see Pete's jaw working silently, but he didn't object. Instead he dipped his head in acknowledgment.

"And," the Doctor continued. "Even then I'm not sure it's a good idea. Rose... works with you, yeah?"

"Yes, she's one of our top agents," he said proudly.

Naturally. The Doctor smiled briefly. "Well, right now I am not sure what she thinks of …" he paused. "... of any of this." With each passing moment he grew more worrisome over his relationship with Rose. She was so hard to read right now. He had hoped she just needed time, but what if that meant time away from him?

Pete studied him before nodding slowly. "Well, think it over."

The Doctor nodded in return. "I will, Pete. Thank you."


If anyone could pull Rose back from the melancholy it was Tony. Her little brother had been the one spark in the dark- the one person able to make her laugh no matter what the circumstance. As he vigorously scribbled upon various papers spread about a large lavish coffee she felt the anxiety ebb. Quiet moments like these were a gift and she was glad to have the unexpected chance to enjoy them again. Her mum was nursing a cup of tea as she watched them from the edge of the kitchen, no doubt relieved to see her perked up and pleased her little scheme had worked. Course her mum was always sending Tony to perk her up. She couldn't bring herself to mind as she gave him a good tickle.

The Doctor followed the sound of laughter down the grand staircase to find them there, lighting up to see her so alive. Now that was the Rose he remembered. Oh how it made him happy to see her smile again! He leaned his lanky figure into the wall unnoticed, observing quietly. It didn't take long for Jackie to blow his cover, announcing his presence with a grumbled "mornin'".

Rose's trepid eyes shot up at him, catching a warm expression upon his painfully handsome face which caused her heart to simultaneously leap and just as quickly sink. "Hello," she breathed.

"Hello," he replied grinning, not seeming to catch the sorrow in her eyes as he took a step forward. Before he could go any further however, Tony was at his knees.

"Is it really you?!" he asked eagerly, his drawing all but forgotten. "Are you the Doctor?"

Bemused, he crouched down to the little boy's level. "Ah, you must be the famous little tike I've heard all bout," he said, his exuberance matching that of Tony's. He held out a hand which the boy shook happily. "Nice to meet you."

"But where's your TARDIS?" the boy inquired. "Sis tells me bedtime stories about flying in the TARDIS with the Doctor all the time! About the blue box."

He looked up at her, beaming. "Does she really?"

"Yes, yes. Can we see it, Doctor? Can we see the TARDIS?" he pleaded bouncing on the balls of his feet.

Rose bit her lip, wondering if perhaps such a stark reminder of the recent loss of his ship might not be the best timing. But bless the little thing, he didn't know any better. After all, little Tony had grown to idolize the Doctor.

To her surprise, the smile never left his face as he responded. "Oh, well I wish I could little fella. Unfortunately my blue box is with someone else right now," he replied.

"Really, who?"

"Why the Doctor of course!" he replied warmly.

Tony's eyes fell. "But... mum said you are the Doctor. You are, aren't you?"

He felt Rose's eyes on him as he carefully worded his response. "Yes, yes I am," he nodded. "There are two of us now. The Doctor, and the new Doctor. Or... the new new new Doctor if you will," he replied, glancing up at Rose with a wink and a smirk. He knew the reference wouldn't be lost on her. She managed to smile knowingly back at him, relieved to see that Tony's charms worked on him too.

Upon Jackie's request, the little boy went running to show his mum his handiwork. He stood looking on with his hands in his pockets as the little boy energetically recounted the explanation of his work of art to his mother. "So that's him, eh? The brother? How old is he then?" he asked lightheartedly as he glanced her way. The real question he was asking was how long it had been for her since Bad Wolf Bay but he didn't let it show in his voice.

Rose pushed herself up onto the couch. "Four," she nodded. Then she added, "how long has it been since..."

"Three years, two months, fourteen days," he responded, deciding against giving her a hour, minute, second countdown. Though he could.

Rose's eyebrows lifted at his response. "Oh," she replied dumbly, not knowing what else to say.

Luckily it was Jackie who spoke next. "Well now that you're both up and about it's time you went out and got some things round the shops. You can't go wearing that old thing every day," Jackie asserted looking him over with disdain.

Not even trying to hide the offense taken, he grabbed the lapels of his coat. "Oi! I look great," he responded snidely with a sniff. "And sure I can. Mind you it'd be a lot of laundry but I could manage. Besides, it beats the alternative any day. Hate shopping, me," he finished with a smirk.

"She's right you know," Rose commented. "Besides, I can go with you, if you want." She strengthened her resolve, determined to be there for him as a friend in any way she could. After all, this man had been left with absolutely nothing.

He turned looking her way, a lopsided smile slowly creeping up his face. Suddenly shopping didn't sound so bad. "Oh alright then." He gestured to the left cocking his head to the side. "Allons-y, Rose Tyler!"