A/N: I'm back! I'm so sorry about disappearing. Hopefully I'll update more often now. Just a warning, this chapter contains mentions of domestic abuse.
Here's the next chapter! Enjoy!
disclaimer: I don't own Doctor Who.
Chapter Two
It took nearly a day to return to London. Nearly three hours waiting for the zeppelin. Then over thirty minutes to find their way to the place they were authorized to land and board it. Another two hours before the sleep deprived pilot realized they were going in the wrong direction. Three more hours to get to London. By then it was past 3am, so they decided to just spend the night on the zeppelin.
The whole voyage wasn't that bad. Jackie chattered on about Tony over dinner and through the evening, until she finally gave in to the human need to sleep.
Oh dear, he was human now. He would have to sleep for several hours every night. So much time of his life, wasted because humans required regular intervals of unconsciousness! (Of course he might not mind as long as Rose was lying next to him when he woke up . . . )
Rose stayed by his side. Her hand stayed nestled in his, just as it should be. She was silent the whole trip. She never once spoke, and barely looked at him. He hoped she was okay. She was quieter that he remembered, but it had been almost four years for her, she could have changed since Canary Warf.
Eventually Rose fell asleep. Her head rested on his shoulder. He kept his eyes on her. She looked beautiful as she slept. He hoped he would get to watch her sleep more often from now on.
At one point he thought he heard Rose murmur "Doctor." A tear slid down her cheek.
He wiped the single tear from her face and wrapped his arms around her. Rose snuggled into his arms.
He resolved make sure Rose knew that he was the Doctor as much as the Time Lord . He would love Rose, and never abandon her. He would always be there for Rose. He would never let Rose suffer again.
The Doctor crossed the street and approached Rose. He wondered why she was running and crying on the streets of London. Why was she wearing a tank top? It wasn't warm enough out. And why were there bruises covering her arms?
The Doctor stood in front of Rose for a moment, and hesitated. What should he do? Should he hug her? Should he say hello? What should he do?
After a moment the Doctor settled for placing a hand gently on Rose's shoulder. She tensed at his touch for a moment, then relaxed.
"Are you alright?" asked the Doctor.
For a long moment Rose didn't respond, and the Doctor began to think she wouldn't. Just when the Doctor was about to walk away, Rose shifted and unwound from the tight ball she had curled into. She harshly wiped the tears from her eyes, then looked up to see who was speaking to her.
The Doctor studied his pink and yellow human's face carefully. She had a faded bruise on one cheek to match the ones on her arms. Who had done this to her?
The lack of recognition in her eyes hurt more than he expected. Her eyes captured his attention. Rose's eyes were old. They were eyes that had seen more pain and suffering than anyone her age should have. It pained the Doctor to think of what had occurred since he left her on that beach in Norway.
"Careful mate. I'm a married woman." despite the obvious turmoil she was in, she managed to speak with her usual cheek that the Doctor was so familiar with.
The Doctor was unable to suppress the smile that spread across his face. He had missed her voice so much. How had he man aged to go on living without her? Well never again. Even if she was married, he was never letting her go again. "I'll take my chances." he answered, loving that he could talk to her again.
Wait, she had said she was married. Was it to his duplicate? It must be, who else would it be?
"D'you have any idea who I am?" asked Rose. She frowned, like it was surprising he didn't recognize her. Why would that be? To her, he was just a kind stranger.
"Yes. You're Rose Tyler." the Doctor smiled. It was the first time he had spoken her name with this face. It felt wonderful. A weight lifted from his hearts that he hadn't even realized had been there.
For a fraction of a second, the Doctor thought he saw a faint glimmer of recognition as he spoke her name. It was gone almost instantly though, as if it had never been there at all. Maybe it was just wishful thinking on his part.
Something akin to panic suddenly filled Rose's eyes. Before the Doctor could fully comprehend what she was doing, Rose seized him, dragged him into a filthy alley, and pinned him to the wall.
"Are you mental?" Rose hissed. "It's Smith now, has been for a while. I don't know who you think you are, and where you've been, but if you value your life you will never call me Tyler again."
"I- I'm sorry." stuttered the Doctor, taken aback.
The Doctor's brain started to short circuit as he became aware of just how close their faces were. If he leaned in just a little further . . . Since when did he had so little control over himself?
The sound of footsteps snapped the Doctor back to reality, and Rose pulled away.
A rather burly tough man with a feral grin approached them, Rose in particular.
"Well, hello sweetheart." purred the man. "Why don't you ditch that boy, and I'll show you what a real man is like."
The Doctor instinctively reached into his jacket for his sonic. How dare anyone speak to Rose like that!
Rose just snorted and rolled her eyes. Why would she do that?
"I don't think my husband would take too kindly to that." Rose answered.
"Well, you don't seem to mind with that kid you've got pinned to the wall." countered the man.
Kid? He was 907! The Doctor frowned indignantly at the ignorance of this man.
"My husband is John Smith." deadpanned Rose.
Fear sparked in the man's eyes, and he began slowly backing away.
"Oh, I'm sorry. I thought you were someone else. Honest mistake, really. Just forget it ever happened." stuttered the man. "Maybe not mention this to you husband?"
The man whirled around and ran away.
The Doctor frowned in confusion. It was nice to know Rose's potential attackers ran away when they knew who her husband was, but what had his duplicate done to inspire such fear?
"Right, now to deal with you." declared Rose.
Rose watched the thug run away. He was probably running off to report them. Damn. Better make this quick then, if the man who was stupid enough to show her kindness wanted to live to see a new day.
Rose turned her attention to the odd young man in front of her. He was very strange. He looked like a kid trying to dress up as his professor. He wore a tweed jacket, with a bright red bowtie. He had floppy brown hair and bright green eyes that revealed more intelligence that he was currently employing.
Maybe Ianto had recruited him. He obviously hadn't taught him much yet, or he just wasn't very bright. Maybe he was just one of those civilian idiots who was dumb enough to think he would be that one hero that would rescue Rose and whisk her off to another planet to live happily ever after. He didn't seem to know about John though, which was odd. Everyone knew about John.
John Smith and Rose Tyler, everyone knew their story. The fairy tale gone wrong. The Vitex Heiress and the alien hero. The lovers from another world, tearing universes apart to find each other. The happily ever after that was soured. The lies, the betrayals, the blackmail, the tears, the fights, the scandals, the threats, the beatings, the spies, the smuggling, the murders.
John and Rose Smith. The two most powerful people in the world, at odds. The director of Torchwood (pretty much director of the world, though people stubbornly pretended they still had freedom) and the leader of the New Preachers. The law and the rebels. Locked in a silent struggle that made the Cold War look like a childish squabble.
And somehow Rose had managed to collide with the only person on the face of the earth who was somehow blissfully unaware of the war.
But not for long, Rose would have to send this man to the preachers. Strip him of his ignorance, but maybe she could save him. The New Preachers had several off world allies. They did their best to smuggle innocent by-standers off world to safety. It wasn't ideal, but at least he would live. It was better than if John found him.
Rose shuddered as her mind supplied some too-detailed scenarios of what would happen to this man if John found him. The things this man would endure. All because he dared to show her kindness. Too many people had died for her.
"You're chilly. Here." the man said.
Rose felt the man drape something on her shoulders. It was his stupid tweed jacket. When had he moved?
"No! I can't accept this!" protested Rose. If John found it he'd run DNA scans and hunt this man down.
"No, really, it's fine. You need it more than I do." insisted the man. To prove his point he gestured to her bare arms, uncovered by her tank top.
Rose was about to protest, but his fingers grazed her arm lightly. They brief contact sent goosebumps up her arms. What was it about this man that captured her attention?
Well, she would just have to burn the jacket as soon as he was out of sight.
"Fine." relented Rose.
The man grinned brightly. Rose wasn't sure what it was about his smile, but she found herself grinning back. She hoped smuggling him off world would go smoothly. She wanted this man to get the chance to smile like that again. It would almost be worth the bruises John would no doubt add to her collection.
Rose leaned closer, and whispered in his ear.
"There's a chip shop owned by Vitex a few blocks away. There's a waiter there named Ianto Jones. Tell him you've heard they serve the best chips in London, and you want some. He'll say they're out. Ask again. Do exactly as he tells you. Got it?"
Rose pulled away. It was up to the Preachers now. She wished she could do more, but she if she did, John would find the Preachers. She'd already lost Jake and Lisa by being careless. She was never allowing it to happen again.
The man stuttered a bit, like he wasn't sure how to respond.
Rose didn't stick around. If John's men did find him, she didn't want to know.
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