Flux
By Kimmzie
Disclaimer: I don't own Doctor Who
Disclaimer: I don't own Doctor Who
"Rose Tyler, member of the twenty-first century corporate grind," the Doctor quipped as she pushed her way through the revolving door.
Rose poked her tongue through her teeth and shrugged stiffly in her jacket. She kept awkwardly pulling down the sleeves. The Time Lord looked at the pavement. He didn't do laundry. Nonetheless, when the jacket had shown up on the reading chair it had been cleaner and smelt like detergent from the 25th century. The label said it had a blend of fifteen different hybridized flowers mixed together for optimum freshness and there was supposed to be fluffiness. Wasn't a hybrid a sort of blend and mix of genetic material? Semantics! He sighed to himself. English had always been too complicated and simple at the same time. It was amazing that language survives for so long.
"C'mon, yeah?" Rose was knocking on the glass next to the rotating door. The Doctor smiled with a nod and smoothly joined her inside the building. "Scared?" she asked with a challenge.
"Scared? Me? Never! If I was scared, I would never freely admit it. Maybe once or twice," the Time Lord replied brushing back his shortened locks. "What now?" He reached in his pocket and produced his sonic screwdriver.
"No." She gave him a playful shove. "I work here and you're a consultant. We get you a badge," she continued. She pushed the sonic back into his pocket. "You've had to check-in places before. You know," Rose trailed off as the Doctor looked at her unblinking.
The two approached the front desk that was manned by a very perky redhead. "Welcome to Torchwood London, Miss Tyler. May I see your badge?"
Rose smiled and exchanged a few pleasantries as she presented a small id badge. "Who is this with you now?" the redhead Rose called Cynthia asked, peaking over Rose's shoulder.
"Ah Hello, I'm the Doctor." He smiled.
"Doctor?" Cynthia asked with a pause to her typing.
"Don't worry Cynthia, he's Doctor John Smith. He's a specialist I met on my last mission. Just give him a badge and we'll head over to the meeting in development," Rose replied with a smile.
Cynthia eyed the Doctor curiously and continued to do an awful lot of typing. She picked up the phone and announced the presence of the pair to an extremely elated party on the other line. "Oh no Rose, go right to the Commander's office. He sounds excited." The Doctor ignored Rose's frown. He made his badge with a big v dance in front of her face. Rose just shook her head.
"Well, get ready to meet my Dad, Pete," she said quietly. "He's not going to like this," she murmured to herself. The Doctor smiled brightly down at Rose who was worrying her lip. The two walked hand and hand into the elevator. The Doctor swung Rose's arm carelessly.
"Don't worry, parents love me," he whispered in her ear. "It's mostly governments and religious institutions you have to worry about," he explained brightly.
"Like UNIT?" Rose asked cheekily.
"I still do that?" Rose answered noncommittally with a shrug.
"Almost there," Rose said breaking the silence. "Feel at ease to speak freely here. Torchwood security is top of the line. No secrets leaked here." She put two fingers to her lips and shook her head.
The elevator doors opened with a cheerful ding. "Oh I like that noise. Rose, remind me to remember that noise," he said, offhandedly. Rose was already halfway down the corridor. He easily caught up with her in a few strides. When had they stopped holding hands? "Are bugs something you have to worry about on a daily basis?"
"Security is of utmost part of Torchwood policy, Doctor Smith," Rose replied automatically.
"I see. Quite so, very apparent," the Doctor murmured, as he mentally went over the contents of his satchel.
"Here we are, Pete Tyler Commander of Torchwood." Rose smiled as she pulled on the big opaque glass doors to his office.
A balding, middle age man bearing a resemblance to Rose stood up and extended a hand. "Doctor Smith it is a pleasure having you on for consultation on this project."
"Commander Tyler it is a pleasure to finally meet you," the Doctor said coolly as he eyed the room. Pete sat down at his desk and pushed a few buttons. The doors closed, the lights got a reddish tint, and there was a faint hum. Pete gave Rose a thumbs up. The Doctor took out his screw driver and scanned the area, adding to the red light.
"Your security seems to be in order. There are no additional eyes or ears in the room," he said to the man. "Hello again. I'm the Doctor."
"You don't remember me?" Pete asked uneasy. "The Cyberman? Torchwood on your world? I can see you regenerated, but did you hit your head or something?" Rose smiled.
"No, Dad. It's the Doctor! He hasn't met you yet. He's from the Doctor's past."
"Does this happen a lot? You meeting people who've met you, or you've met that don't know you?" The Doctor nodded. "Isn't this bad for time? Can't we swap you out for the other one?" Rose glared at her Dad in a huff.
"I'm the Doctor. I'm still a Time Lord and I can see how the timelines are in flux. I can fix whatever needs to be mended," the Doctor replied calmly. "Reality is fracturing, that is why your dimension cannon has been working and my TARDIS got sucked through. I expect you detected the TARDIS quite a while ago." The Time Lord nodded to the reports on his desk. "Am I the cause of this extra surveillance?" he asked as inquisitive eyes scanned the room.
"We've been having trouble with the Government stepping in the past few months. They've wanted to acquire some of our more dangerous weapons to defend our country. The President has been very persistent especially after the War. People are afraid." The Doctor frowned.
"There was a War with the Cyberman. There are still some mucking about. After what we saw of Torchwood in my world we are trying to make a different one. Dad is very protective of development."
"Please tell me, the future me disapproves of you developing technology from alien wreckage. The road to hell is usually paved with the noblest of intentions," the Doctor said softly. "Is your government aware of the TARDIS?"
"Not so much. Your bio-scan just appears odd on our sensors and activates the bugs that I have strategically left. You might end up on a biopsy table if they totally knew," Pete said.
"I regenerated into this body on an operation table and I don't want to do so again," the Doctor said with a chuckle.
"Well then, what are you exactly doing here? Did you find the right Doctor?" Pete looked over to Rose. She was trying to fight off tears as her eyes became glassy.
"The Doctor, my Doctor is dead. Something has changed, he drowned. I saw him. I was too late." The Doctor put a gentle hand to her shoulder without a thought.
"We already suspected that was going to happen, sweetheart," Pete said.
"Something has changed my timeline. The whole thing is in flux, that's why I am here," the Doctor chimed in. "With the TARDIS we got the data we need to fix the point in my timeline and reunite Rose with my future self. You don't have to tear holes in dimensions anymore. We'll just use the TARDIS."
"He said coming here was impossible. He left her on a bloody beach." Pete turned to the Doctor with a glare. How was he turning that pink? "He led her all the way to a beach in Norway. Didn't even finish…."
"Dad! Future!" Rose interjected.
"Well, he's the same man, ain't he? This poor girl is trying so hard to get to him and keep the stars from going out." Pete was now a lovely shade of red. "How can you come here and return her back to her original world?"
"I'm from a different time," the Doctor replied with a crooked grin. "Something must have happened in my future that makes travel between dimensions impossible," he continued grimly.
"Can she come back once the timeline is reinstated?" Pete asked. His face was fading to a peach-ish color. The Doctor shook his head. Pete looked over to his adopted daughter, he opened his mouth but only breath came out.
"She is not meant to be here. She never existed in this Universe. Therefore, time is compensating around her for now. Without proper manipulation or a TARDIS protecting her, I cannot guarantee how long she will be safe."
"Well, he certainly sounds like the other one," Pete chuckled as the Doctor stiffened. "How are we gonna tell your Mother?"
Rose shrugged. "We all knew this was gonna happen one day," she replied and looked up at the Doctor. "I have a few days anyway, right Doctor?"
"I have to make some preparations. You have two or three days," the Doctor replied. Pete was focused on the pair's interlaced fingers.
"Right, I guess I'm not getting my dimension cannon back," Pete said morosely.
"Oh you can. It just won't do anything anymore. Oh, it can still tell time but it runs five minutes fast, sorry. I can't have you punching anymore holes in the fabric of reality."
"Yup, that's definitely your Doctor, sweetheart." Pete smiled. "Go make your report and try to be creative with how you got the data. I guess the Doctor has his own work to do. I'll handle your Mother. Just go to the house after you're done. Nice to meet you again, Doctor," Pete said, extending his hand again. The Doctor grasped it firmly.
Rose ignored the curious looks from her co-workers as she grabbed the Doctor's arm.
"Is this really appropriate? Do you want to draw additional attention to yourself?" The Doctor looked over to a pair of gawking interns.
"Yup. That's the idea. Just follow my lead. You didn't seem to care before," she said her tongue playfully poking through her teeth. He raised a curious brow but readjusted her arm to fit around his.
The Time Lord couldn't help notice that several eyes were following them as they walked down the sidewalk. Rose just smiled and pulled the Doctor in closer to her. They made their way to a nondescript bench a few blocks from Torchwood. Rose was quiet but seemed content.
"Should there be people taking pictures of us?" the Doctor asked dryly.
"Yup! Any other ears listening?" she asked. The Doctor took out his screwdriver and with a few clicks he smiled.
"Not anymore. Why do you want people taking pictures of you, us?" The Doctor felt her comfortable weight lean into him. He could see distant flashes and hear clicks.
"I can't just disappear. Pete went to all that trouble creating this sort of long lost daughter story. The papers loved it. I'm the missing heiress. So when I go, I'm going to run away with a mysterious stranger." She leaned over and batted her eyes dramatically. Where had she found the mascara?
"A mysterious stranger you say," the Doctor said.
"We play it up for the cameras for the next few days. I say, well, you know goodbye." Rose's body went stiff. She was still playing with the sleeves of her coat. "Blimey, I think this thing shrunk. Can the void shrink your clothes?" The Doctor looked away with a shrug.
"So then Rose Tyler, what do we do now?" She was so warm at his side he didn't mind that the bench was digging into his back.
"C'mon then, we give'em a show, eh." She nodded her head over to some bushes. She took his face in her hands and pulled his hair back. "We need this all over the tabloids to look legit. We might even make the evening edition. They're kinda mad for that sort'of thing."
"Oh, I bet they would love it. Or are you just looking for excuses?" He leaned in closer.
"Hmmmph," Rose replied. The Doctor had closed the gap between them. The Time Lord was consuming Rose's lips. It was her mouth now. Well, the only word eloquent enough to convey the action in the tabloids was snogging or ravishing (if you went for a racy mag).
The Doctor was everywhere. She could feel his hands in her hair and sliding down her back. Her jacket was so tight, she was breathless. His tongue battled hers for an easily won dominance. She had to slip away for a breath of air that was quickly stolen. She felt something around the peripherals of her lobby. There was the blueish light she recognized from the Eye of Harmony.
She pulled away and the Doctor looked at her quizzically. He was not breathless at all. Stupid Time Lords and their respiratory bypass. "What was that?" she asked breathlessly.
"What?"
"That!" Rose pointed to her temples. "There was something near my lobby. Like this blueish thing calling or trying to get in."
The Doctor frowned and let out a sigh. Everything had been so dark and gray. He felt old. His feet dragged heavier against the pavement every day. How did he not leave a path of cracks in his wake? The ghosts and ghouls of the Time War were constantly moaning, whispering in his head. But now, there was a golden light. His mind was drawn to it. It made things lighter. He didn't want to run as far.
"Doctor!" She nodded towards him. Suddenly, there was that golden light shining against his shields.
"Oh, you clever girl." He smiled. He kept his shields up and Rose pouted in concern. "You don't want to go in there right now. It's not the best place to be," he whispered darkly. "A Time Lord's mind is a bit tricky. The question is how you can do that? You're not supposed to have that. Humanity doesn't develop the skill for thousands of years and it's limited. Well, another question for the metaphorical pile."
He pushed himself past her shields and smiled. He felt like he was basking in sunshine even though it was cloudy. "You've already been invited," she replied with a shrug. "I guess that was enough of a show. Time to go do paperwork; lots and lots of paperwork." She slouched and her jacket started to tear along a few seams. "Well, you go and do your tinkering and calibrating. Need to be in ship shape. Stay in London. I don't want you slipping through a crack or nothing without me." She gave him a playful nudge. All the Doctor could do was push back.
"Wouldn't dream of it Rose Tyler," he said grabbing her hand and showing off for the cameras. He never really had to show off, he was always brilliant.
"You haven't met my Mum yet," Rose countered. There was a buzzing from her pocket. Rose took out a mobile and laughed. "Oh, you get to meet my Mum in a suit. Suit and tie that is. No Byron or Victorian stuff."
"How many times are you going to make me change my clothes?"
"Are you scared of doing laundry?" Rose smiled. She held her sleeve to him, it was splitting in two. "It smells like the last time you tried to do my laundry. You lost a bet and had no money to repay me. I don't think we can fix it this time," Rose paused. "Are you blushing Doctor?"
"Time Lords don't blush or do laundry apparently," he replied.
"I'll meet you at the TARDIS when I'm done with my paperwork. I have to start getting things in order," Rose said. She squeezed his hand and went through the revolving doors.
Rose Tyler sighed as she looked over her reports. She had to creatively explain how the dimension cannon had shorted out. She noted Dr. John Smith as a consultant on the project. In the conclusion of the report she stated that finding the Doctor was no longer plausible and the project should be abandoned. She then wrote an eloquent, heart wrenching resignation letter. She couldn't grin the whole time. Suddenly, the letters on her screen started to go all wiggly and her typing got slower. There was a buzzing in her ears that wouldn't go away.
She closed her eyes and tried to focus on the monitor. It wasn't her monitor anymore. It was covered in post-its with random circular script. She was in her lobby. "What, what is going on here?" Rose looked around to see blue eyes smiling at her.
"Hello there. You are in a safe place, aren't you?" His Northern accent made her heart skip a beat from the ache. Like the old photo she kept of him on her mobile.
"You're in my head again." Rose looked around. "Where are you?"
"I'm just calibrating the TARDIS so I can bring you through. I'm using you as a focal point. I was able to lock into you through the Eye of Harmony. Just like the future me with the crazy hair. Better you than that dandy that's walking around. Time is in flux enough"
"When are you?"
" I just gave Margaret to a new family, dropped you off at your Mum's, and dropped Jack off," he stopped abruptly. "Who bloody well knows where Jack is. I'll find him sooner or later. Now I'm in Cardiff waiting to pull you through the rift."
"Will I see you again," She went closer to him.
"I don't know," he replied darkly. "It's not just my timeline that has been changed. All these timelines converging on this Donna person is odd, seems to be a side note. I'm not at the right point to see," he trailed off shaking his head. "Never mind that now. I need you to concentrate." He came close to her and showed her an orange post-it with circular-script. "When you are ready, think of that as hard as you can. It's my coordinates."
"Right, why don't you tell yourself?"
"No, no, nope, don't think so. I don't get along well with myself. Anyway, future Rose Tyler I'd rather deal with you," he said with a smile. "Gotta run, someone is trying to wake you up. You owe me a drink if it's Ricky the idiot." The Ninth Doctor faded from her vision.
"Rose, Rose, wake up," A steady hand was shaking her shoulder.
"Oi, wha, what? I'm awake," she replied looking up at Mickey.
"Paperwork can't be that dull. Did you really find him? He's here? Pete didn't explain it all but he said that the Doctor was here. That I had to see it to believe it. Don't know what that means," Mickey said.
"Blimey, didn't think you'd be excited to see him," Rose countered.
"Yeah well, if you're happy then I'm happy. Are you?"
"Yup. I am. I am also done with paperwork. So I guess you're coming to Mum's tonight?" She leaned back in her chair. She glanced at the clock on her screen. "Just gotta file and send and," she stammered, as Mickey rolled his eyes. "What?"
"He really is back. You never get this," he paused. " Giddy," he continued and waved his arms in the air hopelessly. "Pete also says this is for good. You're leaving. You're leaving again but this time it's for good."
"I can't come back."
"Can you stay? Would you stay if you could? You've gone through so much since the Doctor left. You and me have seen so much. You're different. We were close again," Mickey trailed off.
"Yeah, best mates you and me. We are defenders of the Earth." She got up and wrapped her arms around him. "You know I can't," she whispered into his shoulder.
"Yeah I know. You made your choice the moment you ran into that bloody blue box," Mickey said with a chuckle. "We could of had a good life together."
"But there is so much more out there. There is so much more at stake. You wouldn't go back to before would you?" Rose could feel Mickey's head moving. She didn't know if it was a nod or shake. She didn't look up from his chest. "You could come with us. Go back home." Rose stepped away.
"You know that wouldn't work. I got a life here. A good life. Someone has to keep defending this place," Mickey laughed.
"You met a girl," Rose said dead pan.
" Yeah maybe I did, Her name is Martha. She's a doctor. I might have my own doctor," he teased. Rose stuck her tongue out. "Oh-ho, do you mean it's official? Has he said it back?" Rose was pale.
"We are what we are. It doesn't need defining."
"I'm gonna have a talk with him. Just you wait and see."
Rose just shook her head. "Oh right, I'd like to see that. It's alright. It's brilliant. It's going to be fantastic." She gathered up her papers and waved him out of the office. "Well partner, that is my last status report." She gave him a nudge and went down the hall. "See you at Mum's."
She cringed inwardly when she realized she owed the Doctor a drink.
The TARDIS hummed as her doors opened and Rose Tyler entered. "Doctor? Are you there?"
"Yes, yes I'm here." He appeared from under the console a band of wires hanging from his teeth. His silver sonic was grasped in one hand with some sort of strange manual in the other. He put the wires into a socket.
"How's it going?"
"It's going slowly. Reality and the timelines keep shifting. I got into an argument with my future self. Who will no longer speak to me. The one with the Northern accent as you would put it, and the leather. Did he contact you?"
Rose nodded. "Gave me some coordinates or something."
"Good." The Doctor folded down a page in the manual and set it down.
"We have to go to the mansion. It's better if I explain all this to my Mum. I'll just go find something to wear. You go too Mister," she added.
The Doctor was tapping his foot and looking at his watch. The timekeeper had decided it would rather spin in circles than tell time. His timeline was in flux. He slammed it in spite and shoved it in his vest pocket.
Rose cleared her throat as she entered the control room. "So whatcha think?" she asked shyly as she twirled her dress. She wore a dark pink halter that had an assortment of glitter; A lot of glitter, to be precise. Her blonde hair was held up by a fancy pin. The silver pin had elaborate roses that peaked through the curly locks.
"You do look beautiful," he admonished. "Should I get a top hat or something? Maybe a cane?"
"Are you trying to be the guy on the Monopoly box?"
"I just feel under dressed. Maybe a bow tie," he mused.
"I don't think you need all that yet," she replied as she straightened his tie."Ready mysterious stranger?" Rose linked her arm around his. His feet felt lighter with every step.
The ride to the mansion was uneventful. Rose answered minor details about her life in Pete's World. She gave monosyllabic responses when he asked what happened during her jumps with the dimension cannon. "Inside the house should be okay. You just hafta be Dr. John Smith for a little while. My Mum loves throwing these parties. She's a pro by now. Keeps vitex stock up. Or she claims it does. Oh, Tony is going to love you."
The Doctor was surprised by the size of the house, as Rose drove up the gravel path. "My Mum redid the whole thing. We didn't have much money back home. Now she has everything. More than everything really."
The Doctor was able to smoothly open the driver side door and help Rose up. "How do you walk in those?" He pointed to her heels.
"No running today. I hope."
It took less than a second for Rose to get in the door and Jackie Tyler came at her. From the look on the woman's face the Doctor wanted to run. Rose pushed him behind a vase of some sort.
"What is this? Snogging on a public bench? Rose Marion Tyler, what is all this going on? Do you really think you can hide him behind a plant?" Jackie said as she glared at the vase. " Don't think I can't see you! C'mon, I know it's you. Did it again didn't you?"
The Doctor stepped out smoothly as one could from behind an ornamental fern. Rose grabbed a leaf from his hair and he straightened his jacket. "Now there, I did nothing wrong," he said with a grin. "No!" he interjected as Jackie was about to speak. "There is no need to make a scene," he said in a soft tone. Jackie looked at the Doctor as if he had two heads.
"Did he hit his head or something?" she asked turning to Rose. "Does he need tea again? He's not yelling, rolling his eyes, or jumping about. Are you alright sweetheart?"
"No Mum." Rose smiled shaking her head. "He's just different. I'll explain upstairs, yeah? Doctor you just go and mingle."
"Lovely to meet you Mrs. Tyler," the Doctor said with a nod of the head.
"Did he just bow? Are you sure he didn't get hit on the head or some weird space disease?
Rose steered her Mum up towards the grand staircase and gave the Doctor a quick wink over her shoulder.
The Doctor straighten his shoulders, smoothed back his hair and went towards the bar. What would Rose drink? As he went through the room, there were a few familiar faces from the hallway of Torchwood. Timelines came to him easily in this body. Everywhere he went there was a glimpse of what a person could or would become. When he felt the urge he would nudge people in a certain direction. Change an answer on an exam, just small minute details. Apparently, some woman from Cheswick not turning left had derailed his whole future. He noncommittally ordered some kind of fruity drink from the menu for Rose. It looked pinkish.
"Well, well, well," a low voice said from behind him. "It's you isn't it? I saw the picture in the tabloids and couldn't believe it. I see you changed your face again."
The Doctor looked over to the younger man. The Time Lord inwardly sighed, he had a feeling this human was just starting on some practiced speech. Speeches were only truly good when they came from him. Him and a very small pool of very talented people. Tragically, the pool was a puddle. This man's timeline was connected to Rose's very closely. Even now they floated closely together throughout the fabric of reality. "Mickey, is it?" the Doctor frowned.
"Yes it's me. Doctor," he said shortly. "You can't even remember me? Mickey? Rickey the idiot?" Mickey took a gulp of something that smelt like whiskey.
"I apologize. You know me," he said with a sigh. "I have not met you yet." He raised the martini glass that contained the mysterious pink liquid. "I can gather that you are Mickey Smith. Hello, I'm the Doctor," he said taking a sip of the drink. It tasted like apples.
"Y'you're from the past then? Before the Doctor met Rose?" The Doctor nodded taking another sip from the drink. "And you're just snogging her on a park bench," he said with a sneer. Mickey crinkled his nose and rubbed it, scowling. "How long have you known her? She's known you for years. Searched for you for years."
The Doctor stood very still and was very quiet. He looked at the reflection of the man in his glass. Quietly he opened up his time senses to be ravaged. He wanted to see what Mickey Smith was, could be. Blood curdling screams chilled his blood as they leaked through as a sort of static. The Time War was still at his heels. He shut them out! He could hear the morose requiem of stars going super nova. But now there was Mickey Smith, he was a strong red line that encircled Rose's for a few years.
He didn't go into details. All he wanted to know was if he loved her. He felt the warmth connecting the two streams. Love was the stickiest glue. He refused to go deeper. There was flash of a new attachment; a new pink line was starting to encircle Mickey's timeline. Martha.
"Hello! Are you even listening to me?" Mickey was very close to the Doctor's Time Lord found his hot ethanol soaked breath on his cheek a nuisance.
"Just a moment if you please!" The Doctor backed away. "You love her don't you?" he asked softly. "There was a tiny hope that if you waited long enough, fought hard enough; she would love you again."
"Stop it!" Mickey murmured. "We're best mates, that's all."
"Love is strong. Strongest thing in the Universe, really. Someone could market it as a sort of glue, I imagine. It can tie timelines together for years; it matures them, enriches them. Aren't you both better from the point where you started?" The Doctor raised a brow and took another sip. "You have every right to come with us and return to your home. You can try to pursue Rose." Mickey eyes grew wider and he swirled the ice cubes in his drink. "But I believe both of us know my intentions." He pointed at a magazine on the bar. "I believe you have also witness my future selves intentions."
"I don't know Doctor,.what are your intentions?" Mickey said in a mock impersonation. "Snogging? Leaving her behind in London, On a spaceship, and in Norway?"
The Doctor narrowed his eyes. "If you haven't figured it out by now then there is no use in continuing this conversation," he said through his teeth. "Does it really need saying? Simple human words don't convey enough. Your language is so small and limited. All this curiosity,emotion, creativity, and everything and you are so limited by your semantics."
"What?"
"You human's are thick," the Doctor was cut off when Micky gave him a right hook. The Time Lord braced himself against the bar. His knuckles turned white as his fist gripped the fancy counter. "Call Martha back," he said and walked away.
Mickey reached in his pocket and saw he had a new voice message. Martha Jones' photo pleasantly smiled up at him from the screen. He looked up and the Doctor was gone.
"What did you do?" Rose asked as she saw the Doctor's bruising eye.
"It'll be gone by morning. It's just a minor flesh wound." He held a glass of ice cubes to his cheekbone and leaned back in a chair. "Some of your compatriots found my explanation quite thrilling."
"Mickey says it was a misunderstanding. I don't know. He was on the phone and didn't want to talk about it."
"Are you gonna talk about it?"
"I think both parties made their view on the subject matter clear." He looked out the doorway to the thinning crowd. "How did your conversation go?"
"She wants a word with you after the party."
"A word? Haven't done much of that. Is that normal?" Rose answered with a grin. "She doesn't think you're diseased anymore."
"Now that's a silver lining," he replied. "There are some awful things you can catch out there." He slouched further back into the chair.
"It can't be that bad." Rose leaned against the arm of the chair. The Doctor placed a cool hand on her leg.
"Oh, this?" He gestured to the glass. "No. I had this awful shot of something that tasted like a pear. Terrible stuff. I'm trying to counteract the..." the Doctor was cut off as Rose kissed the top of his head. She handed him a glass full of more pink stuff. He gingerly took a sip and toasted her.
"Strawberry-banana," they said in unison.
"Better?" she asked. Somehow she had ended up in his lap. "I had to explain to my Mum why I was," she ended in a sigh. " Why I was with a man I've only known about three days. It took some explaining to convince her that you were the same man. Time travel and dimension hopping tend to complicate things. I had to point out she was married to an alternate version of her dead husband. That kind of made her go quiet. So good luck!" Rose said brightly. The Doctor took a gulp from her glass. "Blimey, does that stuff even work on you?"
"Sometimes out of necessity. But no superior Time Lord physiology, I have enzymes that battle the ethanol."
"Well, this human is going to drink up." She reclaimed her glass slapped his leg a few times and went towards the bar. "It's my going away party."
A few hours and shots later, Rose found the Doctor entering the front door. She leaned against the rail of the staircase and smiled. "Where'd you go off to?"
"I took a car to the TARDIS. I needed to attend to some details about our trip." He shrugged out of his suit jacket. "Is the party over?"
"Yup! My Mum is in bed. So...you're safe for tonight," she said with a wobble.
"I'm sorry I have to do this," the Doctor said with a sigh. "You're going to need all your faculties." She cringed at the yellow bottle he pulled from his pocket.
"Oi, where did that come from? Eww, no. Not the yellow stuff. I had it once." She cringed and her face morphed into a horrified grimace.
"Well then, you know what to expect. It will cancel out all the toxins in your system. Including the alcohol." She pouted and took the bottle. It was gone in one gulp.
"Woah! Talk about a head rush," Rose said. "I guess I got a little carried away. It was just nice to be at home." The Doctor scowled defining the fine lines around his features. "To be normal. I don't know. Like it was one last hurrah." The Doctor took her hand and bowed his head. "It's like there is a storm coming all of a sudden."
"You have no idea," he whispered into her hair. "Come on, off to bed. Sleep it all off," the Doctor said in a lighter tone. "No, don't. Just leave it for now." He held up his hand as Rose tried to question him. "Do you trust me?"
She nodded.
"Off to bed. For now, just off to bed and leave it at that."