This Chapter was hard for me to write. This episode of Doctor Who makes me cry every freaking time I watch it or even think about it. I am not completely satisfied with it but I've rewrote it again and again and this is what keeps coming out. So be it. Please let me know what you think.
I don't own Doctor Who. If I owned it the whole episode would be a prank. The Doctor would get in the TARDIS and then disappear only to reappear a moment later with Ashton Kutcher, telling Rose she got Punk'd. After she finished beating him, they would get back into the TARDIS, living happily ever after. The END
Chapter 7
Doctor
"I should have sat down" he thought.
The first thing that he knew was that there were birds somewhere nearby. Rather loud sea birds. He wasn't fond of sea birds. They reminded him of the sea. The sea reminded him of beaches. He really didn't like beaches. Not since, well not since leaving Rose on one. Out of habit as soon as he thought her name he tried to push it down. It wasn't safe to think about Rose.
"Hey, how long are you just going to stand around with your eyes closed?" a harsh northern accent asked him.
Ten opened his eyes in surprise, blinking rapidly at the bright light. He was on a beach. On that beach. Suddenly everything came back to him in a rush. Rose, he was going to see Rose.
He looked around and saw his former self looking at him like he was a loon, perhaps he was, he thought with a grin.
"I must have lost some IQ points when I regenerated into you" snapped Nine
"Could be old boy, but pretty aren't I"
Nine just rolled his eyes and pointed down the beach at the group of people.
"Looks like we overshot by a bit, I suggest that we go down there and see what we can do."
Ten's smile faded when he realized just when he was. He started running, he wanted to stop himself from doing the stupidest thing he could ever do and make things right.
Nine followed Ten's running form. He thought about pointing out some facts to his pretty boy self but decided to let him figure it out for himself. He deserved a little pain.
Ten ran shouting down the beach. No one looked his way. He ran right up to himself and starting shouting into his face.
"No, don't do it you stupid prat. Tell her the truth, tell her how you feel you idiot. Damm it look at me"
"Don't think he can hear you, pretty boy, don't think any of them can hear us." Nine said dryly.
Ten turned and looked hopelessly at Nine when, he caught sight of Rose. His whole being stilled and tears came. He took a step and then another towards his girl. It had been so long since he had seen her, he had almost forgotten how she glowed, even with tears running down her face, she was the most beautiful being in all of time. He reached out to wipe the tears that were falling from her eyes only to pass though her body.
Ten tried again only to have the same thing happen. He was so close but so far. Like that day he had burned up a sun for her, only worse because he knew that he could have had everything but he had been the fool. Now he wanted to hit himself.
He stood next to Rose unable to comfort her as she listened to the fool in front of her.
"A bit pretentious weren't you?" Nine asked sneeringly
"I thought I was being noble" Ten said with a bitter laugh "Noble Time Lord, pretending at being self sacrificing, giving up what he wants the most for her sake, but really he is just terrified of loving and being loved."
"Please don't leave me!"
Ten looked at Rose, confusion on his face, he didn't remember her saying that.
"Please don't, don't leave me please don't leave me. I love you. Please Doctor"
Nine and Ten looked at each other and then at Rose.
They realized at the same moment that they were hearing Rose's thoughts rather than her words.
They both reached out with their minds and they were suddenly sucked into hers.
Rose's mind was a chaotic mess, she was falling apart, but trying so hard to hold herself together.
In the mist of the chaos, they saw the gold pulse of the TARDIS's link with Rose.
"My dear Thief, you have come." TARDIS hummed to them, "I was beginning to wonder if I had miscalculated time."
"We are here but what are we supposed to do? They don't know we are here, I can't stop me from leaving her." Ten said clearly frustrated.
"This timeline must be left alone. She has her own destiny to fulfill here. She has EVENTS that she must set in motion for this universe. You are here to observe. To understand and help her"
"How?" Nine asked
"That is for you to figure out. You must all work together. You must learn to listen, Thief, and you must learn to be open. You have hidden too long behind your intellect and your fear. You can hear her thoughts, listen to them. Rose needs you to open yourself to her. She will not survive on half measures"
Both Doctors were nervous. Exposing their hearts was terrifying, what if Rose saw what they were and rejected them? Darkness and Death followed them, how could someone like Rose love that.
"THIEF!" the voice of the TARDIS grew cold and angry. "Do you think so little of my Wolf? Open your mind and see this moment from her eyes."
They suddenly could hear clearly hear Rose's thoughts but worse yet they could feel her pain.
Her soul was shattering, her heart was breaking, the moment she had been dreading was at hand. Sarah Jane had warned her that this moment would come.
"I know you love him Rose. I know the signs, I loved him once too" she had said her eye misty with memories,
"But a day will come when he will leave you behind. He will do it because he can't face seeing you age and die. Rose, if you love him, if you really love him, let him go. Don't beg him to stay. Don't make it harder on him then it has to be. He carries so much guilt already, don't add more. Promise me Rose, you will let him go."
The TARDIS spoke, "My Wolf put her own hurt aside. She will let you go this day, letting you believe that she is fine, that she will be happy with the human clone you leave her with. All in order to spare you as much pain as she can."
"What were the words you were going to say to me that time?" she asked the noble idiot.
"Please, tell me you love me. Please at least give me that" her heart begged him.
Nine screamed at idiot, "tell her, tell her you stupid man, tell her she is your whole life. That she is the reason you started living again after being dead for so long. Tell her you love her"
"Does it need saying?" the noble idiot said.
"Yes, my Doctor it does need to be said" her broken heart replied
"I love you Rose Tyler."
"Same voice wrong man. For you my Doctor."
The Doctors felt her intention when she kissed the metacrisis Doctor.
Ten remembered the jealousy that had made it easier to turn away and walk into the TARDIS and close the door without looking back. He now realized she had done it on purpose.
"Do not take my Wolf's love lightly, Thief. Her love is stronger than your past. She is not the coward here. Choose Thief, stay and give everything, or leave now. Your choice"
Nine spoke first, "I will stay, for my Rose, I will stay"
Ten, his voice cracking with emotion said "I love her, I will do anything to tell her so."
"So be it, my dear Thief. Take care of her and good luck." TARDIS whispered before her voice was gone.
Rose heard the door of the TARDIS close and she pulled away from the clone and ran towards it.
"No, no. please Doctor, my Doctor don't leave me" her mind screamed.
Ten and Nine felt her heart shudder in her chest as the TARDIS slowly disappeared. They felt thread that connected her to the TARDIS stretch and grow thin.
Rose stood there in the cold wind, shattered in mind and spirit, abandoned by the man she loved. Ten and Nine stood next to her humbled and awed. They could feel her grief and pain, but they could also feel the love she was sending him, her hope that he would be safe, be happy, and find peace.
The Metacrisis Doctor walked over and stood beside her. "Rose, I know that you are hurting and confused but what I sad to you is true. I love you Rose Tyler"
Rose looked at him, pain etched on every line of her face.
"I am him, I am the part of him that can love you. I have all his memories and all his love for you. If you let me, I can love you the way you deserve to be loved. I know it won't be easy for you but I am not going anywhere, I will never leave you behind. I will be your forever."
Rose heard the voice she loved, coming out of the face she had grown to love, saying words she had wanted to hear since she had asked for a dance in cellar, so many rights, but one great wrong.
"Name, you need name" Rose stuttered, trying to control her tears
"What about John?" he asked "We have used that before, haven't we?" smiling gently at Rose.
"Yes, we have. John it is."
"Give me a chance Rose" John said, holding out his hand to her, "he would want you to."
Rose looked at the familiar hand outstretched in front of her. She remembered the Doctor asking her to help him, John, help John, his last mission for her.
"For you my Doctor" Nine and Ten heard her soul say as she took John's hand and smiled weakly at him.
John gave her hand a squeeze and with quick grin he pulled her down the beach back towards the others. As he walked in front of her, he spoke softly but fiercely under his breath "I'll take care of her now, you've done enough damage".
The Doctors realized that he was speaking to them. He knew they were there!
"Can you see us?" Ten started to ask but his words were cut off as the world began to spin faster and he and Nine were tossed into time.
