With Part One complete, this begins Part Two: Magic.

-^^-W-^^-

"Rose, wake up!"

She tried to ignore him. Bed was very comfortable. Maybe he would leave her alone for a little while longer.

"Rooose. I know you're awake. Wakey, wakey, wakey!"

"Rrrrrph. How long did you let me sleep this time?" Rose mumbled.

"Exactly eight hours. Any less and I knew you'd be upset with me, and I don't want you to be upset with me, because it would be no good for you to be upset when I have something amazing to show you! I was so excited, but you hadn't been asleep for eight hours yet, so I even went outside so I wouldn't make too much noise and wake you accidentally, but now it's been eight hours, so rise and shine! C'mon, look, look, look!"

Rose wanted to argue the fact that "exactly eight hours" didn't necessarily mean she was ready to wake up, but he was obviously excited about something. It wasn't the romantic way to start the day she was hoping for, either. This had better be good, she thought. Rose cracked an eye open to see the Doctor fully dressed and sat on a chair facing the bedside table. He was leaning forward, the flickering glow on his face coming from the candle in front of him. He looked at her expectantly, and after a moment he gestured at the candle, as if the fact that it was in front of her explained everything.

"It's a candle."

The Doctor grinned at her, and his tone might as well have been presenting to her one of the Universe's great secrets. "I lit it."

Rose stared dully at the Doctor for a moment, realising she probably wasn't understanding the importance of what he meant, but he wasn't doing anything to clarify either. "Congratulations on finding yourself a matchstick."

"No, no, no, like this, watch!" A quick whoosh of air blew the candle out, and a thin wisp of black smoke trailed upwards between the Doctor's cupped hands. "So far the wick has to be in the exact center for it to work..."

Suddenly, a candle flame brightened between his hands, as if the wick had simply lit itself. The Doctor drew his hands away, the motion causing the flame to dance as it cast across his broadly-grinning face.

Rose blinked. She then blinked again and propped herself up on her elbows. "How did you do that?"

"Aether! Or rather, I controlled the Aether inside of me. Specifically, I excited the oxygen molecules until they ignited. Aether makes it so simple, I can't believe I didn't see it before!"

When Rose stared at him now, it was in wonder bordering on the edge of disbelief. "You...you used magic?"

"Pretty much, yeah," he replied. "Granted, it's just a candle, but it's a start." The Doctor shifted his attention from the candle to Rose excitedly. "You try it!"

Rose was now fully awake. "Wha'?"

"C'mon!" He blew out the candle again and held out his hands. "I'll show you how I did it, give me your hands."

She shook her head and laughed incredulously. "I can't do that! I don't have mental abilities like you do."

The Doctor stared at Rose like she had sprouted a second head. "Rose, you practically rendered me unconscious last night with your 'mental abilities'."

His words caused a thrill to shoot through Rose. She considered the Doctor the strongest and the most capable man she had ever met, certainly the most self-sufficient and master of hiding his feelings. The way he looked at her now in awe with the corners of his mouth slightly upturned and to hear such a confession made freely from him made Rose feel like she could do anything. He believed in her.

"Besides, while your growing telepathic ability indicates an overall psychic strength, it's also about simple understanding. All of these people here, they're human like you, too. You don't have to be a Daeva to manipulate Aether, remember?

Rose bit her lip, thinking on his words. She thought about the night before, the way she had been able to make the Doctor feel. The surprise and elation she had felt from him was as if he had never felt it before, and the fact that she could do that for him was incredibly satisfying. It was also terrifying, because Rose dreaded to think what would happen to him if something were to happen to her. Just to be able to experience intimacy the way the Doctor could with her, a connection of minds Rose assumed other human beings never could, was an opportunity she couldn't imagine being without now.

"Have you ever done what we did last night ever before?" Rose asked. "I mean, surely with someone else, you've lived so long, I can't imagine you not..." she trailed off, now regretting that she asked the question because she probably didn't want to know the answer.

The Doctor gazed at her tenderly. "Nothing like that. I've had...experiences, sure." He brushed the side of her head with his fingertips, his eyebrows drawing together and his voice heartfelt. "But Rose, you've filled a void in my hearts I hadn't even known I had been desperately searching for, for literally ages." He attempted to recover his voice after it cracked and cast his eyes downward. "A void in my mind I wasn't sure at first you would be able to fill, but my hearts insisted you would."

Rose blinked rapidly, trying to keep her eyes from releasing their tears. The closer they became, the more the Doctor opened up to her about his feelings. It made sense since she had physically felt his emotions as he projected them through her mind, but until very recently, he had been so guarded and hard to read.

He abruptly cleared his throat, shaking himself. "Anyway!" he exclaimed brightly. "You're doing magic. Now. C'mere."

Deciding to at least indulge him, Rose began to shift, then stopped. "Can you find my top?"

The Doctor looked down and snatched something off the floor near his chair and handed it to her with a lopsided grin. Rose pinned him with her eyes, challenging him to say something prideful and see where it got him, but he stayed quiet. Quickly slipping the shirt over her head, she sat up properly near the edge of the bed so she could reach her hands towards the candle.

"Just here," the Doctor instructed, taking her hands and placing them gently in position around the unlit wick. "At least when I've done it, the wick has to be exactly centered between my hands. Now," he began softly as his eyes slipped closed, "close your eyes and concentrate. Do you feel the Aether inside of you?"

Rose frowned with her eyes closed. "No."

There was a pause. "Really? Right, well...okay, I know. When we landed here yesterday and you woke up, did you feel differently?"

"I felt...energised, full of life and potential..."

"That will work. I know what you're talking about, I felt the same when I let it in. Okay, concentrate on that feeling, that difference. That's your link."

Rose remembered back to how she first felt upon waking up in the TARDIS, her first experience on Atreia. She relived that exuberance, centering her thoughts on that feeling alone. "Okay, I've got it."

"Now, shift that feeling to your hands."

"How do I do that?"

"Just...imagine it. I dunno." He was quiet a moment as Rose did her best to follow the Doctor's instructions. "Ooh, there you go! I feel it in your hands, good! Now do the same thing, but out from your hands. Think of it as passing between your hands, if that helps."

Rose concentrated while the Doctor remained silent. Several minutes passed, Rose occasionally opening an eye to check if anything had happened, but there was nothing. "I told you I can't do it."

"Hm."

Another moment passed, and suddenly Rose was caught off guard by the presence of the Doctor's mind within hers, even though his fingers weren't near her temple as was always done before. She gasped and opened her eyes to look at him. His eyes were closed, but they opened to meet hers. He grinned at her.

"How...you're not...I mean, you're touching my hands, but..."

"Not your head? I know! Isn't it brilliant? I noticed it last night before we slept."

"So...it's stronger now?"

"Seems to be. Makes me wonder just how strong it could get with practice. Okay so, anyway, try again and let me feel what you do."

Rose closed her eyes and tried again. She could feel the Doctor's presence following her every move. Both this sensation and trying to manipulate Aether was a lot to handle at once, and Rose felt completely out of her depth. Finally, the Doctor moved her hands away, and she opened her eyes.

"Don't get frustrated," he told her. "I can tell you're doing everything the way I did, but for some reason it's still not working. But don't worry, we'll try again later, okay?"

Rose sighed dejectedly, more concerned about having let him down than anything. She couldn't tell for sure, but she imagined he was trying to hide his disappointment. "Or never."

"I'm sure you've almost got it. Don't beat yourself up. Besides, it's just a candle."

She could tell he was just trying to make her feel better, so she smiled her thanks. "So, what's the plan now?"

The Doctor stood and walked towards the window. "I'd like to go by the Library again and see if I can borrow one of those books about magic, now that I have more of an understanding of it."

Rose inwardly sighed. She had nothing against learning more about this place, but libraries had never been her thing, not for the books, anyway. She much preferred to go out amongst the people, learning from what she could see.

"Just a quick trip, yeah? Then we go get some breakfast and see the sights?"

He smiled warmly at her. "Definitely, sounds like a plan." He gestured for her to hurry up. "Now, up you get!"

Rose grinned, excited about the day ahead and what wonders it would bring. She would often wake up sleepy, never having been a morning person, but the promise of running with the Doctor was all she needed to get herself going in the morning.

Rising from the bed, the Doctor's eyes were immediately drawn towards her bare hips and legs. She crouched down to collect the rest of her clothing. "I'll just be a minute in the loo getting dressed."

"Can I watch?"

With her bundle of clothes, Rose gave him a mock-glare over her shoulder as she moved towards the inner doorway. "Git."

The last image Rose beheld as she closed the door behind her was that of the Doctor's silly smile and failed attempt to hide his amusement.

-^^-W-^^-

The Doctor had caught Rose just behind the door as he drew her into his arms in a tender good-morning kiss. After several minutes had passed and it was clear that if they didn't leave now they wouldn't get any exploring done, they managed to part to the point of holding hands as they checked out of the Inn. They chatted idly across the Sky Canal on the way to the Library, but when they began down Divine Road, Rose stopped dead in her tracks at a familiar sight parked along the wall outside the entrance to the Library of the Sages.

"The TARDIS!" she exclaimed.

The Doctor was grinning, as if unveiling a surprise. "Thought you'd like her a bit closer to home."

She turned to him with wide eyes. "You went all the way back to Eltnen?"

"I did. It's not that far, really. And before you ask, all it took was a pleasant conversation with the teleporter for him to offer me a complimentary ride."

"So...you just, what, left in the middle of the night?"

The Doctor frowned defensively, and he raised a hand to scratch at the back of his head. "I told you, I went out so you could sleep! I was excited and would have woken you up otherwise." The Doctor shoved his hands in his pockets. "Thought you'd be thanking me."

"You said 'out' but I thought you meant on the plaza or something. So you actually flew the TARDIS here, while I was sleeping. What if you got it wrong again and came back a year later?" Rose's voice had escalated. "I would have been stranded here, probably getting a job as a rubbish cook or something!"

"I wouldn't do that to you!" the Doctor retorted, his own voice rising.

"You left me!"

"I didn't!" he insisted.

Rose stared at the Doctor, very hurt, and surprised at how quickly she could feel betrayed by him. Remorse was clear on his face, and she saw that the Doctor was horrified that he had hurt her. She wanted to ask why he hadn't told her earlier that he had actually taken off in the TARDIS, but that was just the thing. It was nothing to him to simply park the TARDIS closer, but to Rose, he had essentially left the planet.

"I thought you'd be happy," the Doctor said miserably.

Rose sighed deeply and hugged him. "I'm sorry, I just...I know. I get why you did it, I do. Just...don't leave again without me?"

"I didn't leave, Rose—"

"Please. Unless it's life or death." I need to know if it could be the last time I'll see you, she thought.

The Doctor squeezed Rose tighter as he thought on her words. "I won't. I promise."

Rose drew away after a moment, determined to lighten the mood. She forced a smile up at him and glanced again at the TARDIS. "So. You've chosen the Library as home base, then? You plan on spending a lot of time here?"

The Doctor took in a cleansing breath and removed his hands from his pockets, clearly also eager to move on. "Oh, I don't know. So far, this seems to be the best source of information, and since I don't know exactly why we're supposed to be here, until I find out, this sort of makes sense. I also didn't want you to feel like you had to pay our way to travel. So...yes?"

Rose's smile was now genuine, and he gratefully smiled back at her. The pair descended the stairs, the sounds of morning birds replaced by the cavernous and muted sounds of the Library of the Sages.

"Doctor, I was hoping you would return today," Fuchsia greeted them immediately.

"Oh? Well, that's nice," the Doctor replied as he and Rose entered. "Good to see you again, too."

"Clio had another vision in the night. She sent a messenger not long ago to find you."

The Doctor's interest was instantly piqued. "Oh? What did she see?"

Fuchsia clasped her hands in front of her. "She says you're to travel to Verteron."

The Doctor waited a moment for her to continue. "That's it? Go to Verteron?"

Fuchsia nodded. "You are meant to go there, yes."

He frowned at her. "So...in her vision, she just saw us going to Verteron."

The woman spread her hands. "I don't know what Clio saw, as such. I'm merely a messenger myself in this."

"Right, of course you are," the Doctor said in way of apology. "Well, thank you. Actually, the reason I came was to ask you—would it be all right if I borrowed a book for a little while?"

Fuchsia smiled, her young appearance betraying her knowledge of centuries. "Depends on the book."

The Doctor was moving. "Let me find it. Be right back."

Rose waited for him as he ran off into the back of the room. She smiled at Fuchsia, who smiled politely back. Rose noticed the Doctor hadn't mentioned to Fuchsia that he was trying to learn more about magic, and considering how excited he was about it, she wondered if he was worried about letting on that he had just now discovered how to use it. Rose was excited for him, too, but she didn't see why he would be shy about it. He probably just hadn't gotten around to telling Fuchsia yet. Rose had just learned basic cooking from Hestia, and magic was a way of life for these people, so surely they came by adult students often. Rose then wondered if Fuchsia would actually be able to help the Doctor better if she knew more details.

She pointed after the Doctor, smiling conversationally. "He's just learning how to use fire."

Fuchsia's eyebrows went up. "Oh?"

"Yeah. He just lit a candle this morning. D'you think that's a good start?"

The woman frowned and clarified, "You mean with magic?"

Rose nodded. "Well, yeah."

Fuchsia turned to look towards the Doctor at the far end. "Is that what he's looking for now? A tome on beginner spells?"

Rose crossed her arms, feeling strange that the topic could actually be the stuff of a serious conversation. "I think so, yeah."

Fuchsia turned to look towards the entrance in thought, then abruptly strode towards another wall of books, her long white dress swishing around her feet. Rose waited a moment before following, curious as to what she had prompted Fuchsia to do. As she drew closer, she noticed the books in this section were much newer-looking than those the Doctor and she had been reading yesterday. Fuchsia removed a book, glanced at its cover, then turned towards the Doctor and took note of the book he held in his hand. She then nodded.

"You're welcome to study that book here all you like, but I think you'll find this one helpful." Fuchsia presented the book she held. "And you may keep it." The Doctor looked to Fuchsia in surprise, then to Rose. Rose bit her lip but didn't say anything, so he traded Fuchsia books and opened the newer one to look inside as Fuchsia continued. "These are normally supplied by Mage Trainers, but we have a few copies here. Clio was quite insistent in delivering you her message, so you must be on important business for her. This will no doubt assist you along the way."

The Doctor grinned down at the pages and beamed at Fuchsia enthusiastically. "Thank you. Really, thank you very much!" Rose grinned too, happy to be a part in making him smile so much.

They left the Library of the Sages, the Doctor walking with his glasses perched on his nose and his eyes peering at his book. Rose took a closer look at his new possession, noting the blue cover with brown trim all the way around the edges and binding. There was a red interlocking symbol in the center of both front and back covers, and the front read, "Spellbook for Training."

"Is that what you were looking for?" Rose asked.

"I think so," the Doctor replied, looking to her with a little smile that crinkled the corners of his eyes. "Thank you."

Rose smiled back, happy he had understood what she had done. "You're welcome." She looked ahead of them, noting the Doctor had automatically steered them down the road towards the TARDIS. "So, we're using the TARDIS, then?"

The Doctor snapped his book shut and looked to his ship. "Make an attempt to, yes. That's partly why I brought her here. I don't know how you'll handle a quick trip across distance, but we won't know until we try."

Rose thought about this, wondering if she should worry. She didn't know enough about Time travel to know what it would do to her, but she trusted the Doctor did, and she knew he wouldn't do anything he thought could harm her. "You have Aether now, too. Did it do anything to you?"

"Soon as I put her shields up, it slowly began to fade, but when I landed I was instantly infused with it again. I think it's safe, and I'd like to get some scans of you in the process to know more about what we're dealing with."

Rose nodded as the Doctor retrieved the TARDIS key and opened the door. She welcomed the familiar sight of the console room, breathing a sigh of relief to be "home" while remaining wary and alert to anything that might feel different to help the Doctor get some answers.

-^^-W-^^-

"So we're headed for that place Fuchsia mentioned, yeah? Where Clio said to go."

"Verteron, yes," the Doctor affirmed as he worked at the console.

Rose trailed a hand along the rim of the console as she circled it slowly. "I take it you know how to get there."

"I found a map last night on my wander, actually. I recognised Verteron as the location of the first Fortress built to defend its Abyss Gate." The Doctor squinted at the monitor. "And I believe...that hub of activity there is where we want to go."

Rose made her way around to the monitor to look, but the Doctor had set his book down and was already circling around ahead of her, flipping levers and pressing buttons in a mad dance. As the Time Rotor began to pump and the TARDIS launched into flight, Rose hung on before she was thrown to the floor. She immediately began to feel a draining sensation. It wasn't really a physical weakness, but there was definitely a sensation of loss. When the TARDIS landed shortly with a shudder, the feeling faded, and Rose told the Doctor what she had felt.

He nodded in acknowledgment. "That's good. Basically what I felt. No noticeable detrimental effects."

Rose looked hopeful. "Does that mean I can leave?"

"It means a few seconds with a low level of Aether doesn't hurt you." The Doctor looked up from the console to regard her seriously. "Right now, that's all we can tell."

Rose nodded, resigning herself to accept that much would have to remain unknown.

"We're there! C'mon, let's go check out Verteron Citadel."

Rose followed him towards the doors. "We're still in, um...the southern half, right?"

"Elysea, yes. Actually, Verteron is between Sanctum and Eltnen on the map." The Doctor opened the door, and with a smile, let Rose exit first.

The Doctor had been right about their destination being a hub of activity. The first thing Rose noticed was the people rushing along in all directions. The second thing she was happy to note was that unlike the last time she had exited the TARDIS, this time they were definitely on the ground.

Rose could see a strip of cobblestone road at the lowest level, just under the sort of crooked, cracked stone tile platform the TARDIS had landed on. Across the pathway, a wall of a higher tier was broken by a stairway leading up. Other tiers, seemingly both randomly higher and lower, could be seen beyond it.

The TARDIS had landed in a quiet sort of alley, to the side of a building to the left. A high wall stood behind them and to the right, not nearly to the scale of Sanctum's, which Rose had come to recognise as an outer wall of defence. The buildings had stone brick foundations with wooden braces, reminding Rose of old English architecture, but the tall round archways and columns gave it the Roman and Greek feel she had so far found common in Elysea.

She stepped out towards the cobblestone square and could now clearly see the half dozen buildings that rimmed the outer wall of the Citadel and faced inward, like a little village. Rose looked up. From the top of the wall all around them, eight stone spokes that looked impossibly heavy met in the middle to form a dome, open air between the spokes. Floating over the center of the dome was a great chunk of rock that reminded Rose a lot of Eltnen Fortress. From an indentation in the center of the rock, a brilliant blue green light shone forth.

"The Abyss Gate," the Doctor murmured in awe.

Rose stared at it, but asked, "That light? How do you know it's a gate?"

"I recognise it. Eltnen Fortress is built on top of its Abyss Gate."

She finally looked at him. "You went under the Fortress?"

He was still admiring the Abyss Gate above. "Yes. I had to take the lift back up after I...well, fell."

Rose paused, making sure she heard him right. "You what?"

The Doctor made an unhappy face, massaging the back of his neck as if in discomfort. "Raegis sort of...saved my life." He looked at her.

Her eyes were wide. "You fell. Off Eltnen Fortress."

He nodded. "How we met, yeah."

"And you didn't think to tell me."

His eyes bugged. "Rose, I was more concerned with your life at the time."

Rose laughed, looking back up at the light above. "I suppose that's meant to sound sweet." All Rose could think about was that the Doctor had almost died while she was asleep, just like he had essentially left her while she was asleep. Then she remembered the reason she had been unconscious upon arrival on Atreia in the first place, and from his perspective, he was right.

Swallowing her frustration with this mad, impossible and brilliant man, Rose wrapped an arm around him in a sideways hug. "Don't die on me, okay?"

The Doctor offered her a tight smile, clearly dejected that he had upset her again. "Oh, Rose." He squeezed her to his side. "I worry more about you than me."

"I know. Stop it."

"No."