I think you should all know I was listening to the Inception soundtrack while writing this. Damn epic, it was. So it's partially to blame for the resulting chapter.

I own nothing here!

"Right...Of course! Obviously." Said the other Doctor, smiling and laughing it off. Rose glanced up at the original.

"You ready?"

The Doctor watched himself somewhat guiltily, and nodded. They walked together towards the stairs. Amy hurried after them, whispering quickly in the Doctor's ear.

"Good luck."

"Luck?" Repeated the Time Lord, alarmed, as they headed away from the bemused hallway of people.

It was as they rounded the corner and arrived in the top corridor when the situation really seemed to hit the Doctor. He was alone with Rose, finally. He had found her, and they were spending time together. It was a strange, but lovely feeling.

"This side of the house is mine and the Doctors." Rose began, letting go of her companions arm so that she could gesture around them. "We just left the decoratin' to mum and dad. I doubt they'd let the Doctor loose with a paint brush anyway."

"I can paint!" The Doctor shot back, slightly offended. Rose just laughed and patted his arm.

She showed him the bathroom, which was perfectly clean and extremely large, and she showed him the spare bedroom, which was decorated in a TARDIS blue wallpaper. The Doctor very much liked it, and even though Rose had told him her parents had done the decorating, he could definitely see his own ideas in there. It was comforting, somehow.

"Here's the study. I don't go in there, as you can imagine." Rose announced as they moved to the next door, pushing the door open.

The Doctor peeked in, and saw that it looked quite like his study in the TARDIS. All large arm chairs and mahogany furniture with clocks and amusing items on the desks. A globe with alterations, marbles, water features. He wandered in, glancing over the scribbles and drawings on pages which lay on the desk. The crack. The crooked smile donned each page, with annotations and notes by them. It seemed the metacrisis was working hard on the mystery. The Doctor made a note to speak to him about it later. Rose, meanwhile, had grown bored, and was dragging the Time Lord from the room.

They moved to the other side of the stairs where Rose pointed out little Tony's room, which was covered in posters of space, the ceiling near disappearing under an army of stick on glow in the dark stars. The Doctor smiled fondly, and thought of what an influence Rose and the metacrisis must have been having upon the five year old. He considered it important for children to know about the universe.

They looked at a play room and a room full of clutter, and finally it was time to descend the steps into the lower regions of the house. The Doctor paused at the top of the stairs however, and looked around curiously at one door they had missed off.

"What about that room?" He asked, gesturing to it. Rose's gaze fell upon the door, and she answered carefully and somewhat shamefully.

"That's...That's our room."

The Doctor continued to stare at the closed door.
"Oh." For some reason the use of the word 'our', had done strange things to the Doctor. It had triggered not only jealously, but longing, longing for it to be him she was talking about. Rose seemed to have noticed this, and she reluctantly spoke.

"I can show you if you want."
"No." Answered the Doctor, a little sharply. "No, that...That's alright."

"It's fine." Said Rose with a nervous giggle. "Come on." She took his hand and pulled him over to the door.

The room was big and well lit. There were large windows running the length of, and making up the back wall, and a small balcony looked out over the grounds of the house. A double bed sat just to the left, with TARDIS blue sheets. A dressing table was opposite, with brushes and perfumes and the obvious, for the Doctors tenth incarnation- hair gel- and in frames on one of the bedside tables were pictures of the Doctor and Rose; but the Doctor noticed they were not of the metacrisis, but him, and on the other table were more scribbles and notes on the crack, as well as a prototype sonic screwdriver and a framed photo of Albert Einstein. He knew which side was which, and one side worried him.

Rose was opening the one door that led out onto the balcony, and when the Doctor turned she had already gone outside, and was beckoning for him to follow her. He did, with one last glance at those old pictures of himself on her bedside table, and joined her out in the chill air. She leant against the railings of the balcony itself and he stood straight, looking out over the greenery. It really was very beautiful, but he knew it wasn't nearly as much as her.

He could feel her eyes upon him, and he swallowed, knowing that this moment had been coming ever since he and Amy had defied the laws of the universe.

"It's funny standing here with you." Rose said quietly, and the Doctor replied in a monotone.

"I know."

"I mean, I always stand here, with him. But it's not much like standing here with you." She paused. "Not now you've changed anyway."

He heard her shift so that she was closer to him, and he tensed, even though he hadn't wanted to.

"Look at you." She whispered, and he turned, unable to help himself. "You're younger than ever." She ran one hand through his hair, running her fingers back and forth. The Doctor cleared his throat.

"Rose, I don't think that-"
"Shutup. You left me with a double, let me have a moment with the real thing." She pulled her hands away and pressed them to his back, enveloping him within her arms and sighing. The Doctor wasn't entirely sure what his other self would think about this. He imagined he would be hurt, but not angry. Anyway, it was only a hug. It didn't matter, and he had missed her so much...His other self would appreciate that.

He held her too, squeezing her tightly. He closed his eyes, screwed them shut, and he savoured the moment, their proper reunion. She smelt the same and she felt the same, and he ignored everything that was wrong with coming here for just that moment in time, and enjoyed being with her.

Then her body began to shudder, and it was only after opening his eyes and listening intently, that the Doctor realised she was crying. Silently, tears streamed down her face and soaked the tweed of his jacket. All he could do was hold her close, and hope that she wouldn't fall apart in his arms.

"I'm sorry." Was what he found himself saying; and he realised there really was nothing else he could say. "I'm sorry."

She sniffed, and she pulled away, wiping the tears from her eyes, mascara smeared all over the back of her hand.

"What're you sorry about?" She sniffed, and a smile appeared despite the situation. "You came back."

The Doctor nodded his head, but again he didn't say anything. He felt awful. Already he was ruining her life again. "I'm happy though." She said as an afterthought, as if it were something she should have said, but forgot to. "As it stands, my life finally seems back on track. You made me happy. Thanks." And she turned and walked away, continuing to wipe her eyes.

He watched her go, and his hair ruffled in the breeze. He noticed that their intimate moment had suddenly become stale and cold. It was as though she was trying to make it so that he didn't matter. He understood, surprisingly enough. He understood that she had to try and distance herself from this man she used to know, to protect the man she knew now.

He followed her out, shoulders slumped ever so slightly, head bowed just a little. He reminded himself that this was his doing, and so ignored the ache in both of his hearts.

I might have made myself cry a little bit, writing that. Please review, to make the tears worthwhile! D: