Disclaimer: Nothing belongs to me. But I want the Doctor.

Dedication: To Kate, the true friend in all of this mess.

Reunited

This was not exactly what the Doctor had imagined as the perfect reunion. He'd managed to get his feet out of the way just in time, but there was a large and rather rancid puddle on the floor of the TARDIS, and Rose was flopped against him, her hair over her face and her shirt sticking to her. He was going to have to do something about that before he spoke to her – he doubted that she'd be incredibly pleased to find that parts of her t-shirt had turned see-through with sweat from the fever, especially if he were in the room. Leaning over his young companion, he slid both arms under her and carried her out of the room. He'd deal with the mess later.

Walking down one of the many corridors, the Doctor was struck with the sudden horror at the fact that he was either going to have to undress her or sit and watch whilst she did it herself. It was not going to be an easy job for either of them, but he would have to try – although he couldn't leave her alone in the bath in case she decided to drown on him. He could feel her beginning to come round and stiffen slightly as she felt his arms around him, and quickened his pace, turning left and kicking open a door with his foot.

Rose came round properly as they entered the bathroom. She still looked a little wild-eyed and delirious, but she had cooled down somewhat and had gathered herself enough to recognise her surroundings. Looking down at herself, she flushed with shame at the fact that she hardly looked decent, but catching sight of a quick, nervous smile from the Doctor, she was encouraged. He handed her a towel and turned to fill the bath, and she quickly struggled out of her shirt and wrapped the towel around her. She was pleased to see him filling the bathtub with bubbles, presumably to protect her dignity, and felt a rush of warmth towards him.

Neither of them spoke until Rose was safely in the bath with the bubbles covering her for modesty. The Doctor was finding this process rather difficult – his eyes were drawn to the bubbles covering her body, almost willing them to move, and he had to keep dragging them up to her face to ensure that she was all right. She looked incredibly serene, sitting there with her eyes closed and a hint of colour in her cheeks, her lips pouted slightly as if in thought, and he found himself feeling calmer. There was a cup by the sink, and he filled it with lukewarm water and put his hand over his charge's forehead, tipping it gently over her hair. He did this several times, filling and refilling the cup, until he'd given her hair a wash and it hung damply around her face, drying very slowly and looking quite pretty as it fluffed into place. Rose was growing more aware of her surroundings and was beginning to find the strength to speak again.

"Doctor? What happened?"

The Doctor licked his lips. What could he say? We argued, I left you, you got ill and then nearly threw up on my shoes. He wasn't sure that'd go down too well. "We're in the TARDIS, Rose. You're not well – you're going to need lots of rest. How do you feel?"

Rose shrugged. "Not great. A bit sort of…weird, I suppose. Like…not very…here."

The Doctor frowned, puzzled, and took another look at his companion. Again, he felt that strange sense of distance and flinched, unable to understand the source. "Did you eat anything weird?"

"No, I haven't eaten anything for a while. Just that water you gave me."

Ah. So she remembered. The Doctor placed the cup on the side of the bath and frowned, deep in thought, but it was in vain. "We'll just have to keep an eye on you for a while. And you'll have to rest and do what I say. Not much travelling for the time being."

Rose nodded. "Sleepy. Can I go to bed?"

The Doctor frowned again, anxiously this time, and agreed. Holding the towel up for her, he wrapped it around her and held her close to him, unable to fathom why she felt so different. Almost as if some part of her had disappeared. "Come on. Let's get you to sleep."

Rose nodded again, almost zombie-like. The Doctor sighed worriedly and placed a hand on her shoulder, steering her out of the room. This was going to take some figuring out.