Chapter Nine

(June 19th, 2016)

The Doctor landed lightly on the roof of a building in downtown London. He let go of Rose and smiled at her.

"Recognize this building?" he asked her.

Rose walked to the edge and looked out. It was hard to tell where she was with only the light of the moon to go by, and she shook her head, as she looked back at the Doctor.

"This is Canary Wharf," the Doctor replied.

Rose frowned.

"Oh, okay, so why have your brought me here?"

"This is where I have my office."

Rose stared at him.

"You have an office?"

"Yes, I have to have somewhere to conduct my business, now that I'm the head of the vampire race," the Doctor replied. "This Canary Wharf was actually a branch of Torchwood before we infiltrated it and stopped them."

Rose shook her head.

"Torchwood. Isn't that…"

"The name of the house we stayed at with Queen Victoria? Yes, it is named after that. Apparently, she made good on her threat to keep me out of Britain. Torchwood was formed by her to keep an eye on aliens in general and me in particular."

"And Jack was a part of it?"

"Seems so," the Doctor said nodding. "Although his outfit was much smaller than the one they had here. He only had five people, counting himself. We captured him and Ianto when they tried to attack us, but the other three got away and are on the loose somewhere. We haven't found them yet, but we're still looking."

He held out his hand.

"Anyway, come with me, and I'll show you my office," he said.

Rose took his hand, and she walked with him over to a door. He unlocked it, opened it, and ushered her onto the stairs. He went inside with her, locked the door, and they walked down the stairs.

They went down for several floors before the Doctor finally stopped her. He opened a door, and she walked into a dimly lit corridor. The Doctor came up beside her, took her hand, and led her down the hallway. They walked halfway down the corridor before the Doctor stopped her beside a closed door. He opened it and turned on the light.

"My office," he said proudly.

Rose stepped inside. The room was large and painted an off-white color. There was a huge plate glass window at the back of the room, and in front of it was a huge wooden desk with a leather chair. Another chair was in front of the desk. To the left of it was three filing cabinets and to the right was a leather couch. On the walls hung some framed artwork that Rose couldn't identify. She walked over to the desk and looked at it. A blotter had paperwork lying on top of it. Rose noticed that the paperwork was written in the dot and dash vampire language. A silver pen was lying beside it, and there were little knickknacks scattered around the desk, mostly having to do with vampires. Rose swallowed hard when she noticed a little picture in a silver frame resting in one corner of the desk. It was a picture of her, and the Doctor resting on a blanket in the middle of a field on Yulzulan Nine. She remembered the day clearly. It had been about six months before he had sent her into the future, and the two of them had been exploring the planet and decided to stop for a picnic lunch. As they were resting there amidst the tall, purple grass, the Doctor decided they needed to have their picture taken to remember the occasion. He had run back into the TARDIS, got his camera and tripod, and sat it up. He set it on a timer, quickly ran back to her, and both of them smiled for the camera, as it took their picture. She let out a wistful sigh, remembering how wonderful that day had been. She was so lost in her memories that she didn't realize the Doctor had come up behind her until he put his cold hand against the side of her neck. She gasped and turned her head to look at him.

"I love that photo," he said, smiling at her. "It's one of my favorites. Course I don't like the way I look in it now, but you…you were a vision lying there with your hair blowing in the breeze like that…and you still are a vision."

Rose stiffened when he moved his hand and kissed her jugular vein. The feel of his lips made her uneasy. She was used to his warm, soft lips caressing her skin, and the dry, cold, cadaverous lips made her flinch. As he continued to kiss her neck, Rose mentally prepared herself for the pain when he bit into her neck, but to her surprise, he moved up to her ear and began to suck gently on the lobe.

"I thought about that day often, my love," he whispered in her ear, as he kissed the side of it. "It was such a beautiful day. No trouble, no danger, no monsters, just you and me sitting there under the triple suns enjoying a well deserved rest. Moments like that were so few and far between that I cherished each and every one that came along. But, each time we did that, I couldn't help but think that one day it would all end. One day you would age, and sicken, and die, and I would be left alone."

He moved around to her front and put his hands on the sides of her head.

"But, now we no longer need fear that, my Rose. Now, we can have all the happy moments we could ever want. You will never age, never weaken, or sicken, you will be young, strong, and beautiful forever, and you and I will be together throughout the centuries. We have outrun so many enemies together, but the greatest enemy of all, death, was always lurking in the shadows waiting to separate us. Now, not even death can threaten us. We have beaten our greatest adversary, and there is nothing to fear ever again."

He took Rose into his arms and put his hand on the back of her head when he noticed her trembling.

"Shhh, it's alright, I'll be gentle, I promise. Just trust your Doctor, I won't let you suffer."

He stroked her hair when he heard Rose whimpering.

"I'll be with you every step of the way, my darling," he said in a hushed voice. "Don't be afraid. You are safe with me, I promise. The change won't take long, and then we'll be together forever."

He brushed her hair away from her neck and traced his finger down her jugular vein.

"Kneel with me, Rose," he said softly.

He fell to his knees, and Rose fell with him. He held her protectively while he gently kissed her neck.

"I will teach you, Rose. I will show you what to do, just as I was shown. I will show you the beauty of being immortal. Just relax; it won't hurt if you relax."

He stroked her hair and stared at her lovingly, while he whispered soothing words to her. Finally, he felt Rose relax her body, and he nuzzled her cheek.

"Close your eyes now," he whispered.

Rose obeyed, and the Doctor kissed away a stray tear. He stared at her for a moment, searching her face for any sign of fear or nervousness. He wanted her to be completely at ease, for her benefit and for his. When he had first started out, he had made the mistake of taking people's blood while they were still terrified and the adrenaline that had poured into the bloodstream had left a bad taste in his mouth. After the first couple of times, he had learned to take his time and calm the person, so their passage into the afterlife would be easier, and he would be able to enjoy the taste of the blood. Rose meant more to him than anything in the entire universe, and the last thing he wanted was for her to be terrified. He wanted her transformation to be easy and painless, so she would embrace the immortal life more readily, and so he made every effort to make sure she was calm before he started. He stroked her hair while he kept a watch on her face. Every once in awhile, he could detect a hint of fear, but to his relief, it would quickly subside, and she would be at peace again. Finally, after several minutes, he was satisfied that she was completely calm, and he gave her a reassuring kiss on the cheek and whispered his love for her in her ear. Then, he lowered his head to her neck and began to kiss gently along her jugular vein, soothing her further and readying himself for penetration. As he kissed, he stroked the back of her neck, and he smiled when he felt her relax even more. Every move, every gesture was designed to keep her conversion from turning into a frightening experience. It was a beautiful ritual, and he wanted her to come away from it, happy and at peace.

By now, her breathing had deepened, and he could sense she was at ease and trusted him completely. He smiled at that and opened his mouth slightly, letting his canines elongate. Once that was finished, he positioned them against her jugular vein and paused, once again sensing her reaction. He could detect no fear, and he took a deep breath, as he started to bite into her flesh.

Suddenly, there was a knock on his office door, and the moment was shattered. Rose gasped and opened her eyes, and the Doctor cursed loudly, as he held her protectively.

"Who's there!" he yelled out, wanting nothing more than to throttle the intruder.

His eyes shot up when he noticed a vampire walking timidly towards the desk. He recognized him. His name was Thomas; he was a newer vampire, having only been undead for about five years. He, and the other vampires had been looking out for him and trying to teach him the ins and outs of the vampire life, but he still had a lot to learn, like not interrupting his betters when they were in the middle of something. He glared at Thomas, who stood in front of his desk, staring at him dumbly. The Doctor glanced at Rose, who had turned her head to see who it was, and he tightened his hold on her slightly in case Thomas got ideas about feeding on her.

"Well, what do you want?" the Doctor spat out, when Thomas said nothing. "I'm in the middle of something here."

"I'm sorry, sir, but the other vampires have been searching for you. They sent me here because they thought you might have been working late."

"Yes, good, hurray, you found me. Now what do you want?" the Doctor said, impatiently.

"Um…a couple of your concubines have escaped," Timothy said, shifting nervously.

The Doctor stared at him in disbelief.

"What? What do you mean a couple of my concubines have escaped? Where were the guards who were supposed to be looking after them?"

"Well, the guards were knocked out," Thomas replied.

"All of them?"

"Yes, sir," Thomas said, nervously.

The Doctor glanced at Rose who was staring at him quietly. He looked back at Timothy.

"Who escaped?"

"Um…the immortal one, and the guy who was captured with him," Thomas replied.

Rose noticed that the Doctor's skin managed to turn even paler than it already was.

"Damn it! I told you lot to keep a close eye on them. If they find the other members of Torchwood, then that means they are going to be back and gunning for us, and do you know what that means?"

"Um…no, what does it mean?"

The Doctor's mouth fell open.

"It means we die, idiot!" he said, startling Rose. "Now get out there and find them before they do something!"

"But, sir, they asked me to come get you," Thomas said, hesitantly.

The Doctor sighed angrily.

"I'll be along presently. Now, get moving, before we all end up with stakes in our hearts!"

"Y…yes, sir," Thomas stuttered.

The Doctor sighed and shook his head, as Thomas turned and ran out of the room. He muttered under his breath while Rose watched him quietly. On the one hand, she was glad that Jack had escaped with this Ianto, but on the other hand, she was terrified that they might kill the Doctor instead of helping him. She knew Jack was a hothead, and if he had been held by the Doctor and possibly tortured, he might shoot first and ask questions later. Despite everything that had happened to him, she still loved the Doctor with all her heart, and she remained convinced that the other vampires had done something to his mind. She had been willing to undergo conversion only because she hadn't seen a way out, but now there was hope for them both. She only hoped that the Doctor wasn't too far gone now and wouldn't resist his friend's help. Otherwise, the only other option for him might be death, and that was too unbearable for her to even consider.

The Doctor sighed and looked at her sadly.

"Come on, Rose, I'm afraid we'll have to do this later. I have more pressing issues to take care of."

Rose nodded. She let the Doctor pick her up and carry her, as he ran out of the office. Right now, she was his best hope for recovery, and she wasn't going to risk angering him and being left behind in his harem or some other prison. She only hoped that they would be able to find Jack and his friends before someone else did.