A/N: I have rewritten the end of this chapter to make it, perhaps, slightly more in character than my original attempt. I hope that it is a little better on the second take. Just a short one to finish off this arc… Time to move on… Allons-y!

~~oooOOOooo~~

Rose's desperate and terrified screams were the first sounds that filled the room as the materialization field of the Torchwood Five appeared at the centre of the Command station at the Torchwood office. Peter Tyler ran immediately to his daughter's aid as Phillips launched into a run toward the door with the jump disk in his hand.

"Bring that back to me," she screamed as she took after him in chase. "I have to go back for him!"

Phillips twisted in his fun to face her, and stumbled sideways on to his knee. "I'm not to let you go back," he growled. "I have to keep you here, safe." He got to his feet, launching into his run again while he was still deeply in a forward stoop.

Rose could barely function due to her blinding tears and aching chest, but she could certainly scream out in the negative as she tried to barrel through Pete to get to Phillips and her only way of getting to the Doctor. "Bring it back! Now! We can't just leave him there."

Phillips grinned victorious as he made it closer to the doorway. The voice in his mind demanded that he get that disk as far away from Rose as possible, and he was only steps away from making sure that he could do just that.

A scruffy young lab tech in a white labcoat, however, had other ideas. Spencer dropped to a crouch and stuck his calf out to trip the man who was quite easily double his size. He let out a yelp of pain as the big man crashed down and dropped the jumpdisk. Spencer grabbed it as it fell from above and immediately frisbeed it toward Rose.

"There you go, Boss Lady," he hollered as he watched Rose snatch it from the air and spin to hold it against her chest. "Go back up there and get him."

Pete's voice hollered out in a demand for Rose to stop. She gave him a helpless, yet apologetic look as she slapped the face of the jump pad. Within a half-second, she was back on board the exploding Sontaran Command ship.

The deck shook violently below her feet. There were sparks and fires blasting all around her. Sontaran men fell and writhed at her feet. Rose took no notice. Her eyes searched through the smoke for one man.

She yelled for him through the smoke and haze. She held her arm across her nose and mouth as she stalked over upturned consoles in search of him. She knew her time was extremely limited and at any time the final explosion was going to obliterate everything. Her eyes stung and she could barely breathe. The only sound she was able to make was to call for him.

Through the smoke and haloed by the light of a fire, she finally saw him. He stood alone in a low stoop, his arms lightly splayed to his side. The line of his coat, and the brown of his pinstripe suit stood out through the haze, and as she let her eyes lift to the silhouette of his spiked hair and his firm, strong jaw, she torpedoed herself through the space left between them.

The Doctor didn't seem at all surprised to see her hurtling through the air toward him. He smiled wide and braced for her impact with his arms opened wide to receive her body against his.

Behind her the shockwave ripple of the final explosion propelled her forward, and she collided against him hard enough for them both to spin in the air. She hit the face of the jump pad and threw her arms around him.

Together, Doctor and Rose rolled across the Torchwood Command Station floor. He held her against his chest as he skidded along the floor on his back only stopping when the two of them collided with Pete Tyler's legs.

The Doctor braced himself for what might come next, because he knew beyond all doubt that him sending her away – yet again – had to have upset her. Oh, and it had. He could feel it. Rose's body was taut against him, not moving and not holding him back in return. He could feel her controlled breaths filling in and out of her chest, slowly leveling and deepening.

"Rose?"

She climbed off him slowly and drew herself to her full height. He remained on the floor on his back and looked up at her. He offered her his most gratefully thrilled smile.

"You are amazing."

She held her hand down to him. "Get up," she growled in order.

Oh. Yes. She was mad.

"Yes. Quite right," he mumbled as he took hold of her hand and grunted as he hauled himself through bruising hips and shoulders to a stand. He didn't think it anywhere near appropriate to stand at his full height in front of her. Especially not as she was doing her darndest right now to heighten herself an extra inch or two. He settled with a slouch as his hands found his trouser pockets. "Thank you."

She shifted slightly. "Come with me."

"Rose."

"Not a request!"

He understood that she wanted to talk, and it was a discussion best not held in the presence of the Torchwood Control personnel. He obediently followed, and wasn't thinking when he instinctively reached forward to take her hand in his. Their fingers touched. Rose froze in place.

Was there a Gallifreyan equivalent for Oh Shit?

He felt it long before he heard it. Her hand struck across his cheek in a blinding movement so fast he had no way of moving to lessen the blow. The strike threw his face off to the side, and left him in a lean away from her. When the crack rang out in the room, he could feel the vacuum of inhaled gasps from the people still left in the room.

Rose brought her face close to his, hovering close to his ear. She watched the reddening imprint of her hand on his tightly wincing cheek. "You don't ever get to do that to me again, do you understand?"

He remained in his lean, but brought his face to hers. His voice was soft, yet croaky. "I just wanted you safe, Rose."

She grabbed at the lapels of his blazer and snapped his face up to look at him directly in the eyes. "In case you haven't learned by now, Doctor. Being with you, unsafe, is where I want to be."

He resisted the urge to press his lips to hers. She still seemed mad, and wasn't completely sure if kissing her now was the best option. He swallowed, kept his hands in his pockets, and rocked ever so slightly toward her. "I'm sorry."

Rose worked her jaw and locked her grip even tighter on his lapel. Her eyes darkened as he gave her his most boyish, wounded, apologetic look. She swallowed hard as she felt the most feather light touch of his fingers against her elbow. "Home?" she asked in a voice so quiet, and so very full of invitation.

He nodded quickly and spoke over a thick swallow. "Yep."

She dropped her hand to clutch his tightly. "Run?"

He grinned. "Oh yes."