A/N: One more! I think.

Episode used is Journey's End.

Chapter 14 - Hope

Rose gasped, opened her eyes and found herself back in the dreary room with the Master.

"No, what are you doing!?" Rose cried, panicked. "I need to go back!"

"People are coming," the Master said quickly. "I think it's Brax, Jack and the others."

"So what!? Tell them I'm busy!"

"Because it's going to look great when you're both unconscious, covered in blood and I'm standing over you. I'll just explain that then, shall I?" he asked somewhat facetiously.

Rose huffed. "Fine, but be bloody quick!"

Hurriedly they both grabbed the Doctor between them, carrying him awkwardly up the stairs, through a door, down a corridor and out of a front door.

Definitely Earth, Rose fathomed. But she didn't have much time to think about it as they carried him down the drive to a small red Fiat 500 parked there. She didn't even have time to think about why the Master had a car parked there as they opened the door and Rose clambered inside, receiving the Doctor in her lap to hold onto. His limbs were so long and gangly, but somehow they managed to fold him into the small space before the Master darted to the other side of the car and got inside.

"C'mon," Rose urged. "When I left Eleven was gonna kill him!"

"He won't kill him," the Master assured her, pulling away. "Not while you're not there."

"He wants me to get the objects," Rose said as the car pulled out of the driveway onto the road. "So he needs me to get them, he can't get out without them can he?"

"No," the Master said. "I think he needs you to get the objects to the empty Doctor, then he'll kill him just before you get the last one. I'm guessing the last one's expendable."

"Why? What is it?"

"No idea," the Master confessed. "But if the empty Doctor gets filled he'll be able to overpower Eleven. If he's one short he won't. And when Eleven takes control, he'll be using the filled Doctor for himself. So as long as he gets most parts and still be more powerful he'll take out your Doctor. And you. You're expendable too as soon as you've handed over the objects."

"My own husband is gonna kill me," Rose croaked.

"Yes, sorry," he said. "But not if you get the last object to the empty Doctor faster than Eleven can kill him."

"But what if I don't?"

"You will."

"But what if I don't?" she repeated.

"Then everyone is history," the Master summed up. "That's going to cause a paradox that just might obliterate the entire universe. Time's already fragile around you two and this would just about finish you off."

"What the hell does that mean? And one thing you've never explained, why do you look like Eleven? You've got his face..."

The Master sighed. "I can't tell you."

"Why not?"

"Because of the universe-ending paradox…?" he suggested vaguely.

"This doesn't make sense, none of it makes sense!" Rose splurted out. "Did you steal the Doctor's next body? Is that what you did!?"

The Master suddenly hit the brakes, nearly sending her and the Doctor headlong through the windshield. "Look," he began, suddenly very angry. "I don't like you and you don't like me, but believe it or not there are some things that you just won't understand for a while because guess what? You're at the centre of a catastrophically huge paradox right now and explaining it all to your little human mind just isn't something we have time for!"

"Why are you helpin' us?" she asked firmly.

"Work it out," the Master grunted, starting up the car again.

"You've got his next body. You've been helpin' me so he stays in the same body. He must… he's gotta give you his next body! He did, didn't he? That's why you need him to survive!"

"Give the blonde a trophy," the Master drawled.

"Why did he do that? Did you force him?"

The Master rolled his eyes. "No, I didn't actually."

"I thought you were different. I thought you'd changed, when really you were just out for yourself. You want the Doctor to live so he can give you his next body..."

"Sorry to disappoint," the Master said vaguely. "I thought, 'pretend to be nice to the blonde, she might just do what you say!' but nope. Difficult humans, always wanting to know how, what, when, why. Like it or not I'm the only one that can save the Doctor so you just have to do what I say and shut that gob for once."

Rose fumed, but she knew he was right. She couldn't get back in the Doctor's head without him, and he knew that. Before she could start to form a reply suddenly she felt the Doctor move in her arms. She looked down, alarmed, and realised he was shaking.

"He's shaking," Rose said quickly. "Master, he's shaking."

The Master nodded, pulled into a sideroad and leaned over. "He's in trouble. You need to get back in."

"Do it," Rose said quickly, placing her fingers on the Doctor's temples. "Ready."

The Master paused, gazing at her.

"What are you waitin' for?" she asked.

"Nothing," he muttered, before reaching forward and plunged her straight back into the Doctor's head.

Rose found herself standing in some kind of no place. There was nothing but whiteness all around, except a figure she could see lying just a few metres in front of her. It was her Doctor.

She ran forward immediately, pulling him into her lap. Almost immediately he moaned, flickering open his eyes to look up at her. "Rose," he whispered.

"It's okay, I've got you. It's gonna be over soon."

"Rose!" a voice cried from afar and she looked up to see her empty Doctor running towards her. She waved him over, putting the Doctor down to stand up.

"I've got the objects," she said, handing over the sonic screwdriver, the wire, the Gallifreyan peacock collar, the empty bat's milk phial, the gun, the Master's laser screwdriver and finally his wedding ring. As he took each one he absorbed each one as in front of her his face changed, slowly but surely back to her Doctor.

"There's just hope left," she told him.

"Ever seen a battle won without hope?" suddenly said a voice and they looked to see Eleven standing there over the Doctor's helpless body "I think this is the end of Ten."

Rose stepped in front of the vessel Doctor. "Don't you dare!"

He grinned. "By the way, Rose Tyler, I don't need you anymore. You've got what I wanted."

"The bond mean nothin' to you?" Rose snapped.

"Nope, sorry," Eleven said, and raised his hand. But he wasn't holding a weapon - he was pointing behind them. "By the way, look behind you."

Rose made to turn, but the vessel Doctor quickly grabbed her. "No. Don't. Don't turn around!"

She stopped immediately. "What's behind us?" she croaked, a little more than terrified at his demeanour.

"Everything."

"They're getting closer…" Eleven teased, looking over their shoulders with a wide, horrible smile.

Rose paused, thinking about that. "No. Wait. Why can't we look back?"

"I don't look back," the vessel Doctor croaked. "I never look back."

"And the prophecy unfolds," Davros croaked.

"The Doctor's soul is revealed! See him! See the heart of him!" Caan shrieked, laughing happily.

"The man who abhors violence," Davros continued. "Never carrying a gun. But this is the truth, Doctor. You take ordinary people and you fashion them into weapons. Behold your Children of Time, transformed into murderers. I made the Daleks, Doctor. You made this."

The Doctor could barely get his words out. "They're trying to help."

Davros completely ignored him. "Already I have seen them sacrifice today, for their beloved Doctor. The Earth woman who fell opening the Subwave Network…"

"Who was that?" the Doctor asked, confused.

"Harriet Jones," Rose told him. He could only stare in horror. "She gave her life to get you here."

"How many more?" Davros croaked. "Just think. How many have died in your name?"

The Doctor tried desperately not to think about it. He didn't want to think back, to look back, but the people started flooding his head regardless. Jabe, who had kept holding onto that lever. The Controller, giving him the coordinates of the Daleks before no doubt being slaughtered by them. Poor Lynda, Lynda with a Y. Sir Robert of Torchwood House, allowing himself to be ripped apart by the werewolf just to buy them time. Mrs. Moore, killed by a Cyberman. The members of LINDA, sacrificing themselves to pull apart the Abzorbaloff - Bliss, Bridget, Mr Skinner and Ursula. The Face of Boe, giving his last to free the people trapped in the undercity on New Earth. Chantho, slaughtered by the Master. Astrid - poor Astrid - Falling into the core of the ship to stop Max Capricorn. Luke the boy genius, blowing up the Sontaran ship with himself on it. Jenny, taking the bullet. River, frying her own brain in his place. The Hostess of the ship on Midnight, saving his life...

"The Doctor," Davros grated. "The man who keeps running, never looking back because he dare not, out of shame. This is my final victory, Doctor. I have shown you... yourself."

"No," Rose decided immediately. "Don't you dare."

"I can't look back," the Doctor choked out.

"Don't be so stupid. There's nothing to be ashamed of. Your life, I mean, look at it. Look at all you've done and experienced. How can you be ashamed?"

"People die in my name," he muttered. His eyes were filling up with tears.

"People save in your name," Rose corrected. "Jack, Sarah, everyone. Protectin' the Earth when you can't. Savin' billions of lives in your name. And that's just Earth - how many people have you saved in your life? You can look back. You can feel proud. Look back."

"I can't," the Doctor croaked.

"I'm here," she whispered. "We'll do it together."

"No," he moaned.

"Yes," she said positively. "We're turnin' back, okay? Now."

She spun on her heel. In front of her as far as the eye could see were thousands - no, millions, billions of lifeforms. She recognised a few. Lynda, Ursula - all the people who had died in his name or by his direct cause. Amongst them she knew was the populace of the planet he had blown up in the Time War, and population of the planet that he and his crew had gunned down.

He hadn't turned around.

She reached up to his cheek, brushing away a tear. "You're a thousand-years-old," she began slowly. "You've had a hard, long, dangerous life - trust me, I've seen it - of course you've got a body count. Yeah, you killed loads of innocent people in the Time War but you're not that man anymore, not even remotely like him. There are people who died here out of their own choice in order to save the world. All you did was to give 'em the bravery to do it. If you don't look back you're not respectin' them. If I died I wouldn't want you to forget me and never turn back. I know it hurts, I know there's pain, but just denyin' it isn't respectin' what they did. You can look back. It's okay. I promise. Come on."

He was crying. She reached up and took his arm. Slowly, very slowly, he turned back and stared at the billions stood before him.

"They're not angry at you," she continued. "They don't want to kill you for what you did. Don't be scared."

He swallowed, taking a moment to swallow back his tears before looking up again at the crowd. "I'm sorry," he said quietly through his tears. "I'm so sorry."

The crowd began to fade - first slowly, then rapidly. Rose kept clinging onto his arm every second, until the last of the crowd faded away - and all that was left was a great, massive, open space.

"See?" she said quietly.

He looked down at her, and for the first time saw a small smile.

"Thank you," he told her sincerely.

"Nice," a voice interrupted from behind them. Eleven. Rose turned back and saw him striding towards them.

"No!" she cried, grabbing the Doctor's arm and starting to run. "We've gotta get to a memory with hope!"

"We can't," the Doctor croaked. "He's trapped us here…"

"No, not after all this!" she cried, pulling him to a stop. "Quick, think, where's your hope? We can't beat him without…"

She suddenly trailed off as the penny dropped.

"Oh my god," she whispered.

"What?" he asked anxiously.

"It's me," she muttered.

"What?" he asked again, confused.

"Listen!" she grabbed his arms, looking straight up into his eyes. "You're missing your hope. You can't beat him without it."

"So what do we do?"

"Take my hand." She let go of his arms, and held out her right hand.

"Why?"

"It's me. I'm your hope. I'm your hope object. Do your absorbin' thing and then you can beat him."

He stared at her in horror. "But…"

"I know what it means," Rose insisted.

"I can't…"

"Come on!" she urged. Eleven was being held up by the real Tenth Doctor, but he wouldn't hold him off for long.

"I'll never see you again…" he croaked.

"I'd be in your head," she insisted. "Part of you."

"But you wouldn't be real," he moaned. "I wouldn't be able to touch you, hear you, speak to you ever again…"

"But you'd be alive," Rose said positively.

"I can't do this!"

"Please, please do this. For me!"

"But the kids…"

"Will have their Dad and a whole load of people who love them," she completed.

"Who aren't their mother!"

"I'll be with you, in your memories," she said. "And don't you dare turn away from me. Remember me, think about me every day, okay?"

"I'm not doing this!" he shouted. He was angry now. "I'll die first!"

"You don't get it, I'm not givin' you a choice!" Rose snapped back. "I'm choosin' to do this because I love you and I want to save your life so shut up and take my hand!"

"I'm not doing it!" he shouted. He was no longer the vacant Doctor she had become accustomed to - he was one emotion short of being the Tenth Doctor and he wasn't going to take this lying down.

"Tough!" she shouted, and grabbed his hands. He tried to pull away but it was as though they were glued - melting into him, to become part of him.

"I'm sorry," she said seriously. "Tell everyone I love them."

"No," he moaned.

"It's okay," she said softly. "I want this. Don't forget me. I love you."

As her body began to go numb, she got onto her tiptoes and kissed him fully on the lips for several long, beautiful seconds. When they finally drew back her heart sank. He looked so sad.

"I love you too," he said quietly.

And that was the last she heard as Rose Tyler faded away.