Chapter 20 – Buttypin
"Here you go, sweetheart," Rose said to Leah gently, holding out a fully repaired cuddlytoy to her over breakfast the next morning. "Sorry it took so long."
Leah froze, staring at Bundy. She thought that had been a bit of a bad dream... But apparently not. There was Bundy, looking a little roughed up but much better than when she'd last seen her. She was apparently lifeless... But for how long?
"You okay?" her mum suddenly asked, gazing at her.
She nodded quickly and put on a smile. "Fine!" she said, and began to cram her breakfast down.
"She looks familiar," her mum began, staring at Bundy. "What's her name, again?"
"Bu..." Leah began automatically, and then quickly stopped herself, nearly choking on her breakfast. "Umm... Bu... t... ty... pi... n. Buttypin."
Her mum stared at her for a moment, raising an eyebrow. Even Leah winced at that. Buttypin? What kind of name was Buttypin? Surely she could've come up with a better name than that. What about Bulley or Bupper? Surely anything was better than 'Buttypin'...
"Buttypin," her mum repeated slowly, still with a raised eyebrow.
"Why, don't you like Buttypin?" Leah said quickly, pulling a glare at her mum.
"Oh, no, it's great, Leah," Rose said quickly.
Leah shoved the last of breakfast into her mouth. "Can I get down?"
Rose nodded. "Of course."
Leah nodded, and ran out of the door back to her room, leaving Bundy in the kitchen on the chair to buy some time to think up a plan. To her complete surprise she found Alex in there, obviously having escaped from his room, shaking Floppy around and giggling at the way at her ears flapped about.
"Oh my! Oh my! Oh my!" Floppy constantly exclaimed as she was shaken vigorously by the boy.
"Alex!" Leah said quickly, running forward and taking Floppy from him, holding her tightly to her chest. "Don't do that to Floppy."
The boy looked disappointed, so Leah sat Floppy down (who promptly groaned and collapsed sideways) and went to her toy chest to pull out a remote control car, setting it down on the floor and giving Alex the remote.
"You can play with this," Leah told him informatively. "You push this stick thing forward to make it go forward, and this one makes it tur..."
She was cut off in mid-flow as Alex grabbed the stick she'd indicated in his fist and jerked it forward. The toy car shot off in a blaze of speed and promptly crashed into the wall.
Alex shrieked in delight and began to mash the controls, slamming his palm on the remote with enthusiasm. The poor car didn't know whether it was coming or going as it whizzed around the room, nearly ran over Floppy who squealed in alarm and made to the door just as it opened to reveal their mum, who nearly fell over it.
"Leah!" Rose yelped, catching herself on the door frame as the toy car crashed into the opposite wall.
"Not me!" Leah protested, pointing at Alex.
"Alex," Rose grunted, stooping down to pick up the car, its wheels still zooming around. "Be careful where you're driving that thing, yeah? Unless you want two parents in the infirmary!"
Alex and Leah simultaneously froze, looking up at her standing there.
Rose's face fell. "Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean that. Just be careful, yeah?" She placed the car back on the carpet, and within seconds it had sprung into life again and crashed into the wall next to the door.
"You forgot Butt... thingy," Rose told Leah, holding out Bundy.
"Buttypin," Leah said indignantly.
"Sorry, Buttypin," Rose clarified, then turned to Alex who was giggling and still mashing the car controls. "Alex," she began. He obviously hadn't heard her, far too absorbed in the car. "Alex," she said a little louder. No reaction. "ALEX!"
The boy finally looked up.
"Are you hungry?" she asked.
He shook his head, and went back to his car.
"Obviously don't need me anymore then," Rose muttered, looking back at Leah who was staring at Buttypin like it was going to jump up and attack her any second. "Leah, can you look after Alex? I'll be in the infirmary with Daddy if you need me."
Leah nodded, if a little absently, still staring at the bear. Rose glanced between them both, sighed, and left.
Instantly Bundy exploded into life, sneering and growling at her angrily.
"Leah!" the bear roared.
"Bundy!" Leah said quickly, tightening her hold on the angry bear. "Bundy, I..."
"Don't make excuses now, Leah!" the bear grated, still struggling to get out of her hands. "I'm going to KILL you!"
"Bundy, just listen to me!" Leah yelled authoritatively. She hadn't really expected that to work, and of course it didn't. Instead, Bundy shrieked and made for her face again. After a few moments struggle and Floppy trying to pull Bundy off of Leah's face, they finally got her off and Leah used her entire body weight to pin Bundy to the floor.
"In the drawer!" Floppy shrieked, darting over to the chest of drawers and pulling one open. Leah managed to drag the howling Bundy across the floor and throw her inside the drawer, then quickly slammed it shut and sat her back up against it. The shrieks were muffled now, the entire chest of drawers jolting as Bundy fought to get out. Then things went quiet.
Leah breathed a sigh of relief, and then she realised she was being watched. She looked at Alex who was staring at her, and had been for quite a while.
"Oh... Alex," Leah began, realising there was no way she was going to convince him that was all in his mind. "Umm... Can you keep a secret?"
Rose sat in the infirmary, watching Ulysses buzz around administering medication to the still comatose Doctor. As always he said nothing, and then left her to it.
She gazed at the Doctor for a long time. The bruises under his eyes had gone now, and the bruises on his neck were almost completely gone. The worst of his burns were beginning to clear up. He did look a lot better in the single day he'd been back in the TARDIS with his father treating him, there was no denying that.
Time passed, and soon it was lunchtime. Rose was just considering going to get some food and checking Leah and Alex, and began looking for some paper to scribble down a note for the Doctor in case he woke up. She knew it was her way of coping – he probably wouldn't wake up and read it, as the pile of notes on the bedside table she left whenever she even popped out to go to the toilet were beginning to build. But just as she began to scribble the note there was a sudden groan from in front of her, and Rose's heart lurched as she forgot the food and note instantly, jumping to her feet and looking down at the Doctor anxiously.
"Doctor?" she asked, wishing, hoping, praying...
He groaned again, and opened his eyes to slits, looking up at her. He smiled at her briefly and she giggled insanely at the fact he had actually smiled at her... It was the reassurance she'd been craving for so long.
"Hey," she said gently, taking his hand and squeezing it.
He squeezed back, moving his other hand to his chest and breathing out, eyes closing again. "I don't feel well," he said in a breathy, croaked voice.
"No kiddin'," she said, brushing back his hair caringly. "Where are you hurtin'?"
"Headache," he grunted. "Legs, chest, throat, arms, eyes... everything."
"You're on as much painkiller as your Dad says you can have," Rose told him gently.
"How long have I been asleep?" he asked in a murmur.
"You've been in a coma for just over a week."
He winced at that. "That's bad," he breathed.
"Both your legs are broken and you're pretty bruised and burnt up. Martha said somethin' about carbon monoxide and your throat and lungs bein' burnt."
"Feels like it," he muttered.
"Your Dad's treating you, we just moved you here from the hospital yesterday," she told him, running a hand over his bare chest, fingers through the hair.
"'Kay," he murmured. "Tired."
"Just go back to sleep," Rose told him gently, kissing him. "But thank you for wakin' up."
"You're welcome," he muttered absently, and relaxed again. Pretty soon he was asleep again. But now Rose was smiling, and she leant forward to kiss him once more. She dived for the pen and paper she'd dropped and scribbled a new note anyway, putting it on the bedside table before skipping off happily to the kitchen.
The Doctor was awake for the inevitable tide of people that came later that evening when they had been told he'd woken up. Penelope, Alex, Leah, Martha, Mickey, Jack, Ianto, Gwen and Rhys with Anwen all appeared. Even Jackie came with Tony in tow. Rose watched the Doctor with a snigger as he tiredly conferred politely with everyone, enduring a lot of hugs and being left with a mountain of grapes and get well soon sentiments on cards.
After the massive human tide had washed back out again, Ulysses checked him over. As ever, he hummed and harred, put the sonic screwdriver down on the side table and left without another word. When Jack entered a little while later he found the Doctor and Rose having a snog.
"Mind if I join in?" he asked with a grin, taking the second seat beside the bed.
They pulled apart and Rose grinned back at him. "Want a grape?" she wondered, gesturing to the mountain on the next bed.
"No, thanks, don't really like grapes," he admitted. "Oh, I sorted out Leah and Alex for you, Leah's eating and Alex is in the nursery. I double-locked the door."
"Thanks," Rose replied.
"How are you feeling?" Jack wondered, looking at the Doctor.
"Bleh," the Doctor replied simply, his voice still very breathy and croaky.
"I need to run the osteo-regenerator over your legs," Rose said, kissing him briefly again before getting up to retrieve the device. The Doctor just hummed approvingly, scratching at his neck and relaxing again.
"Can I help?" Jack asked as Rose came back.
"Yeah, please," Rose replied taking the sonic from the side table before drawing the cover off of the Doctor, revealing the multitudes of burns, bandages and bruises that had been hidden, revealing he was only in a pair of white shorts. She ran the sonic down the cast on the Doctor's left leg. It cracked open to reveal a stitched up and spectacularly bruised and scarred leg. The Doctor looked at the sight with interest, then relaxed back on the pillows before looking at Jack.
"Thanks for saving me," the Doctor told him sincerely.
"My pleasure," Jack assured him. "Found you halfway down the stairs covered in blood and ash."
"What do you remember?" Rose asked the Doctor gently, running the osteo-regenerator down his left leg.
"It's kind of hazy," he croaked. "The cat jumped out of my arms and my Father appeared at the doorway and got it. I ran out the door and down the stairs, then... I decided to check everyone was out on my way down in case we missed someone. But while I was checking number three, a wall collapsed on top of me. It broke both of my legs. I managed to crawl to the stairs, but then halfway down I passed out."
"Should've known," Rose said, sighing.
"What?"
"Nearly killin' yourself on the small off-chance someone might've been inside."
"I had to check," the Doctor insisted.
"I know," Rose said gently, leaning up to kiss him again. "Just get out faster next time, yeah?"
"I'll try," he said as Jack laughed.
"Jack, can you lift his leg?" Rose asked and Jack nodded, carefully holding below the Doctor's knee with one hand and his ankle in the other, and lifted slowly and carefully. The Doctor grunted and leant back, quickly covering his face with his hands, riding the wave of pain that of course came with it.
"I can see right up your shorts," Jack told him, staring.
"Stop looking then," the Doctor replied in a grunt, still covering his face.
"I can't," Jack admitted, still staring.
"Done!" Rose announced quickly, getting a new cast for his leg. Jack lowered his leg back down into one half, and she sealed up the cast with the sonic. They repeated this on the other leg, Jack lifting so Rose could run the osteo-regenerator under.
"There it is again," Jack mused.
"Jack," Rose warned lowly.
"I can't help it, it's totally in my face," he protested.
Rose sighed in mock despair and got a new cast, before they sealed it up. Rose made to get the cover again but Jack quickly stopped her, pulling out a marker pen from inside his shirt pocket.
"I came prepared," he assured her, and wrote JACK in block capital letters up the centre of both casts. Rose giggled as the Doctor struggled to look.
"What's he doing to my legs?" he asked.
"Hold on, I'm just gonna draw a picture..." Jack said, and Rose could very quickly see where he was going with it...
"Jack!" she exclaimed, laughing before yanking the pen off of him and turning the dirty illustration flawlessly into a dog with its tongue hanging out. She then wrote ROSE WOZ ERE 2012 on both casts, and added a little heart on both for emphasis.
"Hold on, got an idea," Jack said, retrieving the marker pen from Rose again and setting to work.
"Stop graffitying my legs," the Doctor protested, struggling to look at what they were doing.
"Nearly done!" Jack assured him, then finished with a flourish, pulling back and grinning. Rose looked, and giggled. He'd written RIGHT LEG on the Doctor's left leg and LEFT LEG on his right leg.
"My turn," Rose said quickly, taking the pen back.
"Hey..." the Doctor protested weakly.
"I just wanna do a picture..." Rose told him innocently, tongue between her teeth. The Doctor quickly realised he wasn't going to be able to stop them, and resigned to let him draw all over his legs.
A/N: Review reply this chapter. Fire away! :D