Rose wakes up slowly, the sound of the Doctor's voice in her ears.
"-race of telepathic creatures," he is saying to someone, "evolved into the ideal predator. They took a latent telepathic ability and developed it to the point that they could manipulate objects with their minds, move matter and transport it to another place. Very unique trick."
Rose's eyes drift closed.
It may be a moment later, it may be hours later, when she wakes up again.
"What was it doing here?" Pete asks.
"Hunting. They're also violent killers. Most of them stay close to home because the backlash against them can be incredibly brutal. Rumor had it they grew their own food supply - large cattle and bison. But sometimes a rogue creature would leave, start wreaking havoc on other planets. Like that one."
"And their injuries? Did it do that?"
"Its telepathic link needs to connect with its victim. It can do that by making eye contact. When it prepares to move you, the link is ripped open and bloody wounds result. That's how they hunt. Keep moving you until you're too injured to resist, track you down."
Rose turns her head and opens her eyes. She's in a bright room, lying down on a bed.
"Hello." The Doctor's face swims into view. He's sitting on the edge of the bed, holding her hand in both of his. His face is a bit bloody but the wounds have been cleaned. His shirt is stained with blood and there is worry and fear and desperation in his eyes, but he's smiling at her.
She manages to smile back at him before falling sleep again.
He's still there, sitting by the bed, the next time she opens her eyes. He sees her stir and sits up straighter. She smiles sleepily at him.
"Hi," she manages to say. "What happened?"
"You passed out."
"I did not. I never do that."
"Well, then. You fainted. Or swooned. Whatever you like."
"Where are we?"
"A hospital, of course. Only place we could go, what with you lot all injured and bleeding all over the street. You've been out for an hour or so."
"Rose." Pete is there, taking her other hand in his. "How are you feeling?"
"Okay." It registers that she's wearing a hospital gown. "The others?"
"Simon's unhurt," Pete tells her. "He's cleaning up the scene with Jake and some others."
"Ian? His leg?"
"Broken leg. That's fixed. He'll be awake in a day or so."
"The alien knocked him out telepathically," the Doctor clarifies. "I checked - he'll be fine. He just needs some time to recover."
"And Riley?"
"Riley is being seen to right now," Pete assures her. "She has a few cracked ribs, but she'll be fine. I'm taking her home when the doctors are done wrapping her up. Your mum's on her way," he adds.
"Oh, Dad, no!"
"Your mother's worried about you," the Doctor tells her. "Humor her."
Rose works some moisture into her mouth. "When can I go home?"
"As soon as they stabilize your knee and they decide you haven't lost too much blood."
"My knee," she repeats. A vague memory comes back, and she tries to move her right knee. "Ouch."
"You'll be out of here tomorrow," Pete tells her. He glances up at the Doctor. "You're in good hands. I'll be back in a bit." He leans down and kisses her forehead before leaving the room.
"We found a good Pete in this world," the Doctor tells her.
Rose smiles faintly. "I know. Am I really okay?"
"Rose! Of course you are. Apart from your knee, you have some blood loss and some deep cuts. Luckily they're not poisonous. The trick is to bleed the victim out, not poison the food source."
"Oh, gross." Her eyes trace his face. "Are you all right?"
He looks surprised. "Which of us is in the hospital bed?"
"You killed that alien."
His face is sober. "Yes."
"You never - you don't..."
"It killed four people. It injured you and Ian and Riley. It injured me," he says, and gestures to his face. "I did everything I could to make it stop."
"It was going to kill you."
"It was going to kill all of us. It got off easy, Rose." He stands up from the bed and starts to pace around the room. "I'm not a homicidal maniac, Rose. I have no desire to ever do that again. Guns are still abhorrent to me. But there comes a point when nothing else will work, and this was it."
He moves back to the bed, carefully brushes her hair back from her face. "I could see its mind. It was going to kill you. I couldn't let that happen. I won't ever let that happen."
"No, you have to-" Her eyes suddenly feel very heavy. "What's going on?" she manages to ask.
He kisses her forehead. "Painkillers. Go to sleep. It's all right."
The next time Rose wakes up the room is dark. Her head feels clearer, she's hungry, and she is in pain. Her knee is throbbing and there are streaks of fire running up and down her arm and chest. When she brings a hand up to check, she finds bandages. Moving farther up, she hits a bandage on her cheek and another on her forehead.
"Hello?" she says into the dark room.
"Sweetheart." Jackie's voice. A lamp is turned on, and Jackie's face comes into view.
"Mum."
"How do you feel?"
"Hurts," Rose tells her.
Jackie smiles and touches her cheek. "I know. I'm sorry." Tears fill her eyes and she starts to cry.
"Oh, Mum."
"Can't help it," Jackie sniffs. "You lot all bloody and banged up, the Doctor walking around like a ghost, your dad fit to be tied."
"The Doctor? What do you mean, 'a ghost'?"
Jackie will only shake her head. "He'll talk to you. Shall I get the nurse? Do you need more medication?"
"Oh, yes, please. I hurt all over."
Jackie hurries out of the room, intent on finding someone as quickly as she can.
Rose closes her eyes and marvels at how the beat of her heart is in sync with the throbbing in her knee.
"Thank you," Jackie says suddenly.
Rose jerks awake. "Oh! I fell asleep. Did I fall asleep?"
"You must have done." Jackie sits down next to her. ""The nurse has come and gone, gave you an injection. Well. You don't look so bad."
"Thanks. Where is he?"
"He's getting his face looked to. That thing sliced him clean open. He didn't even realize it, he was so worried about you." Jackie frowns as she looks at her daughter's face, hoping that the injuries don't scar. "You lost a lot of blood, that's why they're keeping you here 'til tomorrow."
"I feel fine," Rose protests, knowing this is a lie even as she says it.
Jackie rolls her eyes. "Of course you do, sweetheart. Still, you're a sight better than that Ian. His leg's broken in two places. That thing was vicious."
Rose squeezes her eyes shut. She's not ready to think about that just yet. Maybe she never will be.
"You're all fine," Jackie says softly. She sees a movement at the door and stands up. "Right. Your dad has a lot of fallout to deal with about this. I have to get home so he can go in to the office. I'll see you in the morning."
She kisses Rose on the forehead and leaves, stepping through the door that the Doctor has opened.
He comes in, walking to the bed and looking at her cautiously.
"It's okay," she says wearily. "I only look like I'm dying."
"Don't say that."
"How do you feel?" Rose asks as he sits beside her on the bed. She tries to scoot over to make room for him, but the pain makes her wince.
"Stay still," he says softly. "I'm fine."
Rose raises an eyebrow. His face has been bandaged, but she can see where those four cuts extend beyond the bandage and under his jaw and neck. Without thinking she reaches up to touch his face.
He catches her hand. "Don't."
"Does it hurt?"
He shrugs. "A bit. It didn't have time to really hurt me."
"No, it did that to me and Ian."
"Rose." He lets his head fall back. "I did-" He stops himself. When he continues, Rose knows he's changed his mind about what to say. "I'm going to be debriefed tomorrow. Debriefed!"
"Standard procedure. They know what happened." Rose meets his gaze and smiles. "You saved my life, Doctor. If we'd had to wait for Jake we'd be dead in that alley, right now."
"I knew what it was in the Control room. Hard to piece together at first, but between the force field and the moving people around, it was fairly easy to guess correctly."
"What was it?"
"A myrkrath."
"A what?"
"Myrkrath. A rogue one. Vicious hunter and killer, telepathic abilities. Its mind was unguarded when I arrived because it didn't think anyone on this planet had those abilities. It was set on killing me, then killing you and Ian, and going on and on until someone stopped it."
Rose hears the pain in his voice. "You did what needed to be done. We would have done the same. Just a lot sooner."
"Sooner, eh?"
"Maybe a bit much, all that negotiating," she tells him with a smile. "Stick with no second chances from now on, yeah?"
"All right." He kisses the top of her head. "You're going to be fine. Your cuts will heal and your knee was just sprained. No running for a while, but it will heal."
"You know, the last thing I want to do right now is run anywhere."
"Smart woman."
"Oh," she says dreamily. "I'm getting all woozy again."
"Painkillers. Those cuts smart, don't they?"
She looks at his face again, tries to reach up and touch his bandage but he moves his head back.
"Does it hurt?" she asks in concern.
He smiles faintly. "You're repeating yourself. I'll assume it's the medication."
"I don't want you to hurt. I don't ever want you to hurt."
"I'm not hurt."
She's fighting to keep her eyes open. "My Doctor. I want you safe. I love you. I know how sad you are but you have me now."
"Rose?" He peers at her worriedly.
With a tremendous effort, Rose comes back to herself. Fighting the painkillers, she takes his hand and holds it tightly, looking right into his eyes.
"You saved my life. I would kill the Daleks all over again if it meant keeping you safe. Don't be afraid of me. I still love you."
He is shaken to the core. "Rose."
"He was wrong," she murmurs, finally falling into sleep. "You need me, but you don't need me to make you better. You are better."
She's still holding his hand. He lays on the bed beside her, trying to find his bearings.
Rescue and absolution from Rose Tyler. He kisses her forehead, careful not to touch the bandages. He falls asleep there, in her hospital bed, still holding her hand.
She is discharged the next day. Before she's allowed to leave she's been visited by Jake, Simon, Anna, her supervisors at Torchwood, and a representative from the President's office. The attention makes her head hurt.
Jackie has brought clean clothes for both of them and helps Rose get dressed. The Doctor changes his shirt and is satisfied.
"Do you want me to come with you?" Jackie asks.
"I'll be fine, Mum."
"No," the Doctor says. "If they want me up at Torchwood, your mum should be with you."
"I'm all right," she protests.
"I'll only stay until he comes home," Jackie promises. "Come on, the car's waiting."
They drop the Doctor off at Torchwood. Rose catches his hand before he gets out of the car. He looks at her questioningly. Rose only shakes her head and smiles. "Good luck."
"Thanks." He gives her a kiss, for once not caring that Jackie is there, too. "See you later."
Jackie takes her home and settles her on the couch.
"Here we are! Remote control, some tea. Ooh, fancy some chocolate biscuits?"
"I might have some in the kitchen."
They sit together and watch some bad television, occasionally laughing over the differences in this world's programs. Despite her discomfort, Rose is glad of the chance to just sit with her mum and be herself. No worries over who will hear them talk about a different place and a different life, or events that never happened.
Jackie is making a second pot of tea when the Doctor comes home.
"Hello," she greets him. "I thought you'd call, ask for a ride."
"I took the train. Never done that before." He's walking through the living room and looking around. "Where's Rose?" he asks, swinging around to face Jackie.
"Right here," Rose says from behind him. "I was in the loo."
"You should be sitting down." He walks forward and helps her back to the couch.
"You took the train?" Rose asks. "How'd that go?"
He looks annoyed. "I got lost. This London isn't exactly the same."
"Tell me about it." Jackie pours two cups of tea for them. "I'll be off, then. Should I have Mrs. Colton make you dinner tonight? She won't mind, she's been so worried about you."
"Thanks, Mum, but we're fine. Aren't we?" Rose glances at the Doctor.
He's been staring at Rose and blinks at being spoken to. "Sorry? Dinner? No, I'm fine. We can manage."
"Right, then. I'll call you later, sweetheart."
"Do you feel okay?" he asks when they're alone.
"Honestly, I'm fine! Please stop worrying. How do you feel?"
"Honestly, I'm fine," he assures her.
"Okay, we're both honestly fine. We've been attacked by a telepathic alien bent on eating us, and we have painfully deep slash marks on our bodies, but we're fine."
"Sarcasm is unbecoming, Rose Tyler," he tells her.
Rose settles back in against the couch, propping her feet up on the coffee table. "How'd it go today?"
The Doctor makes a face as he stands up to remove his jacket. "Far too many important people asking the same questions. I got the impression their main concern was bad publicity."
"Politics is fun. Poor Dad."
"Yeah, he didn't look like he was enjoying himself." The Doctor sits back down next to Rose. "They took my report, interviewed me, and won't tell me what they did with the body."
"It's probably in a vault somewhere in cold storage."
"Yeah. Don't really care, to be honest." He looks over at her and raises his arm, a question in his eyes. Rose smiles and slides over to sit against him. His arm comes down around her shoulders.
"I'm not afraid of you," she says quietly as she turns the television back on. "You're still my Doctor. You couldn't do anything that would change that."
"No?"
"No," she says firmly. "I love you. Always have, always will. Do you have any idea how many women would love a man to kill for them?" She pauses and frowns thoughtfully. "That didn't come out quite right."
He laughs. "Never mind. Thank you."
"Look. Sci-fi movie. Do we dare?"
"Only if we have popcorn," he says, and jumps up to make some.
He comes back with popcorn and a packet of crisps that he smuggled into the shopping cart the other night at the grocery store. Rose snuggles back against him and prepares to endure his scathing comments on the movie.
Fifteen minutes in, he hasn't said a word. Rose checks to make sure he's still awake. He's watching the screen in rapt concentration, forgetting even to eat the popcorn. Ignoring the movie for a moment, Rose carefully traces the scratches below the bandage on his face. His wounds bother her far more than her own.
As if in response, he puts his arm around her, careful to avoid touching her injured arm. She leans her head against him and returns her attention to the screen. His fingers tangle idly in her hair.
"You know, this isn't half bad," he says after another little while. "They've really captured the independent spirit of the thirty-fourth-century Venusians."
"Seriously?"
"Oh, absolutely."
"You're mad."
"Am not. Trust me, the screenwriters are more correct than they'll ever know."
Rose shakes her head. "If you say so."
"New world," he says out of the blue. "New Rose, new new me. What do you think so far?"
"So far I like it."
"This is what humans do, isn't it? Come home from work, watch tv, eat dinner."
"The usual way of things," she agrees.
"Cab ride at 2 am," he says softly. "Never thought I'd have that kind of life. Now I do."
"Where are you planning to go at 2 am?"
"You know what I mean." He hugs her to his side. "You sure you're okay?" he asks again.
"Yes!"
"Just making sure. Being human, it's hard, isn't it? Threat of dying all around, this fragile body just waiting to be injured. How do you stand it?"
"You're just a bundle of laughs lately, aren't you?" Rose pushes away from him, annoyed.
He pulls her back down to his side. "I'll bet you a fish and chips dinner that this movie ends with the Venusian senate declaring war on Earth."
"You're mad," she tells him again. "And we're not going anywhere today! I can't walk and we're both wrapped up like mummies."
"We'll do takeaway."
"Okay."
The Venusian senate declares war on Earth and wins. The Doctor heads out for takeaway and they eat sitting on the couch, spilling chips and salt all over the floor and not caring.
When it's time for bed he carefully helps her change the bandages covering her wounds. They're starting to heal but are still pretty raw. She doesn't complain, not even when he applies the ointment she was sent home from the hospital with.
He's Time Lord enough that his own wounds are starting to close over. Rose insists on swiping them with her ointment anyway. She gently kisses the new bandage she smoothes onto his face.
After she falls asleep he takes the bandage off and goes outside for a walk. The streetlights are on and block out the stars, but he searches the sky anyway.
No answer from these stars, no comfort or response. They're still the wrong ones. Maybe he's still the wrong Doctor.
No. Rose's words come back to him. Wrong or right, he is hers now. The thought eases the pain in his chest. Turning his back on the stars he can't see and doesn't know, he walks back home.
Back to Rose.