a/n: I'm not entirely happy with this chapter. I had a hard time writing it. Hopefully it's not too bad. I may edit it later. We'll see. Thanks to everyone for reading!

Chapter 28


The world they had left reappeared. Rose watched through Bad Wolf's eyes, taking in the horror of the room. Hannah was on the floor in a pool of her own blood. Bad Wolf had put her in a time freeze. She wasn't alive but she wasn't dead. The Valeyard was pinned to the wall; his arms spread slightly, a look of fury on his face. He opened his mouth to speak but Bad Wolf forced it shut. He made unintelligible noises but she ignored him. Instead she turned her attention to the woman on the floor.

Pity and horror filled her chest as she took in the state of Hannah. Bad Wolf could feel Rose's emotions rushing through her as well. Rose felt that this was all her fault. Bad Wolf planned to rectify the situation.

She knelt next to Hannah and removed the time freeze and watched the agony fill her face. Blood soaked into her jeans She placed her hand on Hannah's chest, numbing the pain. But there was nothing she could do with the pain she saw in Hannah's eyes. Bad Wolf could see the woman's life unfolding before her eyes.

Hannah's father had died when she was very young and her mother turned to alcohol to cope with the loss. Her history with men was not a good one; abusive boyfriends and a terrible husband. Her only happiness had been her daughter, Kayla. Her husband had treated Kayla like she was angel. During that time, Hannah was happy. Her husband didn't hit her for 5 years.

Then everything went to hell. Her baby was out in the front yard playing when she saw a cat across the street. Before Hannah could do anything, Kayla was in the street, dead. Hannah's husband blamed her. He beat Hannah every night until he decided to kick her out. Hannah turned to drugs and alcohol. Three years later, the Valeyard found her and offered her some drugs and a place to sleep.

Rose materialized next to Bad Wolf in the form of the gold wolf. She pressed her nose to Hannah's forehead and whined. She too could see Hannah's life and all the terrible things the universe had thrown her way. Hannah never had the chance to escape. She was stuck in her terrible world so of course she took the Valeyard up on his offer. Drugs numbed her to the world and her sorrows.

Help her.

"Hannah, look at me," Bad Wolf said softly. The woman looked at Bad Wolf and her eyes widened in shock.

"But, you were going to kill me. You killed that man."

"I did not want to kill Jimmy. That man over there forced me to do it. But I'm free from his control now and I want to help you."

"How could you possibly help?" Hannah asked. She lifted her head slightly and saw her intestines on the floor, her blood pooled around her. "I'm dying."

Bad Wolf heard a sound of relief in the words. She could give Hannah life or death but she would not be the one to make that decision.

"Hannah, I can heal your wound, erase your memories, and send you on your way. Or, I could help you die. I can take away the pain you're in so you can die in peace. You must decide this. You don't have long. Soon you will be beyond my capability to heal."

Hannah didn't even pause to think. Bad Wolf and Rose watched the fear fade and a small smile formed on the pale, thin face. They both knew what she would choose.

"I want to go. I want to see my baby again. That's all I want. I want to be with my baby."

Bad Wolf nodded and Hannah closed her eyes and sighed with contentment. Rose touched her nose to Hannah's forehead once more before backing away to let Bad Wolf do her work. She sent Hannah into a deep sleep so she wouldn't feel any pain as she passed on to the next life. Half of Hannah's blood was on the floor; it didn't take much to stop her heart. Rose saw the life leave Hannah's body. She lifted her head howled a song in honor of Hannah.

She's at peace now.

"Yes," Bad Wolf said sadly. She looked at the empty body and sighed. There would be no funeral for Hannah. There was no one to mourn her loss. So Rose and Bad Wolf would mourn for her instead.

Both Rose and Bad Wolf turned to where the Valeyard was pinned to the wall. Rose found his fury terrifying but Bad Wolf was not afraid. There was nothing for Rose to be afraid of anymore. Bad Wolf stepped forward and looked at the man who had hurt her Rose. The Valeyard's rage was nothing compared to Bad Wolf's. She released the hold she had over his mouth with a wave of her hand and waited.

"Let. Me. Go. Release me now." He punctuated each word, making it a command that Rose would not have been able to fight before. But that was gone now.

"Sorry to tell you, Valeyard, but that's not going to happen. You no longer have control over Rose. She broke free of your bonds."

The Valeyard frowned. It was obvious that he didn't realize that the person standing before him was not Rose. Bad Wolf smiled at his confusion. It was cruel smile, promising pain and humiliation. Rose stood behind her, hiding from the Valeyard's glare. Fear poured off her in waves.

Be calm, Rose. He cannot hurt you anymore. Bad Wolf said to Rose.

Rose whined slightly. I know. It's just difficult. He's so angry.

As am I.

"Why is your wolf whining? Is she scared of you now?" the Valeyard sneered.

"Why would she be scared of me? She has nothing to fear. It is you who should be afraid. You see, it's time for you to feel the wrath of Bad Wolf."

"You will not hurt me, Rose. You love me."

Bad Wolf smiled again, leaned in close to his ear and said, "I am Bad Wolf." She was satisfied to see the Valeyard's face pale. He looked down to the gold wolf next to her. Instantly he understood. Bad Wolf occupied Rose's body and Rose occupied the wolf's.

"Please. Please don't," he pleaded. "Rose wouldn't want that. She loves me. She wouldn't want to see me hurt."

Rose growled, showing him her long teeth. It was obvious to everyone that Rose would love nothing better than to see him in pain.

Can I bite him?

Bad Wolf smirked. Not yet.

Rose huffed her annoyance but nodded. Tell him I do not love him. My love for him died on the day he killed me.

Bad Wolf repeated Rose's words. They weren't surprised when anger returned to his face. He fought hard against Bad Wolf's restraints but there was nothing he could do. He was trapped and he knew it.

"This is what is going to happen. You will feel the pain you inflicted on Rose. You will feel her terror. You will feel everything you ever did to her. You will suffer."

"No. You can't do this to me."

"Don't worry, Valeyard. You won't be alone." Bad Wolf looked to Rose. "Now."

The wolf leapt forward and sank her teeth into the Valeyard's leg. He let out a howl of pain as bone broke and muscles tore under the wolf's powerful jaws. Rose jumped back and hacked. Blood dripped from her mouth and she looked disgusted.

Gross. Not very pleasant but highly satisfying.

Bad Wolf agreed on that end. It was satisfying to see the Valeyard in such pain. The wolf next to her dissolved and Rose returned to Bad Wolf's body. She smiled her cruel smile and looked at the Valeyard as she opened a dark hole beneath his feet. It looked ominous but the drop wasn't far. It was the fear she was going for.

"See you soon," she said as she waved. The Valeyard's eyes, full of pain, now turned fearful as he looked below. Bad Wolf released the bonds on his body and he fell into the dark cell below.

Now let's go get the Doctor, Rose said.


The Doctor was beyond frustrated. He was bored. A bored Doctor was never a good thing. He'd been floating in space for at least a month, perhaps longer, waiting for Rose. Now she was back and he was still doing nothing. Nothing! He'd cleared out the storage room, cleaned and dusted the entire place, fixed things that didn't need fixing, found missing items and lost even more; he was bored.

Rose was down there, on Earth, in London, with her TARDIS. She'd come through the Void and had completely ignored him! What happened? Why? She said she was coming. Well here she was, back in this universe, and she was completely ignoring him. He had to admit, he was insulted.

He stared at the odd bit of alien technology in his hand with a frown. It looked like absolute rubbish. With a sigh, he tossed it over his shoulder and got up. That was it. He wasn't going to wait anymore. The Doctor walked quickly to the console room and began to set coordinates for the Powell Estate.

Just as he was about to pull the lever to send the TARDIS into the Vortex, there was a huge lurch and the Doctor went crashing to the ground. Looking around in confusion, the Doctor looked to the monitor. They were in the Vortex but he wasn't flying. The TARDIS was being towed by another TARDIS.

"Rose!" the Doctor exclaimed. "Where the hell are you taking me?"

There wasn't much he could do. It didn't matter anyway. A few moments later he heard the familiar sound of a landing TARDIS. The monitor showed that they were no longer in the Time Vortex. Rose had pulled him somewhere and it was time to find out what was going on.

With a slight hesitation, the Doctor opened the TARDIS doors to a winter wonderland. Rose was standing just inside her TARDIS, her left shoulder resting on the door, her arms cross, with a smile on her face. Shock slammed through the Doctor as he stepped out and took a couple steps towards her. She nodded and he heard a slam as his TARDIS doors closed. The Doctor spun and watched in horror as his ship dematerialized right before his eyes.

"Where did you send her?" the Doctor demanded. Rose hadn't moved an inch. She simply smiled at him for a moment before she finally stepped down and walked towards him.

"Don't worry, Doctor. She's with the Ood. She's safe. I would never hurt your TARDIS."

"With the Ood?"

Rose shook her head, "Don't you ever look at where you are before you step outside?"

The Doctor smiled, "Rarely. It makes everything more exciting."

"I've brought us to the Oodsphere. It's a peaceful planet. Nothing will happen to us here."

Rose stepped to the side and gestured towards her TARDIS's open doors. He could see part of the inside and he had a burning to desire to explore. It had been so long since he'd seen much less been inside another TARDIS. So very long. Of course, everything said that this was a horrible trap.

The Doctor looked back to the woman standing near him. He couldn't read her face. He used to be able to read it before…well, before everything. Now he knew nothing. He couldn't read anything. So much had changed. Rose looked harder now. There didn't seem to be any happiness in her eyes. Her eyes were no longer their soft brown but a hard gold. It hurt his hearts to see.

He knew she would stand there all day waiting for him to enter her TARDIS. He was surprised that she wasn't reacting to the cold. Jeans and a simple leather jacket didn't seem to be enough to keep a human warm. Of course, Rose wasn't simply human anymore. With a small sigh, the Doctor walked into the TARDIS.

It had a warmth to it. The cream walls accented the golden hue emanating from the time column. He kneeled on the glass-like floor to see the wires and other equipment below. It was an odd glass, not warm or cold, with gold flecks floating in it. He wrapped his knuckles on it to see what kind of glass it actually was. His tongue could definitely tell-

"Do not lick the floor," Rose told him sternly. She still seemed to know him enough to know him tendencies.

"It's quite beautiful," the Doctor told her as he stood. He went to the center console and fingered the buttons and levers. He couldn't see any signs of the Valeyard's touch in the design and he found that part comforting. "Her song is similar to my TARDIS's."

Rose snorted. "Of course it is, idiot. They're sisters."

They were dancing around the reason the Doctor was here. They both knew it but it seemed like Rose was testing him. He found it unnerving. What did she want? What did she plan on doing? Those questions and more constantly rolled through his brain.

"So," the Doctor said finally, breaking the tense silence after Rose's statement, "what happens next? Where is the Valeyard?"

Rose smiled again and this time it sent a shiver of fear - or was it dread - down his spine. "The Valeyard is currently dealing with an injury he recently received. It's just you and me for now."

"Rose, I am so very sorry for all of this. I didn't know what he would become. I didn't know he would hurt you. I never would have left him with you if I had. You have to know that."

"But you still would have returned her to that parallel world, right?"

"I'm not sure," the Doctor said with a frown, noting the use of 'her' instead of 'me'.

"Rose wanted to travel with you again. She wanted so much to be with you but you left her in the hands of a monster. She had no one. She only had me. I did my best to keep her safe, to keep her sane. I tried to help with the pain. But there was only so much I could do, locked up as I was."

"What are you talking about?"

"I am Bad Wolf, Doctor. Rose has given me control of her body. She doesn't want to hurt anymore and I'm going to make sure of it."

The Doctor's hearts skipped a beat. "Bad Wolf? But, you're crushing her mind! You'll suffocate her." His thoughts instantly went to the time when Cassandra had used the psychograft and entered their bodies.

"Don't be an idiot. I would never harm Rose. I've done everything in my power to protect her. She is safe now because of me. Did you ever wonder why you returned for her after she denied your offer to travel with you in that cold, dark alley?"

"Not really. I don't usually ask more than once but for some reason I did that time. Rose seemed special."

"That's because Rose is special. She was always meant to scatter my name across time and space. Bad Wolf has always existed, but Rose first had to find a way to create me. I had to be born to save you. It's all very complicated."

"A bit timey-wimey, you could say," the Doctor said with a small smile.

"Rose loved you. I was born out of her love for you. She saved your life and then you saved hers. The separation from the fallout of Torchwood was a necessity. She had to be in the parallel world to save the universe from the Daleks. However, she did not need to be returned and left there with a mad meta-crisis."

The Doctor's stomach sank. He had hoped they would remain civil for longer than this. He was nervous and slightly scared. What would Bad Wolf do to him? What did she need to accomplish in the end?

"I thought I was giving her the life she could never have with me."

"Excuses!" Bad Wolf shouted. "You never bothered to ask. You just assumed that leaving her with the other Doctor would make her happy. You didn't think about any of the possible consequences. There has never been a Time Lord meta-crisis. You had no idea what would become of him. Donna's mind would have burned if you hadn't saved her. What if that had happened to him? You didn't prepare her. You didn't explain. You dropped her off and left like you always do. The Doctor, the man who always runs. The man who never looks back, out of shame."

"I regret what happened!" the Doctor yelled back. "I would never have put Rose through this if I had known. But I can't know everything. I do the best I can. I wanted Rose to be happy. That's all I've ever wanted. I wanted her safe and happy."

"Well she was neither safe, nor happy," Bad Wolf said. She approached him, her gold eyes glowing, the aura around her pulsing with power. "I want to show you something before you go get to greet the Valeyard."

Before the Doctor could move or protest, Bad Wolf touched her fingers to his temples. Bad Wolf's mind forced her way past all the Doctor's mental defenses like they were tissue paper. Suddenly a memory that was not his played out before his eyes.

Rose sat on the couch, eyes on the telly, a bowl of popcorn in her lap. She wasn't really watching what was on the screen. No, her thoughts were on the Doctor. He had changed so much lately. Something was going on. Something was wrong. He was more aggressive and more arrogant. He seemed cruel too. That was not a word she had ever associated with the Doctor.

Thoughts consumed by the Doctor's odd behavior, Rose didn't notice him standing in the doorway to the living room until she heard the tell-tale sound of a cocked gun. She looked up, eyes wide, and found herself staring down the barrel of a gun. Her heart pounded in her chest and everything in her told her to run. But running would accomplish nothing. Not now.

"Doctor?" she said in a shaky voice. If she could talk him out of this, everything would be okay. "What are you doing?"

"I'm testing something. You see, I think you can regenerate from any kind of death. I want to see how long it takes. I want to see what your body can handle before you die. Do be a dear and stay still. This will be quick."

"Don't do this. Please, Doctor, don't do this. You don't want to hurt me."

"No, I don't want to hurt you. But I want answers. You have the answers. If I have to hurt you, I will. Don't make this hard. You will regret it."

Rose made to run but the bullet was faster than she was. A brief moment of agony and then darkness.

The Doctor was slammed into reality, breathing heavily. He'd felt every emotion, heard every thought, felt her body flood with adrenaline as she faced death. The Valeyard may have pulled the trigger but the Doctor had left her in a world with no escape.

"That was her first murder. Now, it's time for you to meet the Valeyard."

A hole opened beneath the Doctor's feet and he fell into the unknown below.

"Ta-ta for now!" Bad Wolf said and waved into the dark.