Chapter 49 - Five minutes

"Five minutes!" the Doctor called as he ran around the console. Or rather what was left of it. He climbed up onto it, leaning across to reach a lever. He pulled the lever down and the TARDIS landed roughly, knocking the Doctor off the console to the floor. But he was back on his feet in no time. He'd felt it as he left. That ache in his chest. It had used to terrify him because it meant that Rose was far away. But now it meant that he was still tied to her. He had to be.

The Doctor rushed across the room and flew out of the doors, expecting to see Rose and Amelia waiting for him outside. They weren't. And it was no longer nighttime. It was day. The middle of the day. He'd gotten it wrong.

"Rose!" he screamed as he ran for Amelia's house. "Rose!" He barged through the front door. "Rose! I'm back!" he called as he ran through the house, desperately searching. "I got the timing a bit wrong!" he called.

"What are you doing in my house?"

The Doctor spun around. A policewoman was standing in the doorway to the living room. She was long and slender, leaning her shoulder against the doorjamb.

"I suggest you get out before I call for backup," she told him.

"Where's Rose?" he asked. The woman straightened.

"Rose?"

"Yes, Rose! Blonde girl, stubborn, a smile that can light up a room and truly excruciatingly jeopardy friendly." The policewoman took a step back.

"She isn't here," she said. The Doctor ran frustrating fingers through his hair.

"What about the girl?" he barked. "The little Scottish girl, Amelia Pond."

"Amelia Pond hasn't lived here in a long time," the woman said. She was still backing away from him.

"How long?' the Doctor asked, stalking after her, feeling his hearts beating so fast inside his chest that he was sure he was going to give himself a heart attack. "How long?!" he screamed when the girl wouldn't answer him.

"Six months," she told him.

Six months.

No. He couldn't have left Rose alone for six months. No. He said five minutes. He shook his head in hopeless denial as he stumbled back a step. He'd left her. Left her. He felt like he couldn't breathe. He was always thinking, his mind constantly working but right then it stopped. Froze. Dead. And then he looked at the policewoman. Properly for the first time. The eyes, the dilated pupils, the red hair hidden away in her cap.

"Six months..." He looked at her, feeling dread turning to horror. "Why did you say six months?" he asked, actually surprised he could even speak. "You're lying. Why?" She took another couple of steps back. He could see the fear in her eyes but he made no attempt to easy it. He didn't care if she feared him. Perhaps it was better if she did. Perhaps then she would stop lying to him. "Tell me how long," he said, stalking towards her. "Tell me!" he screamed. She squeezed her eyes shut as though she was steeling herself for a blow.

"Tw...twelve years," she stuttered.

It felt as though the earth dropped away beneath his feet. He fell against the doorjamb, clutching on to it desperately. Twelve years. Twelve years. Twelve years.

"Doctor?" the policewoman asked carefully. Very, very carefully.

"You're Amelia," he said. "You're the little girl." He couldn't breathe, couldn't think. It was like his whole body had grown numb. "I got it wrong." He let his forehead rest against the doorjamb. "Where's Rose?" he asked, knowing every bit of what he felt was in his voice.

"I don't know," Amelia answered.

"Just tell me where she is," he said, his voice sounding broken even to his own ears. He'd been this for all of a few hours and he'd already managed to let her down beyond repair. Rose Tyler. The girl he'd love until the day he died. And he'd abandoned her. Abandoned her for twelve years. Twelve years for him was a flicker, a blink of an eye. However bright that flicker might be. But for a human. For a human twelve years was a lifetime. So much could happen. Amelia Pond was proof of that. The last time he'd seen her she'd been a little girl and now she was grown. What had happened to Rose in that time? His beautiful, beautiful Rose who was perhaps too human to love him anymore. But at least then there had been a chance. Perhaps he could have won her heart again. At least he could have tried. But twelve years. He'd left her behind for twelve years. Nothing he could ever do was going to fix this.

"I really don't know," Amelia said. "She hasn't been here for a long time."

"Tell me what happened," he said, still not sure how he was even standing. He knew he was clutching the doorframe so tightly his fingers were beginning to ache, the wood squeaking in protest beneath his panicked grip. None of that seemed to matter. He didn't care if he broke the wood into splinters or if he cracked the bones of his fingers. He vaguely heard Amelia talking, answering his question, telling him what had happened. The crack in her wall, something had come out of it. A prisoner zero. Shapeshifting alien. Dangerous. But Rose had saved them. Returned the thing to its jailers. After that she'd waited for a while, Amelia said. Then one night she'd told Amelia goodbye and she'd left. Amelia had no idea where she might have gone.

"Somewhere familiar," the Doctor muttered. "She'd go somewhere familiar. Some place she'd know. Where she could find someone to help her." He straightened. Jack. Surely she'd go to Cardiff and Torchwood. She would find Jack because he might have been able to help.

The Doctor pushed away from the doorframe, forcing himself to stay on his feet. He had a heading. He would find her. If only he could feel her like he used to he would have been able to find her in a heartbeat. He rubbed his hand over his chest. It was really starting to hurt. Almost as much as when... when he thought he'd lost her. Unsuccessfully he tried to shake the feeling. He had to focus. He left Amelia Pond and hurried out of the house.

"Doctor!" she called after him, but he wasn't stopping. "Let me come with you," she said, hurrying after him. "Let me help."

"No," he said.

"You didn't just promise her," Amelia pointed out. "You promised me too." He stopped and turned on her.

"Do you remember what I said to you about her when you were little?" he asked her. There was no kindness in his tone, no softness. There was only one thing that mattered to him at that moment.

"Something about her being your sun," Amelia said. "And the world was dark without her."

"That was nothing," he spat. "Not even half of it. She's not the sun, she is everything. She runs through me like blood." He pointed towards his arm for emphasis, indicating the blue veins snaking beneath his pale skin. He could much less let go of his love for Rose as cut out his own heart. "Without her there isn't darkness there is nothing. Hell, Amelia. Cold and hollow and endless!" He gesticulated harshly with his hands, every movement wrought with anger and panic.

Amelia, not so surprisingly held her ground despite his anger.

"Do you understand?" he asked her, his voice hard and unforgiving. Amelia nodded.

"There isn't anything you won't do," Amelia said. "Nothing that will stop you."

"And you still want to come with me, Amelia Pond?" he asked. He watched as she pulled herself up.

"Yes," she said. Brave. Just as brave as when she'd been just a girl, he thought. "And it's Amy."

"Very well, Amy." The Doctor put his hand in his pocket and pulled out the TARDIS key. It was glowing, pulsing. The TARDIS was done. All the calibrations finished, the eye of harmony stabilised.

He turned to look at his beautiful ship. She was a bluer blue than before. Looked like the old girl had given herself a paint job. A smile tugged at his lips as he walked over. He ran his hand over the wood. Hope you're ready for this, he thought as he put the key in the lock and twisted it. He pushed opened the doors and walked into a big room. Far bigger than it had been. No longer a ramp leading up to the console but a wide space taking him to a set of stairs. He walked up them to a platform holding the centre console. It was still shaped in much the same manner. But the monitor appeared to be attached to the top. He could still pull it around with him though. Gone was the grated floor, instead it looked to be made of something similar to plexiglass. The space was not only bigger but brighter, not as dark and grungy as before. But even though this was perhaps flashier and maybe even more efficiently constructed he still found himself missing the old setting a little. It had been so raw and stripped down. Like it was breathing the very heart of the old ship and all that she had been through.

He ran his hand along the console. You're beautiful, he thought to the ship. You'll help me find her, won't you? He looked up at the time rotor at the centre of the console and the TARDIS gave a low sweet sound as to reassure him. A part of the console whizzed and out came something shiny. The Doctor reached over and picked it out. A new screwdriver. Bigger than the last one. He pointed it a head of him. A green light instead of blue lit up the tip.

"Trying to cheer me up?" he told the TARDIS, thankful that she was trying. He flicked the screwdriver into the air and caught it easily. He'd done that a million times after all.

"Oh, my god," Amy was breathing from behind him as she made her way up the stairs. "She wasn't kidding. She said there was a whole world in here."

"Yeah," the Doctor agreed, pulling the big lever to get the TARDIS going. He didn't have time for the whole -it's bigger on the inside- thing.

Next stop Cardiff.

But it soon became rather evident that they were not heading for Cardiff.

"What is going on?!" Amy shouted as she clung to the console for dear life.

"How should I know!" the Doctor shouted back as the ship shook.

"I thought this was your ship!" Amy reminded him.

"Yeah, well that doesn't necessarily mean she listens to me!"

"She?!"

The Doctor didn't answer as he pulled himself over to the monitor, grabbing it and staring at the readout. Huon particles. Oh, he was so stupid. Stupid, stupid Doctor. The bond between him and Rose might not work like it should but she still had Huon particles in her blood which meant the TARDIS could find her. The TARDIS would always be able to find her.

A rather violent shake made both the Doctor and Amy loose their grip and they tumbled to the floor.

"You ok?" the Doctor asked Amy but all he got was a series of giggles in return. The Doctor got to his feet, hurrying over to the redhead on the floor, not sure if the giggles were do to hysteria or just amusement. He stared down at her.

"Amy?" he asked, a little worried at the noises she was making. She looked up at him, suppressing her laughter.

"Fine," she assured him and he held out his hand for her. She took it and he pulled her up. "Where are we?" Amy straightened her short skirt and cleared her throat, trying to regain some sense of severity.

The Doctor looked at the monitor.

"Way away," he said. "We're not even on Earth."

"We.. we're in space?" Amy asked. He could hear a hint of excitement in her voice. He wished he could have done this better. Under different circumstances he was sure he would have liked to show Amy Pond the universe.

The Doctor ran down the stairs and over to the door. There he stopped with his hand on the handle. He glanced down at himself. He was still in his old clothes, torn and ragged. He remembered how Rose's gaze had run over him back in Amy's room and tears had filled her eyes as she saw he was still wearing those same clothes. If she by some miracle was out there. If the TARDIS had taken him to her then he had to do everything he could, everything he could possibly think of to somehow make this better. He turned and nearly bumped into Amy, hurrying past her.

"What are you doing?!" she called after him.

"I need to change my shirt!" he called back and disappeared inside the TARDIS.

He quickly located the huge wardrobe. It had grown over the years. By now it was several floors, filled to the brink with all manner of clothes from different worlds and different ages. It also held all the outfits he'd favoured in the past, discarded beneath mountains of others. But if he searched he'd probably be able to find them all. He wondered if the echo of who he'd been could still be felt between the threads. If he held them could he more easily remember the men he'd been. The things he'd valued and loved. He could vow and promise to Rose that he was the same man and essentially he was, at his core he was. But every time he regenerated he did change. It would be a lie to say he didn't. And he didn't want to lie. Not to her. Not ever again.

The Doctor rummaged through the rather impressive wardrobe, discarding long coats and ties. He needed something that said he was still the same man but didn't remind her of what she'd lost. Some part of him realised that at the end of the day it wouldn't matter what he wore. But he had to try. What else did he have?

Eventually he settled for dark pants, a cream coloured shirt and a tweed jacket. He found he simply couldn't resist a pair of suspenders but he still felt like something was missing. For some reason a memory of Rose flashed by his mind. A memory of being with her. How she'd wrap her fingers around his tie and pull him close. He needed something around his neck. Something... He rummaged through some drawers, growing increasingly more desperate. Until something red fell out and landed at his feet. He bent down and picked it up, a smile spreading on his face. Perfect.

He looped it around his neck and tied it quickly, rushing out of the wardrobe and back to the console room. Amy was standing by the door, leaning against the wall, waiting for him. He held out his arms and spun in front of her.

"What do you think?" he asked. "Will it do?" Amy looked him up and down. She wrinkled her nose as her eyes stopped at his collar.

"A bowtie?" she asked sceptically. He reached up and straightened it.

"Bowties are cool," he said defensively.

"If you say so," Amy said. He glared a little at her as he walked past but she just smiled at him. He got the sense that Amy Pond was quite brilliant. Just as he had with Donna. Like if things were different they might have played a larger role in his life. So if someone had to stand and watch his destruction perhaps there was none better. Perhaps Amy would even pick up the broken pieces. Because there was no doubt in his mind that there would be a lot of broken pieces. Which he'd rightly deserve. Who knew what kind of state he'd find Rose in.

The thought made the Doctor stop, again with his hand on the door handle.

"Doctor?" Amy asked softly from behind him.

"What if she actually is out there?" he asked.

"What do you mean? Isn't that what you want?"

"Twelve years. Twelve years, Amy." He shook his head. "How could she ever forgive me for this?" He felt Amy's hand on his shoulder.

"She deserves to know why you were gone," Amy said. "You owe her that."

He nodded, drawing in a hasty breath. He pulled opened the door and stepped out before he had a chance to think anymore about it. The minute he did a laser blast whisked past, missing his head by inches. He ducked. Amy came out of the TARDIS after him and immediately he clasped her hand and yanked her down a mere millisecond before she would have gotten shot. He looked around frantically. They were in a hallway. High polished floors made of some kind of green stone, walls of something resembling oak and coming running down the hallway was a platoon of Jadoon. More laser blasts blew past, some striking the TARDIS. His new shiny TARDIS.

"Watch the paint job!" he shouted angrily as he realised that it wasn't the Judoon that were firing. They were running away from whoever was doing the shooting.

"Why did you land us in a war?!" Amy growled at him.

"It's not my fault!" he told her. The Judoon ran past them, always in formation, their heavy feet drumming against the stone floor.

He wasn't sure why but something made him look up. Just as the Judoon turned a corner up ahead there was a break in their ranks and through it he saw a wisp of blonde hair. It was whipped back and as his eyes met hers for only a second everything stopped. And he thought he could see everything in that single scrap of time. All the stars and all the worlds in the universe, every past and every future as though they burned at the heart of time itself. With him. Rose.

The Doctor shot to his feet as she disappeared with the Judoon. He ran after her. He didn't even think, couldn't even remember that there were someone still shooting.

"Doctor!" Amy screamed as she ran after him. But he wasn't listening. The Judoon had Rose. The fragile truce they'd struck with the Architect was apparently broken. He thought of Rose in one of those black cells he'd broken Annabelle Conn out of and felt his stomach turn. You couldn't put something as beautiful and free as Rose Tyler in a cage. It was a violation. A breach of the very laws of nature. She should always be free. Always.

The Judoon were efficient and mercenary but thankfully they weren't very fast. The Doctor caught up with them at the end of the next hallway. They shot the locking mechanism of a door that slid opened, all of them rushing inside. He scrambled in after them, Amy just managing to get in before the door slid shut behind her.

They were standing in a big room. The floor was the same green, high polished stone, a long red carpet ran from where they were standing to what looked like a set of three thrones up on big dais. Huge archways covered one wall and seemed to be built out of trees made of gold, growing out of the floor and curving their leaf covered branches over the arches. They were so realistic it was as though someone had poured liquid gold over living trees and let the metal harden. The bright light from outside fell on the floor and caught on individual small shards in the green stone making it sparkle like emeralds. Banners in red and white hung from the high ceiling overhead.

"That should hold them for a while."

Rose. Rose's voice. The Doctor spun around. She stepped away from the door, her back to him. Her blonde hair was tied into two french braids but most of it had come undone. Turn around, he begged silently. He was starved for her face. It didn't matter that, to him it had only been a short while since he'd seen her. It felt like a lifetime. She turned.

Oh, he'd never known beauty quite like hers, he thought. Because her beauty wasn't contained to her face. It shone out of her, brightening everything it touched. Perhaps it was only his love for her speaking, he thought. He wouldn't exactly call himself objective where she was concerned.

But she was healthy. Not weak and frail as last he'd seen her. There was colour in her cheeks and her eyes were alight. She looked as strong and alive as ever.

Her name was on his lips but it fell silent as she strode past without even looking at him.

"We need to get back to the ship," she told the Judoon. "These Tharzies are a pain."

"Ship is ready and waiting," One of the Judoon informed her. The Doctor stared as it dawned on him. He had thought she was a captive. That the Shadow proclamation had gotten it into their heads that she might be a danger again but Rose wasn't a captive at all. She was clearly the one in charge. He'd thought to rush to her rescue but she didn't need saving.

"Rose..." The Doctor finally managed to get sound past his lips. But Rose acted as though he hadn't said a word.

"Show me a map," she told one of the Judoon. The Judoon held up a small device, undoubtedly showing her the map she'd asked for. "If we cut through here," she said, pointing to the map. "We should be able to reach the ship before they get to it." The Judoon nodded their agreement. "Alright, boys," she told the big rhino-looking Judoon. "Let's get going."

And they all headed away across the big throne room as though the Doctor and Amy weren't even there. Amy came over to the Doctor's side, putting a comforting hand on his arm.

"She didn't even look at me," he said, his voice filled with hurt disbelief. Whatever he might have expected it had not been this. Never this. Not even at the end of all the universe would he ever have thought that they'd mean nothing to each other.

"I'm sorry," Amy told him.

"It was like I wasn't even there." This was worse, he thought. He'd suffered her hate and her mistrust but indifference? Indifference was far worse than hate could ever be.

The Doctor tore free from Amy's hold and strode after Rose. He couldn't accept this, he thought. He deserved her hatred. He deserved whatever hurtful words she'd want to throw at him, even actual things being thrown at him. But this. Her not even caring. It was a lie. They could never be nothing to each other. Not ever. No amount of time or regenerations could do that.

"Rose!" he called after her. She didn't even slow her pace. "Rose!" Nothing. He ran over, pushing his way past the Judoon. He clasped her arm, pulling her to a stop. Immediately the Judoon where there. They grabbed him roughly, his grip slipping from Rose as they tossed him away. He spun back towards them, anger and humiliation flaring in his chest.

"Easy," he told them. "I know her." He pointed towards Rose who had not yet turned around. The Judoon had placed themselves in front of him, shielding her. "Rose!" he called again. There was no reaction from her. None at all. The Doctor moved forwards, ready to fight his way to her if he had to. But the big, burly Judoon simply pushed him away.

"Stay back," one of them warned him.

"I know her!" he insisted. "Rose!" he called to her again. "Just look at me!" The Doctor pushed his hair out of his eyes. "I'm sorry! You have no idea how much! Rose, please! It was an accident! I would never leave you behind you know that!" His hearts were fluttering madly inside his chest. Panic was beginning to run along his nerves. He couldn't have ruined this for good. He couldn't. "Rose!"

He watched as she turned slowly back around. She raised her gaze and her eyes met his. There was no hint of emotion within them. Nothing he could read. No anger. No hate. And certainly no joy at seeing him again. He mouthed her name silently.

"Doctor," she said. He didn't think he'd ever heard her say his name like that. As though she spoke the title not the name. He'd heard many variations through the years. Some spoke it with confusion, adoration, or relief. Other's with anger or distain. Rose had often said it with love. With just that little spark of affection that let him know he was important to her. He'd heard her sigh it passion, pulled from her lips without conscious thought. She'd even screamed it in hate, spitting it out of her mouth as though it was foul or pleaded it in fear, the word torn from the very heart of her. But never had he heard her utter it with no inflection at all.

The Doctor opened his mouth to speak but no sound came. He might even have stopped breathing, he wasn't sure. Perhaps he'd forgotten how. Surely there was no use in knowing how to when Rose Tyler was looking at him as though he meant nothing.

Rose gave him one final glance and then she turned and walked away again, the Judoon quickly followed, moving into formation around her. It was the strangest feeling, the Doctor thought. As though something essential was torn from him. Ripped out. He felt gutted. What was he if Rose no longer cared for him?

"Doctor." It was Amelia, hunkering down in front of him. He wasn't even aware he'd fallen. He was the Doctor, he thought. That's who he was. But how could he be that without Rose? She'd been his compass. She'd been his soul. "Get up," Amy told him. Some loud banging echoed through the room but it was a distant thing. He imagined whoever was chasing Rose and the Judoon were trying by force to get through the door she'd sealed. "You have to get up!" Amy insisted. But he couldn't get his muscles to move. Nothing seemed to work. He stared at his hands, feeling as though their shape and use were completely foreign to him. "Rose!" Amy screamed and Rose actually stopped. She glanced back over her shoulder.

Her face he knew. It was seared into him. Even if he wanted to he could never tear it out. It was a part of him as much as the blood pumping through his veins. He was Gallifreyan and this is how they loved long before they were Time Lords. This was exactly why as Time Lord's they'd no longer been allowed. Because loving like this was dangerous when you had the power to bend time and space to your desires and you only desired one thing.

The Doctor could feel Rose's eyes on him but he didn't meet them. He couldn't bear to see that look in her eyes again. The look that told him she no longer wanted him. That he was utterly alone once more. "Help me!" Amy called. There was a moment of indecision and then Rose turned to the Judoon, telling them something. She ran over to Amy and the Doctor while the Judoon continued on without her. And suddenly her face swam into focus in front of his. He hadn't expected that she would come back. Why had she come back?

"Get up," Rose told him and for a moment he was too stunned to even understand what she'd said.

"Why?" he asked then, looking at her with all the incomprehension he felt. Why should he get up? What was the point in doing that? He saw a flash of something in Rose's eyes. Some spark of fire.

"Because you are not weak," she said, grabbing his arm. "And you're still needed. Now, get up!"

Rose practically hauled him to his feet, his legs shaky as he regained his balance. Her hand was suddenly at his chest, pressed right between his hearts. He stared at her in surprise.

"Breathe," she told him, her eyes focused on his. He gasped, realising he really had just simply stopped breathing. "Good," she said as he matched his intake of breath with hers. "Good." Instinctively he reached his mind towards hers. If things had still been the same it is what he would have done. And if things were still the same she would have met him. She didn't. All he met was a wall. Not the kind of mental wall she'd put up before to try and shield her emotions from him. It felt different.

"You with me?" Rose asked him.

"Always," he replied. It startled her, her hand dropping from where it still rested against his chest.

A loud bang suddenly made Rose's attention snap away. The door they'd entered through blew off its hinges, crashing to floor. A Guard of surely twenty men spilled in from the opening, their armour polished and shining, weapons raised. Rose took a step back from the Doctor and sighed.

"Now look what you've gone and done," she said.

"Me?" The Doctor's voice rose to a pitch as he looked from the guards to Rose. "It was not me they were shooting at," he pointed out.

"No, but you were the one who thought it a good a idea to sit on the floor during an escape...-"

"You were walking away from me," he interrupted her since this was quite enough of a reason. Rose turned her gaze to his.

"You walked away first," she pointed out and he felt pain lash though his gut at that.

"Not on purpose," he said. "Rose you have to...-" the Doctor began but Amy cut him off.

"Guys," she interrupted, pulling their attention away from each other. "Sorry, but perhaps you can talk about this later?" She nodded towards the guards, their guns trained on the three of them.

They watched as a man with hair green as moss and cheekbones sharp enough to cut paper strode into the room. He was dressed in the colours of the banners overhead, a blazing crest of a shimmering golden tree on his chest. He had the air of arrogance and self importance that came to being born to power. The Doctor would bet his new bowtie on one of those thrones belonging to him. The man's eyes immediately fixed on Rose

"You took what I didn't give you, wolf," he said, his voice petulant. It took only a moment for Rose to gather herself.

"You changed the terms of the agreement, prince," Rose pointed out, turning towards the prince and placing her hands behind her back.

"I thought the terms fair." A greedy smile spread on the prince's lips.

"Fair or not a deal is a deal," Rose informed him. She pulled up her sleeve behind her back so the Doctor was the only one who saw what was on her wrist.

Suddenly a lot of things made sense. How she was here, so far away from Earth and her time, why she'd been ok with sending the Judoon on ahead. Because around her wrist was a vortex manipulator. The Doctor had forgotten she had it. And this meant there was no way of knowing how much time had passed for her. It could have been two months or twenty years.

"Yes," the prince agreed. "I've heard that about you. The Shadow proclamations little wolf. Never goes back on a deal. Always keeps her word."

The Doctor started in surprise. Rose was working for the Shadow Proclamation? With the Architect who had wanted nothing more than to lock her up last time they'd seen her? That made absolutely no sense. Except how else did she have a Jadoon platoon to order around?

"Then you should also know it isn't wise to cross me," Rose warned. The prince laughed.

"I just wanted to see you howl," the man said, smiling like a boy eyeing a delicious piece of candy.

"Trust me," Rose said. "You really don't." And the Doctor remembered the way Rose's eyes could turn bright gold, energy pulsing through her like fire. He felt a rush of fear. If she still had all that running through her veins there was no telling what destruction would follow if she let it run wild. If the wolf howled so to speak. She could lay waste to the entire room, the entire planet. Instinctively the Doctor moved towards her.

"Rose..." a warning for her to be careful in his tone. She glanced at the Doctor, her eyes their normal, familiar colour and he relaxed slightly. She turned back to the prince.

"We'll just be on our way, your highness," she said.

The Doctor discreetly motioned Amy closer, knowing what Rose was planning on doing. The prince didn't seem to notice. His attention was on Rose like a hound on point. The Doctor wondered if the prince was aware that should it come down to it he was the rabbit not the hound.

"On your way?" he mocked. "I think not." He indicated the Guard around him with a delicate flourish of his hand. "Either you give back what you took or I'll simply take it from your cold dead fingers. You won't be so pretty after I've had you shot."

"Ok," Rose said and both the Doctor and Amy looked from Rose to the prince and back again in alarm. "Shoot us."

"What?" the Doctor asked, startled. "No, don't shoot us. No shooting. Rose!"

"Go ahead," Rose said.

"Rose, maybe don't taunt the guys with the guns," Amy suggested under her breath. Rose smiled.

"I dare you," she told the prince and gave him a wink. At the same moment Rose activated the manipulator. The Doctor lunged for her, pulling Amy with him.

They saw the light as the guns fired but the blasts never reached them. They were savagely yanked forwards and falling down at the same time. Hurtling through empty space at blinding speeds only to suddenly slam into solid ground.

The Doctor just managed to catch himself against the TARDIS while Rose stood absolutely still as though she'd done this a hundred times. And for all the Doctor knew she had. He could tell they'd travelled in space but not time. They'd simply teleported back to where he'd parked the TARDIS.

The Doctor glanced up at Rose as she looked around the hall.

"Doctor," she said. "Where's Amy?" The Doctor used the TARDIS to push himself up straight. He stared around in disbelief. He and Rose were the only ones standing in the hallway. There was no sign of Amy. "Didn't you grab her?!" Rose accused.

"I did," he professed. He had. He looked down at his hand. He could still feel the memory of Amy's as he'd clasped it. "I must have lost her," he said, remembering the guards firing right before they were torn away. He looked over at Rose. "What if she got hit?" he asked.

Rose met his eyes for a moment then she turned away and strode over to the wall. She began examining it.

"I need your screwdriver," she said, holding out her hand. The Doctor reached inside his jacket pocket and pulled it out, putting it into her outstretched hand. She took it and froze, staring at it. Rose pressed the button, the tip lighting up green.

"You got a new one," she said.

"Yeah, the old one... it was broken," The Doctor scratched his head. "Couldn't get it to work and you know... new, new Doctor. New, new sonic screwdriver." He laughed nervously. Rose had her back to him so he couldn't see her expression and no bond meant he had no way of telling what she was feeling.

"It's bigger," Rose remarked and ran the sonic over the wall.

"I am not compensating for anything," the Doctor stupidly assured.

"Good to... know."

A panel of the wall finally released and Rose pulled it opened, drawing out a section that held something that looked much like a laptop. Rose opened it, the screen lighting up. She handed the sonic back to the Doctor over her shoulder. The Doctor took it without comment, putting it back inside his pocket.

Rose ran her fingers rapidly over the keys until the screen showed her what she wanted. Which was security footage of the throne room.

"She's alive." The Doctor came up to Rose's side, feeling relief flood through him at the sight of Amy. She was standing between two guards with the prince pacing before her.

"Well, she is a policewoman after all," the Doctor said. Rose glanced at him.

"Dressed like that?" Rose pointed out and the Doctor glanced back at her.

"She's in a uniform," he said.

"Doesn't mean she protects and serves," Rose remarked.

The prince was gesticulating madly. He looked rather upset. The Doctor and Rose watched as the guards took a hold of Amy and strode off with her, disappearing out of the frame.

"Where are they taking her?" the Doctor asked with worry.

"Hang on." Rose's finger ran over the keys. She flipped through image after image until finally they spotted Amy and the guards again. "There she is."

"Where is that? Where are they going?" the Doctor wanted to know.

"Let's see."

They followed Amy and the guards on the security cameras as they walked down the halls.

"They're probably taking her somewhere they can detain her," Rose said thoughtfully.

"What? Like a dungeon? Do they have dungeons?" Rose gave him a sideways look.

"Yes, Doctor," she said with sarcasm. "Of course they have dungeons and also dragons." The Doctor crossed his arms over his chest.

"They could have dragons," he muttered churlishly. Rose tapped away at the keys, the picture changing, following Amy and the guards.

"Are there dragons?" Rose asked then. "Like anywhere, I mean?"

"The universe is wast and ridiculous," the Doctor said. "There are Cheata people, Krynoids, headless monks, sea devils and red things covered in suckers. Of course there are dragons."

Rose folded the screen back down and pushed it back in, closing the panel.

"Ok, let's go," she said and headed off as though she hadn't really paid much attention to his answer. The Doctor scrambled to follow.

"Wait! Rose, where are we going?"

"We're getting Amy, o' course," she said over her shoulder. She walked over to another wall. "Sonic," she said, holding out her hand again.

"Yes, ok but how?" the Doctor asked. "How exactly do we do that?" Rose turned towards him. "I mean, is there a plan? Or an idea perhaps? Maybe even a thought?" She reached into his jacket pocket, making him very effectively shut up. The Doctor held his breath as she retrieved the screwdriver, silently wishing he'd been quicker in giving it to her. She took it as though it was nothing, turning back to the wall. She ran the screwdriver over it as she continued walking.

"We are going to head them off," Rose informed him. She stopped, dropping to her knees and traced the sonic over an area close to the floor. The Doctor had no idea what she was up to. Usually it was him running around and pulling her along. Now it was the other way around.

"Rose?" he asked carefully.

"Mmhm." She kept her focus on the screwdriver as she worked.

"How long?"

"How long, what?"

"You know, what."

At first it seemed as though she wouldn't answer.

"A while," she said then. There was a small pop and a new section of the wall released. Rose pulled it opened.

"What is it with these walls?" the Doctor asked, looking around at them with newfound suspicion.

"It's this thing," Rose replied. "They hide everything in the walls. Nothing should be out in the open."

"Seems devious"

"They are devious," Rose confirmed. "Now, come on." She crawled into the man- sized hole she'd uncovered. The Doctor got down on his knees and followed.

The space inside was spacious enough to sit in without having to bend over.

"Pardon me," Rose said and leaned right over his lap. Instantly he pushed his back flat against the wall. She reached over and pulled the hatch shut behind them and the Doctor prayed she'd hurry up and get off him. She put her hand on his thigh to push herself back and he jumped in surprise, hitting his head on the ceiling.

"Ouch," he growled.

"Sorry."

"Not your fault," he muttered as he rubbed at his head. Rose was still really close, her hand still on his thigh. His eyes caught on hers. She didn't move. "Rose..." He watched her wearily. "What are you doing?" He felt her hand against his chest but he was too caught up in her eyes to glance down and see what she was doing. To his complete and utter surprise her hand stole in beneath his jacket and he was sure she must be able to feel his hearts thundering inside his chest.

He wanted to grab her and kiss her. He thought he might never have wanted it more. But kissing Rose had never been simple. No matter how much time they'd spent together they had never had a chance to fall into that relaxed way of being close. Not since long before the bond. And even then every touch had been wrought with yearning for what he knew he couldn't have. She might not have known it but back then he'd taken every excuse. Every opportunity to touch her and repeatedly tried to convince himself it was enough.

It hadn't been. He didn't think it ever could be. Not with them. Not for him.

Rose put the sonic back inside his jacket pocket and his brain finally caught up to what she was doing.

"Thanks," she said and turned away. "This leads to a set of passages that should let us get ahead of them."

Rose crawled away as the Doctor stared after her. He took a couple of deep breaths, trying to steady his erratic beating hearts. But to no avail. He was a mess. A mess of fear and doubt and loss. And once again he was earning for what he most likely never could have again. Fate was a cruel master. Giving her to him and repeatedly taking her away. He was afraid that one of these times he was going to fall because of it and he wouldn't be getting back up again.

The Doctor forced himself to move, following after Rose. Soon the small space widened enough for them to easily stand but it was still tight enough that their shoulders brushed the walls as they walked.

"How do you even have any idea where to go?" the Doctor wondered, clearing his throat when the words came out as nothing much more than a croak.

"Well, I did my best to memorise a map of the building before we got here," Rose said. "Not sure I really remember it all though."

They followed the twist and turns through the walls. Rose only hesitating now and then at intersections.

"So exactly how long is a while?" the Doctor asked.

"Maybe we should just focus on getting Amy," Rose suggested. "Before they throw her in a dungeon guarded by dragons."

"Was that a joke, Rose Tyler?" the Doctor asked. She didn't answer and he couldn't tell much by just the back of her head. "If nothing else we used to have fun, you know," he said. "Do you remember that?"

"I do," she admitted. "I also remember you saying you'd be back in five minutes."

The Doctor felt a horrible twinge of guilt. He'd promised he would never leave her again. He'd sworn it on his life. On every life. But as soon as he'd changed he'd broken that promise. Unintentionally perhaps but broken it none the less. And he had no idea how to make it up to her. Especially since she appeared to be rather uninterested in even letting him try.

"You know I didn't mean for this to happen," he said. "I would never consciously leave you, you know that."

At first Rose said nothing and he thought that perhaps she couldn't even be bothered to answer.

"Actually I don't really know that," she finally said. "New, new Doctor and all."

"Some things change when I regenerate." The Doctor's voice had a touch of darkness to it. He didn't like that she questioned this. It scared him. It meant she no longer had much faith in him. If any at all. "But not everything. You of all people should know that." To this she didn't reply at all which rather bothered him. So he got his arm in front of her and placed his palm against the wall. She stumbled to a halt and reluctantly turned towards him. "Rose..." he began with severity.

"Doctor," she interrupted him. "We really don't have time for this. We need to get Amy."

"They won't hurt her," he said. "She's the bait." Rose sighed with annoyance.

"Yeah, well this space is a bit cramped."

"I'm sure you can handle it," he said.

"Yeah, well..." Rose grabbed his arm and pushed it away. "...doesn't mean I fancy it," she said and continued on down the hallway clearly not interested in what he had to say.

"Rose wait!" he called after her, probably too loudly. And of course she didn't bother to head him. "Rose stop!" He grabbed her hand and gasped a little in surprise. He felt nothing. No spark of electricity, no rush of euphoria. Only her soft skin beneath his hand.

When he'd felt that familiar pressure over his chest as he'd left he was sure that the bond was still there. Even now he felt it. Like something essential was missing from him. How could that be when the link between them was clearly broken?

"The bond," he breathed. "It really is gone." Rose tore free from his hold and marched off down the passageway without a word. The Doctor hurried after her. She turned and pushed him away before he had a chance to get close.

"Don't!" she told him sharply. Light was coming from somewhere overhead, it sparked of her eyes. There was fire in them. Fire not indifference.

"Rose, talk to me," he asked of her. "Just talk to me."

"No," she told him, trying to walk away but he stopped her. How could he not? If he hadn't lost her already he surely was well on his way and how could he just stand there and let that happen? She pushed at his chest and he fought against her.

"Rose, just listen for two seconds," he ground out in frustration.

"There is no time," she told him. "Let go of me."

"Not until you hear me out!" He yanked her within an inch of his face. "I know I'm not who I was," growled and saw something flicker deep inside her eyes. But he didn't think he had the time to stop and try to discern what it might mean. "Not to you. But I love you, Rose!" He shook her once. "I'll always love you! I'll always want you! And if you're scared, if that's why you're treating me like this..."

"I'm not scared," she interrupted.

"Well, good," he said. "Because you have me. Always. Even if you can no longer... " he trailed off, struggling to get the words out. He swallowed hard. "...love me," he finished.

For just a moment he thought she might say something. Anything. But she didn't. Rose roughly twisted free from his hold and strode off without a word.

"Is that all you have to say?" he called after her. She didn't stop and he hurried to catch up to her. "Do you have any idea how long it took for me to be able to tell you that?" he asked as they continued down the passageway. "How long it took for me to stop being afraid?" She didn't even pause. Didn't bother to even acknowledge him. "I put my faith in you," he said. "I gave you all that I am. I made vows and promises..."

"Yeah, well I didn't," she muttered.

The Doctor grabbed her shoulder and she immediately twisted out of his grip.

"I heard you," he said. Her eyes narrowed ever so slightly as she glared at him. "When I left you in Davros's library. I heard you." It took a while for her to answer.

"I would have said anything to stop you," she said. The Doctor took a step closer to her.

"That's all it was?" he asked. She nodded. "Liar."

He reached out his hand towards her but she immediately swatted it away.

"Don't," she warned and turned, striding off again. The Doctor hurried after her. He was going to get an honest reaction if it was the last thing he did.

He reached for her but before he got a chance to do anything, she'd clasped his wrist and twisted his arm behind his back.

"I said, don't," she growled in his ear. He felt her breath tickle his skin as she let him go.

"Never were to good at following orders me," he said, twirling around and within seconds had her trapped against the wall. "Now, Rose Tyler," he said. She pushed at his chest. But he refused to budge. He got a hold of her wrists and placed them against the wall, over her head, holding them there. "I am going to ask you one question. Just one and you are going to give me an honest answer." The glare she was giving him told him that he was on very thin ice. "And that's it. I'll leave it be." She tried to pull her hands free and his grip tightened around her wrists. "Deal?" he asked. Her lips curved in a little half- smile. She leaned towards him.

"No, deal," she said and he was sure she did it just to spite him.

She turned her wrist and managed to twist free from his grip. The space was so narrow there was no room for movement. The Doctor wasn't a fighter and Rose, as far as he knew only had basic training from her Torchwood days. She pushed him off with her shoulder and he shover her back. Their fight swiftly turned in to a rather pathetic display of shoves and pinching. They were about one step away from hair- pulling when Rose pushed the Doctor back. He had his hands around her elbows as the wall suddenly gave way. Startled the Doctor clasped Rose tighter to keep himself from falling. But he was already too off balance. He fell and pulled her with him.

They tumbled out of the passageway. The Doctor fell flat on his back on floor made of green, polished stone. Hard stone. Rose landed on top of him as two guards and one surprised Amy stared down at them.

Both Rose and the Doctor looked around quickly. They were at a landing. Stairs leading up at one side and stairs leading down on the other. The reason the wall had given away was because it wasn't a wall at all. It was a huge painting of a man with hair as green as the prince's and a crown that looked to be made of intricately woven branches on his head. The king no doubt. The painting worked as a doorway and had swung opened as they'd hit it.

"What are you two doing?" Amy asked them. Rose pushed herself up and got to her feet, the Doctor scrambling up beside her.

"Rescuing you," the Doctor declared with a smile, trying to sound casual.

"Seriously?" Amy asked. "Because that is not what it looked like." The Doctor glanced at Rose and felt satisfaction at the blush creeping up her cheeks. Not completely indifferent, he thought darkly.

Both guards raised their weapons, aiming them at Rose and the Doctor.

"Stand down," one of them demanded.

"Oh, there you are," came an unpleasant voice. They turned to see the prince coming down the stairs, followed by his twenty or so guards. They'd missed that, the Doctor thought. "Do shoot them," the prince told the two guards with their weapons raised.

"They won't shoot us," Rose said. The prince stopped before he reached the landing, his guards placing themselves strategically around him, weapons at the ready.

"Is that so?" the prince asked.

"It is so," Rose confirmed.

"It is?" Amy wondered.

"Not sure it is," the Doctor offered as he looked around at all the guns. Way too many guns for his comfort. "Need I remind you they have been shooting at you," the Doctor pointed out to Rose.

"Exactly," Rose agreed, locking eyes with the prince. "They've shot at me, 's all." The prince took a step down towards them.

"Aim for her head," he told the Guard. "Let's see how clever she is then."

The Doctor's eyes kept flickering around, but Rose's stayed focused on the prince and no one fired.

"I told you, they won't shoot me," Rose said to the prince.

"They do what I tell them to!" he spat.

"No, they do what your father tells them to," Rose countered.

"When my father's not here they obey me!"

Rose waited for a moment. Still no one shot at them.

"Do they?" she asked the prince. The prince took another step down.

"Shoot her!" he demanded furiously, stomping his foot like a petulant child. Rose raised her eyebrows, waiting for any of them to make a move and the Doctor got the strangest sense of deja vu watching her. Is this what it had felt like for her, he wondered. Standing by and watching him being reckless.

"See," Rose said. "They're loyal to your father, not you. And your father doesn't want all hell to rain down on his planet because his son decided to kill a representative from the Shadow proclamation."

"Representative?" the prince mocked. "You're nothing more than a dirty secret. The Bad Wolf. From what I've heard you are bad alright." He gave her a twisted smile. "Is it true the Shadow proclamation locks you up at night? Like a dog?"

The prince's face twisted cruelly and Rose went for him. But the Doctor managed to grab her and stop her before she got very far. He was sure a direct assault would give the guards the justification they'd need to shoot them all dead on the spot.

"Rose, stop," he growled in her ear as she tried to twist free of him.

"Better keep a leash on her," the prince laughed.

"Arrogant prick," Rose spat at the prince.

"Oh, are we going to see you howl now, wolf?" the prince asked, clapping his hands. Rose ground her teeth in obvious frustration.

"Really not worth it," the Doctor told Rose, his arms tight around her and for the blink of an eye he thought he saw her eyes flash bright gold. The prince's smile faltered and he took a step up, away from them. "Easy," the Doctor whispered in Rose's ear, not sure if he'd seen what he thought he'd seen. He instinctively wanted to reach across the bond to sooth her mind with his own but he couldn't feel her at all no matter how much he tried. Slowly the Doctor noticed her muscle's relaxing and Rose pushed herself away from him.

"No?" the prince asked, getting back some of his bravado. "Pity. I'll just have to demand back what you took then," he said, holding out his hand. But Rose shook her head.

"You're not getting it back," she said. "A deal is a deal."

"Don't care," the prince spat. "And you know, perhaps I can't shoot you but I can shoot them," he said nodding towards the Doctor and Amy. Rose blanched. And then she looked about ready throw herself at him again despite the guards blocking her way.

"Now, now," the Doctor interrupted getting in front of her before she got the chance to make a second attempt. "Let's just not shoot anyone. I don't much like shooting... or guns," he said, looking at the nearest one pointed at him. "I'm sure we can all get along."

"I'm sorry but who even are you?" the prince asked with annoyance, glaring at the Doctor. "Besides dead soon, I mean."

"I'm the Doctor," he said as though this was quite obvious.

"He's the Doctor," Rose confirmed and for the first time it sounded like she actually said his name. He glanced at her in surprise but she wasn't looking at him. The prince turned his head to Amy who nodded.

"He is," she agreed. The Doctor got his sonic out of his pocket. All the remaining guards immediately raised their weapons. But no one shot anyone. The Doctor flicked the sonic easily from one hand to the other. The prince just stared at them all in bewilderment.

"Doctor who?!"

The Doctor smiled.

"Aw, I just love it when people say that," he said. "But..." he began, spinning around and aiming his sonic screwdriver. With one quick swoop sparks blew out of the weapons. The guards dropped them in surprise, the guns clattering to the floor. Amy scrambled away from the two guards and hurried over to the Doctor and Rose. "Ha! No more guns," the Doctor said with glee. "Just how I like it."

The prince was beginning to turn a very alarming shade of red where he stood. He in fact looked about ready to pop.

"New features too," Rose remarked.

"Not really," the Doctor allowed in a hushed voice. "I wasn't even sure that was going to work. But their weapons are just not very good. As far as weapons go." All the guards reached for their belts, ready to draw swords.

"Now, now," the Doctor called out, aiming his screwdriver around. "This also shoots lasers that will turn your insides into pus." The guards halted. "Yeah, so here's how this is going to go," the Doctor told the guards. "We are gonna go... again. But all of us this time and you are just going to stand there because other vice I will liquify your organs with my sonic... liquifyer." The prince glared down at them.

"Oh, please, there is no such thing," he said.

"Yeah, ok... no, there perhaps isn't," the Doctor allowed, backing up. "It's actually... well..." The guards were slowly moving towards them. "It's a screwdriver. But-" he declared. "As you all saw, it can be quite handy." He smiled as though thinking himself so very clever.

"Kill the idiot and the redhead," the prince said. "And get me the wolf."

"Ok, ruuun!" the Doctor called out.

The three of them turned and bolted. Rose flung opened the portrait-door and they dashed into the passageway. The Doctor pushed Amy in ahead of him as they hurried after Rose. The guards gave chase behind then.

There was no time to stop and use Rose's vortex manipulator. Setting coordinates took time or one could end up anywhere. So they ran. Ran as the Guard chased them, the prince yelling all sorts of profanities after them.

Rose skidded to a stop at an intersection.

"I don't..." she began.

"Right!" the Doctor called out. Immediately she moved, hurrying down the right way. She was quick. Very quick. Amy picked up her pace to keep up with Rose but she was running in her short, tight skirt. Rose stopped suddenly and Amy and the Doctor followed. Before them was a solid wall. Rose spun, her expression furious.

"Right!?" she screamed at him.

"I could have sworn it was," he sputtered.

"Does it look like it was!?"

"Come on you two," Amy sighed and pushed at a section of the wall that slid opened like the portrait had.

The Guard was coming, thundering down the passageway towards them. The Doctor grabbed Rose's hand and pulled her with him after Amy. They came out into a room. A big one. Hundreds of benches all facing a solid oak table with three high-backed chairs behind it. It was a bit like the house of parliament and most likely a lot of important decisions were made in that room. But there was no time to stop and consider any such things. The three of them ran past the table with the three chairs down an aisle between the pews, the Guard so close behind they were practically breathing down their necks.

The Doctor held on tight to Rose's hand as they ran and she didn't pull free. She ran with him. And right then it didn't matter that they had over twenty guards and an angry prince chasing after them. Or that they had just fought and he was hurt and frustrated. They were together. As they should be. For that moment it felt just as it once had. If the Doctor could chose he would spend the rest of his life running with Rose Tyler no matter what it cost him.

They reached the edge of the room and Amy pushed opened two huge double doors. They ran out into the hall where Amy stopped.

"Which way?" she asked, desperately. They all looked around frantically.

"Left, left," Rose decided and no one argued. They ran on as the doors behind them burst opened and the Guard stormed out after them.

"I can't keep running in this skirt," Amy complained as she pulled it down over her thighs.

"On the point of that," Rose asked, only slightly out of breath. "Why are you dressed like that?"

"Oh, well," Amy mumbled.

"You're a policewoman, right?" the Doctor asked.

"Not exactly," Amy allowed.

The Doctor skidded to a stop as he spotted the TARDIS down a hallway to the left, yanking Rose to a stop next to him.

"This way!" he called. Amy stopped and turned back. Giving a yelp as she saw the Guard running towards them with swords drawn. The three of them ran towards the ship. The Doctor was reluctantly forced to let go of Rose's hand as they reached it and he had to fish the the key out of his pocket. He unlocked the door to the TARDIS and pushed the door opened.

"Get in!"

Amy blew past him without hesitation. But Rose didn't. She was backing away. Even as the Guard came running towards them, swords raised, she was backing away.

"Rose, get in!" he told her.

"I..." she began. "I can't go with you." She shook her head. The Doctor growled in frustration and as the Guard were nearly upon them he moved quickly.

The Doctor rushed over, plucked Rose off the ground with one arm around her waist. He was reminded of the last time she'd come back to him. When she'd stood outside as Martha was leaving. He'd picked her up then to and put her inside the TARDIS. But she had laughed then. She'd been happy to see him. She wasn't happy to see him now but thankfully she was too surprised to put up much of a fight.

"Get in the bloody ship, Rose," he told her as he deposited her just inside the doors. "We can talk about this later." He leaned out, seeing the Guard with swords held high. He gave them a smile and pulled himself inside, slamming the doors shut. "Right then!" he said, purposefully avoiding Rose's gaze. He ran across the floor and up the stairs. He rushed past Amy to the console and rapidly flipped a couple of switches, running around it. The wonderful sound of the TARDIS sang through the room. "Ha! Ha!" the Doctor called in triumph, spinning about. "Leave them in the dust." He flipped a lever, smiling with his whole face. There was nothing better than a narrow escape to get the blood going, he thought. But as his eyes caught on Rose across the room he had to admit that there were a few things. Only question was if any of those things could still be possible.