Together Again. Chapter eight. Final chapter
"Don't expect this often, it's so rare that I get to leave Gallifrey like this, but…" the Doctor sighed, turning to face the control panel on his beloved ship. He caressed the controls fondly.
"It's just; she needs to get out too, so it's a good excuse. Plus she won't let anyone else fly her, not really. In fact," the Doctor frowned. "She's been more temperamental than ever lately, comes with being cooped up I suppose. I'm really surprised she even let you in Jack. Jack?"
"Hmm?" Jack looked up from across the console room, pausing his intense pouring over of their arrest file.
"I said," the Doctor repeated exasperatedly, "Oh, never mind. Why are you so absorbed in that anyway?"
"Because," Jack began slowly. "Because I'm interested to know why they treated us like such criminals when we only unknowingly did a crime."
"I still can't believe we were arrested just for trying to build a replica of Jack's vortex manipulator, I mean, it worked didn't it? Mum and I were able to finally jump across the dimension."
The Doctor flinched, no doubt still feeling guilty over their treatment. Rose interlocked her fingers with his. "It's okay, it wasn't your fault."
His shoulders slumped, and his expression looked pained for only a brief moment before he replaced it quickly with a witty smile.
"Yeah, but that's more the reason than anything. Dimension travel is illegal and so is assisting." He eyed Jack as he said the last part.
Jack shrugged. "If Rose Tylor wanted the schematic to my manipulator the last time we were together, who am I to say no? Besides, that's still not a good enough reason in my book."
"Yeah, but that's just them. They take stuff like trying to replicate a vortex manipulator very seriously. But think about it, if something like that fell into the wrong hands…but that's not the point. They should have at least told you why you were being arrested, where you were, what was going on…feed you," he added in a voice almost a snarl.
"I'm sure you'll fix all that though Doc."
The Doctor shook his head. "Not the point, I already spoke to Avast about that, now he is on his last warning. But then again, it wasn't under his orders that the stray guards did that, and those responsible, he assured me, are being dealt with."
Rose frowned. "Is Ava…Ave…A-"
"Avast."
"Right, that bloke, was he that shorter guy who let you into our cell?"
Jackie looked surprised that Rose remembered such a thing. But the Doctor smiled and nodded.
"Yeah, he's my head of prison maintenance and control."
"Couldn't find someone a bit more…qualified?" Jack wondered. "He was a bit on the stout, nervous side of the spectrum wasn't he?"
"It's really just his name for me," Rose added. "I mean, what kind of name is that, he sounds like a virus protector."
"Hey!" The Doctor pouted. "First off, I'll have you know that it's a nickname for something much longer and harder to pronounce, especially in English. And second, Names on Gallifrey are very different than your weird earth names. I mean you're one to talk." He turned to Jack. "Jack? That just sounds weird to the tongue. Jack….Ja…ck…Ja-"
"Okay, I get it," Jack huffed, looking back to the file in his hands.
"Then why the 'ell am I mixed up in all 'his? I didn't 'ave anythin' to do with buildin' it, I just wante'd to make sure my Rose was safe."
"Ah, well, you see, the law as it stands now, well, they take anyone at the time of arrest as an accomplice."
Jackie was visibly about to argue the injustice of such an action when the Doctor gave a hurried, "but I'm working on changing that!"
He held up his hands in defense. "You should've seen how messed up the entire book of Sacred and Most Interplanetary Laws of Rassilon was before I got to them. I've been at it for centuries and I'm not even halfway down the book!"
"So I was jus' in the wrong place and the wrong time t'hen?" Jackie cried.
The Doctor tried to suppress a flinch again, but Rose felt his fingers tighten around hers for the briefest of seconds before they relaxed again.
"Well…yes…I'm really-"
"Oh it's not' your fau't." Jackie dismissed his almost apology with a wave of her hand.
He could have said thank you, he could have shown his appreciation, surprise, judgment, anger, anything Rose would have expected but the Doctor letting go of her hand, crossing the room, and giving Jackie Tyler a huge bone-crushing hug, was not one of them.
Rose laughed, and Jack even looked up again from the report.
"Ey, what you doin'?" Jackie said, pretending to be upset, but hugged him back, just as tightly.
After a moment, she said through his arms, "you take care of 'er, ya 'ear? You take good care of my Rose."
They finally broke apart and the Doctor replied, "I promised you, didn't I?"
Jackie regarded him sternly for a moment, before cracking a smile. "I know, and ya know 'hat, t'is wouldn't be happenin' if I didn't trust you."
The Doctor was shocked. It wasn't a look Rose was accustomed to seeing on him.
After he recovered, he pretended to straighten his perfect gem-studded robes. "Took you long enough."
Jackie laughed and grabbed him into another hug, shorter this time.
"You take care' of yourself too ya know? I don't care' if you got the universe to look afte' or not, that's no different than before'."
"Heh, good point." The Doctor said sincerely.
It was strange to see the Doctor and her mother get along so well, but Rose found she almost missed the bickering. Just for old times' sake. But she was still glad that her mother understood and agreed.
Rose truly appreciated to the full extent how great a woman her mum was when she realized that Jackie was willing to let Rose stay, while she believed that it would mean never seeing her only daughter again.
It was times like that, that reminded her just how strong Jackie Tyler really was. It was one thing to raise a daughter all by yourself, to overcome the loss of your husband's death, to deal with your daughter in constant danger, helpless to change her mind; but it was quite another to willingly give her up for her own happiness. Rose understood this as much as she could without being a mother herself, and the very thought filled her with love and a strong sense of belonging.
Jackie was ecstatic when the Doctor explained that it wasn't goodbye, not forever anyway.
Maybe that's when she warmed up to him?
Or was it instead when she had said, I'm never going to stop owing that man, am I?
"Does t'is mean my daug'ter is going to be queen of your planet or some't?"
Rose started. She hadn't thought of that. "Am I," she questioned in wonderment?
The Doctor had a strange look on his face like he was carefully working out a problem.
"Not exactly, well not –, "he paused mid-sentence. Then he averted his gaze from Rose and pretended to double-check their coordinates. She knew he was pretending only because she had seen him do it so many times before. He held his hand on a blue knob for a full minute, before shaking his head, and pressing a new set of controls; this time effectively setting quadrants.
There was a thump, and the TARDIS shook. Everyone grabbed onto something as the TARDIS was thrown left and right, everything rated as the Doctor frantically danced around the controls, until… silence.
"We're here," he said with a nostalgic air to his voice. "It's been so very long since I was last on earth."
He stared at the double doors for a moment, before jumping out, and running out of them, calling, "come on", over his shoulder.
After following him out, the three humans could make out the strangest site. The Doctor was practically frolicking around in his long and jewel-encrusted robes, and funny shoes. He looked completely incongruous to the simple London playground they had landed in.
Rose recognized it; it was one they had landed in before. When the Doctor was trying to trap one of the ghosts later dubbed Cybermen.
The Doctor jumped onto a vacated swing and began to rock back and forth, a look of childish delight on his face.
The playground was almost completely empty, even though it was a nice day out. Although judging by the dimming light, they landed around late evening.
Rose took it all in. she knew it would be a while until she saw the Earth again. Felt this sun on her face, saw green grass. She also knew it would be a while until the Doctor was able to be so carefree until she would see her mother, see Jack, and see her father.
She turned reluctantly away from the Doctor's antics and addressed her Mother. The person who always stood by her no matter what, the woman who was the bravest and strongest person she had ever known.
She wanted to say something to this effect, but her throat choked up, and she ran into her mother's arms.
Jackie seemed to sense Rose's unspoken words and she hugged her back, just as vehemently.
"I know, I'll miss ya too, and just know t'at I will be 't'inking of you every single day."
Rose pulled away, fighting off the burning behind her eyes.
"Promise me some'it?"
"Anything!"
"Promise me that if you're ever unhappy-"
"Mum," she interrupted; wishing her mother wouldn't bring this up now.
"No really, please, if you're ever un'appy, just promise t'at you will remember t'at you always 'ave someone to come back to 'ere, you'll always have a 'ome 'ere, okay?"
Rose nodded, throat tight again. "Thank you," she said quietly.
She hugged her again. "I love you Mum, and I promise I will come visit as much as I can, with and without the Doctor."
"Good, you bet'er!" Jackie reprimanded. "An' make sure 'e eats some'it. Skin an bones 'e still is!"
Rose made a sound that was a cross between a giggle and a hiccup.
They just stared fondly at each other until Jack cut in, ending the moment.
"I'm sorry, but can I have my goodbye to Rose now?"
Rose laughed, feeling heavy and slightly depressed, but somehow also ecstatic in knowing what she was leaving for, and comforted in knowing this wasn't goodbye for good. There would be no more goodbyes for good. Not with the Doctor and time travel on her side.
"Yeah, I guess you can."
Jack winked and gave her a quick hug. Then his face turned very serious and he stood at mock attention, giving her a salute.
"Until next time then," he said simply.
"Yeah," she agreed. "Until then."
The Doctor must have sensed it was getting time to leave as he chose that moment to appear behind Jack.
"Whew, I missed that. Rose, we are going to have to make regulatory trips to Earth in the future. It has been wayyyyy too long since I was here," the Doctor exclaimed dramatically.
He leaned his back against the doors of the TARDIS, propping one leg up against it as well.
"Doctor," Jack said with a nod.
"Jack."
Jack grinned, "you know, if your ever in the mood-"
"I'm good Jack, I'm good."
He shrugged, "just thought I'd offer, I mean, I know not now, but apparently one day in my future..."
The Doctor didn't bite, and Jack laughed it off.
"But seriously Doc, don't be such a stranger. Try to use all that royal influence to get a break once in a while and see us lowly humans out here."
The Doctor put his leg down and stood up straighter. "Oh, I wouldn't worry about that. I already know for a fact that I'll see you again many times in your future."
"Ah-Ha! See, I knew it! Wait a sec… you do? When? I mean, when exactly…?"
"Spoilers," the Doctor smirked knowingly.
"I had a feeling you'd say something like that," Jack laughed. "Well then, until my future. It's reassuring to at least know you won't abandon me again."
Jack's tone was light but the Doctor's was heavy in his reply. His voice got deeper and he went out of his way to look Jack directly in the eyes.
"Never."
Jack looked grateful, and gave the Doctor an elaborate and overdramatic bow, before ending in a one-fingered salute in which the Doctor returned, albeit only slightly less dramatically.
"Alright then, Jackie, Jack, blimey it's so weird to say your names together like that, anyway, we'll be seeing you again soon I suppose. Sooner for you than for me, but there you have it."
He turned back to Rose, wearing his famous thousand-watt smile. Rose Tyler, allons-y.
With a last wave, Rose and the Doctor walked back into the TARDIS.
Together again.
THE END!