Unto the Universe

Chapter Thirty-Seven: Seekers of Truth: Quiet Morning

By Lumendea

Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or any spinoff material, and I gain no income from this story, just the satisfaction of playing with the characters.

AN: Welcome back to Unto the Universe. Quick reminder that The Christmas Reunion took place officially between this episode and The Fires of Karn if you missed reading that Christmas Special.

….

The Doctor wasn't one to linger. Not usually. Too much wanderlust and too much dislike of staying still too long and allowing thoughts to creep up on him. But right now, he was happy to linger and listen to Rose's soft breathing as she slept. It wasn't so bad for him to rest a little every night, he supposed. His mental organization and shields had never been better. And Rose's soft telepathic presence along with her physical warmth were welcome. Rose Tyler, the Gold Guardian of Space and Time, and his lover was pressed up against him, an arm thrown over his middle and her head pillowed on his chest. Glorious and ridiculous.

He'd spent his centuries chasing experiences and running from the past. When bad things were happening, he did his best to stop them. Maybe Rose was right and it was a lesson he'd learned from the failure of the Other. It was a nicer explanation than he was trying to soothe the guilt that had always haunted him. In general, his life had been good. He'd seen thousands of planets, learned languages, toppled regimes, been hailed as a god, and explored culture after culture. Throughout it all, he'd had friends, enemies, students, and the occasional lover. Not a bad life. He'd had a good time with it all.

The Time War had ripped up his life. All the old hurts from his years of travel, the goodbyes and the deaths paled in comparison to the trauma and the weight. Be the Doctor. He had a code and he'd followed it. He'd helped where he could, ignoring the voices in the back of his head that looked down on the species he met. If he was honest, the Doctor had always known that he carried some of the Time Lord prejudices despite his efforts to ignore those lessons, but they'd been ground into him. The Time War had forced him to confront it head on, to deal with the question of who and what he valued most. The rest of the universe had won over Gallifrey.

Despite his expectations, the Doctor had survived. And the TARDIS hadn't allowed him to simply end it all. He'd chased a few fixed points, telling the TARDIS that he was just checking on the Web of Time. Then he'd met Rose Tyler. Someone who, even as a child, reminded him of what he loved about humans and other life in general. Someone who was stumbling through their life with as much courage as they could. Someone who had made the universe a bit better.

But that was it, wasn't it? The Doctor nearly groaned. The whole bloody universe seemed to think Rose made it better if Ohila's views on her becoming the Gold Guardian were to be believed. He wished that he could just accept this as a good thing and move on. But it made him happy, Rose made him happy and thus he couldn't help but brace himself for however it was going to go wrong. Because it would. It always did. His guilt for the Other hadn't driven Rose away, she'd outlive him easy so he couldn't help but think about what would take her away.

What he had with her was fragile. Rose was easy to love, but the Doctor was aware that had he not met her in this life they might never have become romantic. Gallifrey and its expectations were always at the back of his mind. Forming a romantic relationship with a human companion, well, that would have been a difficult thing to talk himself into before the Time War. Andre may have been happy to marry Leela, but his house was more accepting than his own had ever been. While he was a rebel, the Doctor wasn't sure that he'd have been able to shake that.

He'd have enjoyed Rose's company and valued her as a highly competent travelling companion, he might even have fallen in love with her, but acting on that love… well he wasn't sure that any version of him before the Time War would have managed it. As much as his last self had cared about Charley, he hadn't been willing to have a romantic relationship with her and that was the most romantic he'd ever been! He wasn't thinking he was braver than them, more that he was desperate to cling to anything good after the Time War.

Rose shifted again and the Doctor could tell that she was beginning to wake. The TARDIS began to slowly raise the lights in their room in response. Holding back a chuckle, the Doctor marvelled at the utter domesticity that he'd slipped into with only token grumbling. He glanced around their room, noting all the small signs of their intermingled lives. Despite the wishes of the White and Black Guardians.

Their room had undergone some further upgrading and adjustments thanks to the TARDIS. He was hopeful that her devoting more time to this meant that she was healing well and that it wasn't just a sign of her approval of his relationship. Yesterday, to his great relief, he'd found that the TARDIS had grown one of the parts she needed through the architectural reconfiguration system. More than a bit of relief. While this console of random bit and pieces was holding together, the knowledge that someday everything would be fixed with the proper parts was staggering.

But for whatever reason, the TARDIS wasn't completely happy with their room yet. She'd expanded the size of the room, almost doubling it to add a small sitting area near the doorway. Some of his clocks had been shifted into his workroom after Rose admitted that the sound sometimes got her. Two of the quieter ones were left, both favorites of his, with elegant construction and star motifs. Rose liked them a great deal as well.

Instead, the TARDIS had created an artificial window that showed scenes of some of Rose's favorite planets which she had thanked the TARDIS for loudly for almost half an hour. Their bed was a bit larger which the Doctor tried not to read into and the TARDIS had added a walk-in closet off the room. Rose's wardrobe was at the far end where the TARDIS put clothing she deemed best for the latest trip. The Doctor had tried to peek a few times, just to see if the TARDIS was going to cooperate with him or not, but it was always empty when he tried. His own clothing was now on his side of the closet, including clothing from his prior incarnations. He had not been ready to see Rose grab the hat he'd worn in this seventh body and try it on with a grin.

The women in his life were playing with him. The Doctor wasn't sure if the TARDIS was seeking Rose's favor or not, but he was grateful to know that the ship adored her. Anything that made Rose happy and more likely to stay was good. That thought chilled him and he pushed it away. Rose was content to stay on the TARDIS for now. He'd keep her with him as long as he could. She'd accepted things calmly on Karn and hadn't blame him even if she should have. The Doctor didn't like the idea that Rose was making excuses for the Other.

His eyes landed on the dark vase where Rose's lilacs were kept at their bedside. He'd noticed it the first time he'd been in her room. Kintsugi pottery. Created in the Japanese artform of repairing broken pottery by mending it with gold. It treated the breakage and repair as part of the history of the object and honored it rather than binning the shards like most would. Something that was broken and mended together with gold. It wasn't hard for the Doctor to make that connection. Even before he knew about the Gold Guardian situation, he'd certainly felt that Rose had put him back together. He sort of hated that his ship had given Rose the vase. Did she mean it to be symbolic or just thought Rose would like it?

Rose shifted in his arms and her telepathic presence changed as she woke. Smiling, the Doctor looked down at the blonde head resting on his shoulder. Her hair was braided, but strands had escaped in the night, giving Rose rather adorable bed head. His grin widened.

"You're thinking too hard," Rose murmured sleepily.

"Just wondering how much more redecorating she's going to do," the Doctor replied.

"Until she's happy with it," Rose said. "Or until you're so happy with it that she doesn't feel the need anymore."

"I am happy with it."

"Ah, but are you happy enough?" Rose countered. She yawned and snuggled closer to him. The Doctor wasn't sure when he'd become so comfortable with Rose snuggling him, but he was and he liked it. "She loves you most, you know."

"She likes you most. You two have a connection forged in the Time Vortex through Bad Wolf. Even I don't understand it."

"True," Rose agreed. "We get along very well. I love her, but you're her thief." She yawned again. "We should get up."

"You're pinning me," the Doctor pointed out. Not that he couldn't easily slip out from under her, but honestly, he was alright having Rose draped over him.

"Yes, I have defeated the Doctor and am holding him prisoner," Rose teased. "Tremble before me universe." Then she paused and frowned. "Probably shouldn't say things like that."

"It was just a joke."

"Yeah, but I have no control over my power," Rose reminded him. "White said that the original Gold Guardian wielded a lot of her power through speech."

The Doctor held back a shudder. That sounded far too much like the magic of the Dark Times. Some of the ancient species had used words rather than science. Before the Web of Time and Rassilon's efforts to 'bring order to the universe.' It was hard to separate fact from fiction, even with what he knew.

"You'll figure it out," the Doctor said, focusing on Rose's sudden unease. "No rush."

"Maybe," Rose sighed. "Though I can't help but feel that I should be doing something."

The Doctor brought an arm up around her, trying not to be hurt by the words. Rose wanted to be here with him. She didn't necessarily mean she wanted to leave to go off and do Guardian things. He couldn't think like that. Only, that was what the past had taught him. People only stayed for so long and Rose… well she had the whole universe at her fingertips without his help.

"Oh well," Rose mumbled. "White and Black know how to find me."

"Yes, they're lovely company."

"Wow, I could hear you roll your eyes with that," Rose laughed. She started to move. "New planet today?"

"New planet sounds good," the Doctor agreed. He sat up. "You get ready, I'll make breakfast and we'll set the TARDIS on random."

Rose beamed at him and kissed his lips quickly before rushing for the bath. Chuckling, the Doctor headed for the wardrobe for a fresh jumper and retrieved his coat. The TARDIS brightened the lights as he headed for the kitchen and the Doctor touched the wall with his hand affectionately. This felt like it would be a good day.

He had almost finished their breakfasts when Rose came wandering in. Dressed in jeans, boots, and a hoodie, Rose still seemed half asleep. She maneuvered around him to make a cup of tea for each of them. A happy noise escaped her when Rose took her first sip.

"You English and your tea," the Doctor teased.

"I've seen you without your tea, Doctor, and you're no better." She took another sip and then sighed softly, looking around the room with an odd expression.

"Rose, what's wrong?"

"I'll admit that I'm starting to miss Jack a bit," Rose said. She looked a bit surprised at the statement. "Maybe after today, we should go and collect him."

"If you like," the Doctor agreed. It just being Rose and him had been nice, but he might be missing Jack a little himself. The captain was frequently a pain, but he was capable. And yes, he was fond of Jack even if he wasn't going to admit that out loud. "He might start chasing after us if we don't."

"We're Jack's family," Rose reminded him. "I don't ever want to break the trust he has in us."

The way she said that made him think of Ace, but the Doctor pushed those thoughts away quickly. Things with Ace were better than they'd been in a long time and this wasn't the day to worry about it. Putting his focus on finishing their breakfast, the Doctor watched Rose set the table and tried not to get hives at the domestics they'd settled into. In the past, he'd rarely eaten with companions. They'd been more like roommates with everyone coming and going in the kitchen as they wished. And he hadn't minded it at all.

Now things were different. He had Rose, a partner who would almost certainly outlive him. The universe did like to surprise him, it seemed. He shook off those thoughts and brought Rose her breakfast. She rewarded him with a wide smile and they tucked in. Rose was mostly awake, but the Doctor enjoyed watching her eyes brighten as she ate and the last hold of sleep was dispelled.

It was domestic, but not completely terrible. Rose grinned as if catching that thought. She might have. The Doctor bolstered his shields and returned her grin. But it reminded him that they should test out Rose's telepathic capabilities carefully as her ascension to Guardian may be causing new changes to her abilities.

"Where to today?" the Doctor asked. "Or straight to Jack?"

"No, one more day with just the two of us." Rose gave him a tongue touched smile. "How about somewhere you've never been before?"

"It's a big universe so I think we can manage that," the Doctor agreed. An itch settled in his limbs. Ready to have an adventure after a couple of quiet days.

Rose returning smile only added to his excitement. This was what he loved. The glorious sense of something unexpected around the corner. Finishing off breakfast, he put the dishes in the sink and grabbed Rose's hand. She laughed and they ran to the TARDIS console room. The Doctor kept hold of Rose's hand as he adjusted the controls, telling her which levers to pull and buttons to push. The TARDIS lurched around them and spun out of the Time Vortex. Moments later, they landed with a thud that made them both stumble. Releasing Rose's hand, the Doctor wrapped an arm around her waist and stole a quick kiss before letting her go.

"Where are we?" Rose asked.

"No idea," the Doctor answered. He tapped the screen. "TARDIS picked at random and isn't showing me the name. But atmosphere and gravity are fine for us. No problematic geological activity."

"A surprise then." Rose gestured to her jeans, boots, and shirt. "Well, I'm sure the TARDIS gave me the proper gear so let's take a look."

With a grin that could have powered a city, Rose hurried to the door of the TARDIS. The Doctor watched her with a soft, fond smile. It was difficult to trust in the soothing happiness that had taken hold of him in the past few weeks. Rose's words and promise on Karn continued to both worry him and warm him. He wanted to believe her that she really would stay, but his life had been a series of painful goodbyes.

Still, in the last couple of weeks since leaving Karn, things had been good. Seeing Susan had been bittersweet, but he was grateful that Rose had met his granddaughter and that Susan had liked Rose. Since then, he'd made an effort to keep things calm. They'd explored a few planets, stopped a couple of disasters, and he'd attempted a couple of dates. Some were almost successful, but romance, even for Rose, didn't come easily in this body. Again, he lamented that he was the Doctor trying to hold onto Rose. He was torn between jealous at the notion of any of the others trying and the knowledge that some other incarnations would have navigated these waters much better than him.

"Doctor!" Rose called. The doors were open ahead of her, but she hadn't stepped outside yet. Excited energy almost radiated off of Rose and he chuckled, heading down the ramp to join her. "Come on, new world!"

Rose grabbed his hand and stepped outside onto the surface of the new planet. Bright and warm sunlight spilled over them and the Doctor blinked against the sudden glare. The air was already warm and smell sweet. A strong shove against his shields made the Doctor stumble back at the same moment as Rose. Shaking himself, the Doctor began to look around. They were surrounded by dense green foliage with hints of purple growing around the stone ruins of some kind of city. And looming over them, casting a shadow over the tall trees was a great step pyramid with strange glowing pillars deployed all over it.