The three time travellers were running for their lives- an action that seemed far more familiar than should be normal. Holit 12 in the eighth century AD (by earth time) had proven to a slightly less friendly location than Jack had originally promised. The situation probably hadn't been helped by his attempts to flirt with one of the locals, although, in his defence, how could he have known that single Holtons weren't allowed outside?
It wouldn't have been such a problem, had Holtons not been naturally angry, and naturally armed. Both of the men were covered in scratches from near misses from the darts that were part of the anatomy of a male Holton. Rose had taken a direct hit, and had collapsed almost immediately. The Doctor was carrying her across his chest as he ran, with Jack scouting ahead and checking behind to determine the best way for the three to avoid further engagement.
There was a small hunting party hot on their tail, but Holtons, despite their lanky forms, were not built for speed. That didn't stop the occasional dart flying past their heads as they ran.
With two hundred yards to go before they reached the TARDIS, the Doctor was still running at the top speed he could without dropping Rose. 'Jack!' he shouted, and the captain was at his side almost immediately. 'TARDIS key,' ordered the Doctor, nodding to the key that hung on its chain around Rose's neck. Jack understood, and quickly freed the key, before sprinting ahead to open the door. They all bundled through, and it was slammed behind them. Nothing could enter the TARDIS once that door was shut, but Jack leaned against it, panting.
'Phew. That was close.' The Doctor grinned, always enjoying a good 'flee from almost certain death' once in a while. Then he glanced down at the warm, unconscious bundle in his arms and frowned slightly. Very gently, he lowered her to the ground, laying her out carefully. 'Rose?' he asked, patting her cheek lightly. She didn't stir. 'Hmm.' He ran his hands down her left leg from the knee, and found the small splinter embedded in her calf. Gripping it between his fingernails, he gently extracted it, and bought it up to study it closely.
'What exactly was in thoshe dartsh?' asked Jack, slurring slightly. The Doctor glanced up at him sharply. Jack was leaning against the door still, and his eyes were drooping. 'Not you too. Holton spit appears to be particularly potent. You might want to lie down before you fall over.'
'Ish fine. Din'… din'... get thingy like Roshe.' He hit the floor with a bang, and the Doctor sighed, looking at his two unconscious companions. 'How do you wake up a human?' he mused to himself. He thought for a few moments, studying the small splinter dart, and came up blank. He could hear a faint thudding sound from outside, so he dropped the now impotent dart and stood, crossing to the console to do the only helpful thing he could think of for the moment. The TARDIS was impenetrable. That didn't mean that angry aliens couldn't cause her exterior some damage, which the Doctor would really rather prevent. Setting some coordinates, he performed the simplest hop he could, in the hopes of keeping turbulence to a minimum.
When they were safely in orbit, he returned to his unconscious companions. Neither had moved, save for the movement that could be accounted for by the TARDIS's judders.
When lightly shaking both of them didn't work, the Doctor sat back on his heels, contemplating the situation. Holton spit wasn't lethal, but it was a powerful sleeping drug. Rose had been delivered a full dose, but Jack had merely had a few scratches, like himself. That meant that Jack should be awake shortly, so the Doctor concentrated his efforts on the young captain first.
'Jack' he snapped loudly, going for a military tone. No response. He tried blocking the other man's nose, but the captain simply stopped breathing, which wasn't the desired effect. 'Oi. Jack. Wake up.' Nothing. Then an idea occurred to him. 'There's some whiskey here that needs drinking.' The Doctor mentioned conversationally to the unconscious man.
'Wha?'
'Now that's more like it! No, don't go back to sleep. Come on, sit up.'
Jack did so, and looked around muzzily, rubbing at the back of his head and groaning. 'What did I drink?'
'For once, nothing. Now help me wake Rose up.'
'One second.' Jack closed his eyes and shook his head furiously, then slapped himself twice.
'Does that help?' asked the Doctor curiously.
'Ak. No… Right. Rose?'
'She's right here. Do you remember what happened?'
'Yeah.' Jack pulled himself over to sit beside Rose, not bothering to stand up. The Doctor did the same, and they both stared at her for a moment.
'Can't we just leave her like that? It's more peaceful.'
'No.' Stated the Doctor firmly.
'All right, all right. What do you want me to do though?'
'I don't know. Aren't there any special ways of waking humans up that only other humans know about?'
'Not really. Lemme see. There's slapping them, pouring ice water on them, using smelling salts… have you got any smelling salts?'
'No. And we want her awake, not angry.'
'You could always try kissing her.'
'What!'
'That's what the fairy tales reckon. Sleeping beauty won't wake up, along comes Prince Charming, big snog, and voila. I'd do it, but as you said, we want her awake, not angry.'
The Doctor eyed him doubtfully for a moment. 'I'm not kissing her.' He stated. Jack shrugged, a faint smile on his face.
'How come you haven't gone all snoozy then? You're certainly scratched enough'
'Differential physiology. Something about the liver.' There was a pause and then a hint of an idea occurred to the Doctor. 'Go to the infirmary; search around for anything that looks promising. Maybe a zing mask? I'll stay here and watch her.'
'What ever you say Doctor.'
The Time Lord narrowed his eyes slightly, but before he could comment, Jack was on his feet and heading towards the interior of the TARDIS, with only a slight wobble in his stride.
'That boy has a one track mind,' he told the inert form of Rose. 'And how would a kiss help you wake up anyway?'
His only response was silence and the faint hum of the TARDIS. There was an expectant feel in the air.
'No.' He said, to the ship and the air in general. Then why are you eyeing her lips? A traitorous voice in his mind asked. He put one hand on either side of her shoulders so he could look down squarely upon her features. He had to admit, she did have nice lips. Red and lush against her pale skin, they were slightly open as she breathed. She did look peaceful as she slept, and for a moment, he could imagine her a fair princess, awaiting rescue in a far away castle.
'It's a stupid fairy tale,' he murmured as he leaned down to press his lips to hers. He had intended it to be short and sweet, but that was before he discovered that her lips were the softest thing he had ever tasted. A slight moan escaped the Time Lord as he his lips melded to hers, and her delicious scent captured him, stealing away his senses. Both hearts began to race, pumping liquid fire around his veins.
His moan was answered faintly from the beautiful maiden lying on the floor of his time machine, and her lips began to answer his kiss, deepening it. The Doctor continued for a moment longer, then his reason reasserted itself with a bang and he pulled backward sharply, wanting to run, yet frozen to the spot, kneeling beside her.
He watched as Rose moaned once more, as her eyes fluttered open. ''ello.' She greeted him, dreamily. He couldn't hold back the grin that split his face. 'Hello. Welcome back.'
'Did I go somewhere then?' She murmured, clearly still quite out of it. 'Holit 12,' replied the Doctor. 'Last time I listen to Jack.'
'Aw c'mon Doctor. You've woken her up haven't you?' Jack's voice was laced with innuendo as he entered, made all the thicker by the guilty start that the Doctor had given upon hearing Jack's voice.
'It's your bloody fault she was sleeping in the first place. I get to pick the next place we go.'
'Where's that then?' Asked Rose, smiling at him from the floor.
'How about Nebresky? The gravity is half that of Earth and the natives look something like kangaroos.' The Doctor addressed Rose, pretending to ignore Jack for the moment. As predicted, Rose's eyes lit up, and she sat up. 'Well come on then, what are we waiting for?'
In answer, the Time Lord stood and held out a hand to help her up. Jack watched in bemusement at the couple they made, then started looking around for a good hand-hold for the TARDIS's next flight. The Doctor was already concentrating on the console, so they both missed the fingers that Rose briefly touched to her lips, and the dreamy smile that crossed her face, before she too readied for the up and coming adventure.
The End