Gold.

Part four: Sun.

AN: This is turning out so differently to how I imagined it, I just hope it's still good to read. It's definitely my favourite to write out of my fics, the others of which I'm neglecting slightly in favour of this, heh. Anyway, new Doctor description in this chapter, and obviously I have no idea of how he's going to be in the series, but this version of him sort of took up residence in my mind and I like him so I wrote him down.

Enjoy.

They laugh and joke like the old days but they all know it's only a mater of time before they must talk about what happened on Satellite 5. Unspoken words creep under the surface of everything they say and do and it isn't just the Doctor who has changed; they all shift around each other, pretending everything is normal as they reacquaint themselves.

They go to Barcelona and Jack says it's better than Disneyland Pluto, and Rose complains that it's not as hot as the Earth's Barcelona would be, so the Doctor takes them to Thailand, Earth, 1849. There is no one in sight; the small island on which they land could be totally uninhabited for all they know, and Jack is the first to discard every item of clothing and disappear into the crystal blue sea.

Rose is less hasty, laying herself out on the sand in an emerald green bikini, letting the sun's warmth envelope her and shutting her mind off to all but the light breeze that dances delicately over her skin.

The Doctor watches her.

He is younger in spirit than his previous form. He wears loose-fitting jeans and old sneakers and 1970s band t-shirts, and he laughs when Jack tells him off for his lack of style. He plays music all the time in the TARDIS, but there's no more dancing. He flirts more than ever with both Jack and Rose, but there's never any promise to it. He and Rose avoid being alone with each other because they know that they are more connected than ever.

But he watches her. Every night he dreams of her, golden and majestic and more powerful in one moment than anyone in the Universe. He dreams of her in his arms, belonging just for one moment to him, giving him her trust and her life. In his dreams, though, they kiss and they don't stop. In his dreams, the death and ruin around them fades away and time is theirs to learn each other and love each other. In his dreams, he doesn't change, doesn't let her down by leaving her.

He is unaware that as he dreams she is drawn to him, that she stands at his bedroom door watching him, feeling the link between them burning. Every night she takes a step into the room and then loses her nerve and leaves him to his dreams.

And now, on a beach in the middle of nowhere he watches her silently, and he feels the familiar painful twist in his chest that he never felt before he met her. The breeze floats around him, lifting his thin t-shirt slightly off his body. The air here is rich with warmth and spice and he feels intoxicated as he watches her. He is leaning against the open door to the TARDIS, and he can feel energy flowing from the great time ship, but he is unsure of what it means. His ship is talking to him, but his mind is so clouded with Rose and the memories of his previous self that he cannot hear her. He feels alone suddenly, small and cold underneath the sun. He closes his eyes for a moment and rests his head against the TARDIS, feeling the strength that she gives him gladly.

It's rude to stare, you know.

He smiles as he feels a warmth of words filter into his mind. They haven't talked like this since their last visit to Satellite 5, but there's no mistaking her tone. She hasn't looked up, her eyes are still closed, but he can feel her presence in his mind, can almost picture the wry expression she would have on her face. He walks over to her and drops down next to her in the sand.

"Sorry."

She opens one eye and regards him lazily.

"S'alright." Then she sits up and looks at him properly. "Are you okay?"

"Of course." He stares out at the sea, smiling when he catches sight of Jack sliding and splashing through the waves. "Are you?"

She nods, following his gaze into the distance. "Tired."

There's more than that, isn't there?

She sighs. She picks up a loose white shirt, embroidered and gathered, and pulls it on. "I'm burning."

Tell me.

Nothing to tell.

"Liar." There is a smile in his voice and she accepts this, but she turns her head to look at him all the same.

"I never lie to you Doctor," she says quietly. "It's not possible, especially not after…"

"I know." He takes her hand and returns his gaze to the distant sea. "Time Lords all have… had, telepathic abilities, you know. But they were never able to use them except with other Time Lords."

"But I'm not a… what happened to us?"

"It must have been the TARDIS. We both channelled the Vortex, after all. We held the entire universe, all of time and space between us, even if just for a moment."

"So what does that make us?"

He considers a moment. "Well. Same as before, only – "

Even closer. I wish you were him.

A jolt of pain goes through him at this, and tears fill her eyes as she feels it.

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be. I wish I was too, really. I let you down."

"No." She shakes her head and then lays it on his shoulder. "No, you didn't. You never could."

They are silent for a long time.

"It doesn't mean I don't love you just as much. You're still you." She pauses, and then grins up at him. "Better looking, and all."

He stands, laughing, and reaches down for her hands. "You're not burning," he tells her as he pulls her to his feet, his eyes sweeping over her. "You're tanning. Turning gold." He smiles and reaches out to finger the colourful stitching at the neck of her shirt. "You look like a gypsy in this."

She is standing so close to him and their eyes lock for a moment that feels like forever.

A distant splashing grows nearer and Jack's eager voice calls to them.

"Come on you two, don't just stand there!"

Rose grins and pulls the shirt off as the Doctor strips to a pair of loose hawaiian print trunks. She raises an eyebrow but says nothing, and he laughs and takes her hand, pulling her towards the water's edge.

"Come on, gypsy girl. Let's keep the kid company."

The energy flow from the TARDIS calms and grows content as the three distant figures splash and play in the ocean, and the sun goes down. They laugh and forget about what has not been said, detaching this time from their usual lives, existing only inside this moment, this time and this place, each wishing it could last.

Have nearly finished the next part - I wrote most of it before this one, for some reason - so it'll be up tomorrow, hopefully. Thank you for reading.