Title Mercurial Rhythm
Chapter Five
Rating T
Summary The Doctor, Rose and Jack stop on a planet for little bit of shopping but what starts out as an innocent expedition ends up being a trip full of a lot of interesting conversations…okay, someone else write my summary for me.
Pairings/Spoilers The Doctor(9)/Rose and takes place just after The Doctor Dances
A/N Brilliant these reviews are, I just loves them. Here's this one, nice and early. Hope you enjoy it, rather shorter than usual…sorry. But enjoy and review anyway. Thanks to saganmidreams for the betaing.
Chapter Five
Her eyes first fell on the shopkeeper who was beaming with pride, then she looked to Jack who was doing his absolute best not to stare and failing miserably. Next she caught sight of herself in the mirror held in front of her and couldn't help but gape at her reflection. The necklace was beautiful, the metal wasn't gold or silver but some sort of deep shimmering green, cut so fine it reminded her of spider silk as it wisped down her neck curling out from the thin chain. It culminated at the hollow between her collarbones where it encircled and supported the Borkdill Rose had previously chosen.
The stone itself was still very much the rough cut it had been when she'd left it, though it seemed to glow the same mauve light even more with the encompassing green and the white of her skin.
Only when she looked up, intent on thanking the little alien jewelry genius, did she catch sight of the Doctor. Standing silent and unmoving only a few feet away, mouth slightly agape, much like hers.
Staring at her, watching her watching him, remembering dancing and his half-formed vision of Rose when he'd left them, his only thought was that it was ruining him, affecting him in ways that he didn't want, ways he wasn't sure he could control. But that Borkdill on her…he was completely astounded at the image, understanding with perfect clarity why he hadn't been able to visualize the current situation. It was simply too incredible. Had he been able to fully realize his vision, it wouldn't have been anything like this. Most things are greater in reality than in the mind and this was so incredible that only in reality could it exist with such perfection - and it was right in front of him.
Some part of him wanted to take her. He couldn't or wouldn't acknowledge just what taking her meant, what he'd do with her or to her, but the voice was so loud he couldn't ignore it and it took all his control not to close the gap between him and touch her. Damn Rose and damn the stones, together they were lethal.
Interrupting his thoughts she asked with childlike excitement, obviously delighted at his open-mouthed reaction, "What do you think?"
He didn't respond and Jack gleefully filled in the gap. "A jewel fit for the beauty that wears it."
That seemed to pull the Doctor from his trance as he shot Jack a wilting glare. "You look beautiful," he said, looking at Rose but not meeting her eyes, a smile playing over his lips, "considering."
Rose just laughed again and, after thanking the shopkeeper profusely, the three headed back towards the TARDIS.
After the first few minutes of good natured banter between Jack and Rose, it was obvious to the Doctor that Jack was smitten with the combination of the necklace and Rose.
Jack was actually smitten with the combination of Rose, the necklace and the Doctor, but he kept it to himself. The Doctor finally recovered enough to see just how much closer the pair had become since he'd left them; Jack's arm was even entwined with Rose's.
He moved up to walk beside Rose. "Bought enough stuff then?"
Looking at him, she just grinned. "Yeah, I think so."
"You do realize that despite her large interior, the TARDIS's insides aren't infinite. You might have to leave something behind."
Jack smiled but didn't interrupt, noting with interest as her arm slipped from his and, switching the bags from one hand to the other, she threaded her fingers through the Doctor's. "Jack and I have already discussed it," Rose said, though Jack had no idea what she was talking about. "We've come to the decision that, if we've got to leave something behind, you're bed is the biggest most useless item on board and it'll be the thing to go."
Ah, thought Jack, he was now a pawn in the continuous banter between the two.
"My bed?" yelped the Doctor "Why should I suffer? I didn't even buy anything."
"You don't even sleep."
"Yes I do," he retorted.
Pulling a face, she raised an eyebrow and retaliated, rather brilliantly with, "Do not."
The Doctor headed straight for the console, flicking switches and making notes of readouts as he checked on his prize possession. Jack, once he'd helped Rose with all her bags, made himself comfortable on the sofa-like chair and started sifting through the packages, separating them into piles, one for him, one for her.
Rose wandered in last and stopped to lean against the console. "How'd you find us, anyway? That place was huge."
"Borkdills, they have a very unique energy pattern, easy to track. Must say you left a bloody good trail, just had to follow them with my sonic screwdriver." He pulled out his tool of choice from his pocket. "Only a few others in the entire marketplace have them and definitely not a huge bag of them."
"Bit drastic," Jack chipped in without looking up. "Could have just phoned. You seem a little over-exuberant in keeping track of Rose." They both ignored him, for entirely different reasons. He just smiled.
"Bit Spock of you, isn't it?" Rose quipped. He didn't respond but knew perfectly well that they were both watching him. When he refused to respond, she asked another question, purposefully taking on the tone used by annoyed girlfriends, mothers, and female friend everywhere when they felt they'd been left out of the loop, "And what exactly were you doing for all that time?"
He just looked up and grinned pointlessly.
"Okay…" Rose knew that look, knew that there was no point in arguing. She opted to just stick out her tongue as she flounced over to Jack and, plonking down beside him, joining in with the sorting.
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