ChapterOne

'Almost there!'

Rose vaguely registered the Doctor's encouraging yell, but every joule of energy she had was devoted to running for her life. The TARDIS didn't look any closer, unlike their irate pursuers.

His hand began to pull on hers as she started to fall back. She had to be almost dragged the last few steps, as he slid the key in its slot with very well practised ease and turned the door open as they fell inside.

He automatically kicked it closed. Rose could hear, as they lay on the floor and tried to catch their breath, a banging noise on the door. They'd escaped by a few yards, maximum. Another typical ending to a visit to a "supposed-to-be-peaceful" planet then.

'Remind me.. why we ended up.. in the.. only Anti-Foreigner period again?' She asked between gasping breaths.

'Alright.. so the navigation was a bit off.' He stood up, recovered from the marathon sprint. She so resented that.

'It's always off! Cardiff instead of Naples. 12 months instead of 12 hours...' She rubbed at her shoulders in subconscious unease. Her breathing had slowed dramatically, which surprised her. Maybe regular run-for-your-life sessions were making her physically fit where the gyms had failed.

'Or maybe the driver needs to check his map, and park closer to the dangerous places if he keeps on going to them.' She added grumpily.

'Oi! I'll have you know-' He paused and let himself take a proper look at her. She looked distinctly uncomfortable and was doing the arm-rubbing thing again. 'Are you alright?'

'Yeah. Just need a shower.'

He raised an eyebrow. 'Why? You're perfectly clean, for a human.'

At another time, she would have either taken it as a compliment or insult, and teased him about it.

'I just feel.. dirty.' She said reluctantly.

'What is it?'

'Nothing. It's nothing... it's just.. that guard. He felt me up a bit that's all.. it doesn't matter.' She said in a mixture of long pauses and rushed words.

He turned completely away from the controls and went over to her. His expression was a mixture of guilt, concern, and shock.

'When did that happen?' He asked in a low voice, going to put a hand on her shoulder. She didn't shrug him off.

'Uh, I was trying to distract him while you untied yourself.'

'Oh. I didn't see that.'

Another session of external door-pounding interceded.

'We'd better be off then.' He said quickly, resuming setting new coordinates.

'Yeah. I'll go inside.' She turned to the entrance to the rest of the ship.

He flicked a switch and the TARDIS dematerialised and was flung through the Time Vortex. As was typical since he'd been unable to completely repair the internal stabilisers, the room tilted to one side. Rose was thrown painfully against the rail and suddenly lost her temper with everything.

'Stupid-goddamn-motherfucking-dumb-assed-good-for-nothing-dip-shit-spaceship!' She yelled, considering attempting a kick at something except that her balance depended wholly on hanging onto said railing.

The Doctor blinked at the memorised tirade – Jackie's doing? – and stepped forward to her once the floor became horizontal. He reluctantly decided to forgive the insult to the TARDIS.

'Rose-' He began, putting a hand on her shoulder again. She flinched away involuntarily.

'Just leave me alone!'

'I'm sorry.'

This gave her pause. He'd never apologised so openly before. The closest thing had been in the church when the Reapers were attacking them. He'd gone off at her, then apologised, with obvious reluctance. And tried to make it up by saying he wasn't going to leave her behind. Which of course he wasn't. Her being in the same time period as her baby-self might have caused another attack. If anything, he'd take her home or throw her out an airlock.

Now he actually sounded sincere. It surprised her into civility.

'Me too.' She admitted quietly and patted the railing, not meeting his eyes.

'Is there anythin I can do?' He asked.

'Nope. Just don't get tied up again.'

'No one's ever done that for my sake before.' He said quietly as she went to leave again.

'In 900 years?'

'Nope. Thank you.'

She gave a hint of a smile before disappearing into the corridors of the TARDIS.

'Doctor? Is the temperature regulator on the blink again?' Rose came back into the console room, in jeans, dark blue jacket, and a white t-shirt.

'No. I just fixed it!'

'Uh huh. Sure you did.'

'What's the problem?'

'Nothin. It's just the shower water was a bit nippy.'

'I'll take a look.' He said, with obvious exasperation.

'Nah, don't bother. And is it just me or have the corridors gotten longer?'

'Why d'you say that?'

'Cause it took me forever to get there and back, and I got lost twice.'

'And?'

'Nuthin. It's just I think the TARDIS is gettin its own back at me.'

'Nonsense.'

She shrugged and went over to stand beside him at the controls.

'Whatever. Y'know, I was thinking-'

She subconsciously leaned against the console and it went up in sparks next her hand. She snatched her hand away reflexively.

'Ow! You see? It doesn't like me!'

'Give us a look.'

He took her hand in his and examined the burn mark. Not serious; he could use the sonic screwdriver for dermal regeneration. He pulled it out and ran the blue light over the wound with the accompanying buzzing noise that had become trademark.

'She.' He corrected absently.

'What?'

'Not 'it'. She doesn't like you.'

'So you admit it!'

'No I don't. Accidents happen all the time.'

'Sure. Yeah thanks.' She added as he gave her back her hand, unburnt.

'Pleasure. So, where d'you wanna go now?'

'Depends. I know somewhere where we wouldn't be arrested for not having magenta skin.'

'Tiny mistake that. Tiny!' He insisted.

'Like maybe Yorkshire, March 18th, 1993.' She continued.

He paused and gave her a look.

'This isn't another visit to Rose Tyler's past is it?'

'Not quite… I've left the day before.'

'So why go there then?'

'Well, it's changed since I left. It'd be nice to go back and take a look.'

He looked justifiably sceptical.

'Please? You do owe me y'know.' She added.

His expression turned to guilty and she knew she'd won.

'I spose it couldn't do any harm..' He said reluctantly. 'Are you sure you've left? Childhood memories can be a bit dodgy on borin things like dates.'

'No. I'm sure that's it.'

'Why?'

'I just remember it clear, that's all. Moving house, very traumatic.'

'You told me once you did that a lot.'

'Yeah, well I had a very close friend to leave this time.' She said, truthfully.

He gave her another searching look before manipulating the controls.

'Hold on.' He reminded her. But before he started, the TARDIS began dematerialising by itself. The room tilted violently and Rose was thrown against him. He caught her with a free arm around her waist and held on to the console.

It immediately reminded him of that time he'd danced with her in front of Jack. Or rather, that moment at the very end, after he'd tipped her back. She'd squealed in delight. Then for a brief moment she'd leaned against him, with his arm around her waist, her head on his shoulder, and their bodies pressed together somewhat.

He'd snatched a look at Jack, to gauge his reaction and the previously ever-so-cocky Captain had not been impressed. Afterwards, he hadn't travelled with them very long before announcing on 'Woman Wept' that he'd like them to drop him off at his former home.

The Doctor was certain this was because he and Rose had ended up wandering off together. Nothing had happened, yet it had finally occurred to Jack that he was unlikely to get any "dancing" action from either of the other two members of the TARDIS' crew. So he left. Decided on a nostalgic whim to go home and find his biological parents.

All that aside, Rose and the Doctor were now standing exactly the way they had been in that last moment of dancing. It made flying the ship a lot harder to concentrate on, but he managed this time – despite some odd technical difficulties – to land on the exact date she'd said.

'Did we make it?' She asked, her cheek resting against his jacket. He had an odd urge to gently brush a strand of wet hair out of her face - but didn't. Instead, he let go and allowed her to stand back.

'Yep.'

'You sure?'

'Positive.'

'As positive as you were that Satellite Five was the Fourth Great and Bountiful Human Empire? Oh wait, that's right..' She interrupted before he could object. 'That time it was history that was wrong, not you.'

'Precisely.' He agreed cheerfully.

She gave up and remembered something else.

'I told you the TARDIS had it in for me!'

'Rubbish.'

'You saw it! That's four "accidents"!'

She had a point.

'Well, you did insult it quite a bit before.' He said.

'And apologised.'

He sighed. 'Don't worry about it. She'll get over it soon enough. We going then?'

'Yeah.'

He wasted no time in taking her hand and going outside, locking the door behind them.

Jeez, I'm feeling prolific at the moment.

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