Disclaimer: don't own Doctor Who so there. BBC owns it.

Field of Roses

The wind ruffled his already beyond ruffled brown hair. The land before him he thought he would never see again. The sky so achingly beautiful to him but dimmed somewhat by the lack of her presence. The ground barren for centuries now covered with flowers, red, yellow, blue, black, and white. Every single one of them a rose. Thousands, millions stretched to the base of the great tower of Rassilon. In amongst the flowers not native to this world children played, their happy glee filled cries filling his heart. The red sky seemed to sing with its reclaimed life; the whole planet seemed to sing it, all in her praise. One child ran up to him, hair like golden thread, and eyes of pure blue.

"Daddy?"

"Yes poppet"

"What was mummy like?" he took a steadying breath, he should tell their daughter, she had the right to know what a great person her mother was.

"Your mother was Fantastic, and the most wonderful person I have ever met. She had so much love to give; compassion flowed from her like water. Her smile…. could light the darkest places." He hugged the child close to him as he sat on the grass, the roses all around him.

"Do I look like her?"

"Yes you do, you have her hair, and her spirit."

"Did she choose my name?"

"The first part yes, Rowena…but she wanted you to have a Gallifreyan name also. Hence Rowenaantiluvamentra. But she called you Rowena for short" he smirked, remembering the first time he had given the Galilfreyan name, Rose had coughed, tried to say it, and failed miserably. From then on she had called her Rowena, or Row for short.

"Did she love me?" the sweet girl of 8 asked in all innocence a child can bring. Not knowing that it hurt her father still to talk of it, the blood still clear on the ground to his eyes the day he lost her.

"Of course she did, more than you can ever know."

"The others say she died to save us, that their daddies can't believe a primitive ape saved them"

"Don't you ever say that again Rowena, your mother may have come from earth, but she was by no means primitive, she was smarter than a lot of their parents. And it isn't all about knowledge, it's about heart. And the will to do what you have to do." His eyes had taken a dark shade, how dare those arrogant bastards say that about her, if it weren't for her they would still be rotting in time.

"Daddy, how did mummy die?" blue eyes looking pleadingly at him. Yes she was old enough. She was part Time Lord as well as part human. The Time Lord part over her making her older in mind.

"Before you were born and I met your mummy, we thought I was the last time lord…it was hurting me being the last, and it made your mum sad that I was sad and in pain. After you were born it became worse and was killing me. And would have killed you as well…" The Doctors mind was drawn back….back to the day his rose turned to dust.

"There's nothing I can do Rose, I don't know what to do" The Doctor looked to the medical scanner, showing both his brain patterns and that of their child. Slowly their brains were shutting down. The little child's quicker than his because it was undefended, no psychic barriers put up through life.

"There must be something" even as she said this she knew, she lowered the doctor to the bed beside their child, he was exhausted. The loss of his world. The full implications now only making itself known. With out the other Time lords to stabilise the brain, it was going into shock and shutting down. She covered his form, then leaning over kissed him softly on the lips, he returned the kiss but only slightly as sleep once more tried to claim him. He would never know what exactly she had done, but remembered her last whole, healthy words to him.

"I will not lose you both"

He awoke to the harsh lights of the medical bay. He felt well, in fact he felt better than well he felt whole. He closed his eyes and looked into his mind, feeling them there. Felt them reply to his touch. Shock, but happiness at being alive. They were alive! He turned to his small child. The readout now telling him she was a perfect healthy time tot.

"Rose!" he jumped about, glee overflowing into a huge grin that lit up his eyes. But there came no reply, no rushing footsteps. That was strange; she was never far from both of them. Especially not now. Checking the baby one last time, seeing she would sleep a while he left the medical bay heading for the console room. The Tardis greeted him, but with glee shadowed by deep sorrow. She was happy that Gallifrey lived once more, so much so she had brought up the old observatory around the ceiling. Gallifrey plain in the centre.

"It's beautiful Tardis….thank you" Rose's voice, weak, and laced with pain. He ran round the console to find her lying on her back, looking at the projection of Gallifrey.

"Rose!" he knelt beside her, cradling the top half of her body in his arms. He could see the blood slowly trickle from the corner of her mouth. Hear her ragged death filled breaths. "I'll get you to med bay hang on" he was about to lift her but her voice stilled him

"No point, it's the price I have to pay" he looked to her eyes, she met his a moment then looked back to his home planet.

"Rose what have you done?" her eyes locked back on his.

"I asked the Tardis if there was anything I could do, and there was. I became the Bad wolf again."

"Rose! You've changed the Timeline, brought them back?" he growled in anger. She knew she was not supposed to do that.

"No I didn't. You know I know better than that. No, he told me it was meant to happen this way. That he couldn't bring it back from where he placed it himself."

"Who Rose?"

"He never told me his name, but he knew you. And the Tardis knew him. ..was in awe of him." the Doctor held her as her body shuddered in pain. "He asked me if…I wanted to do this…that it would kill me. But he said it would save you and Rowena. So there was no choice, my little life for the life of the…alien I love the most and my child" she smiled at him

"Oh Rose" tears began to leak from his eyes, he had an idea who had done this, and also knew he could not save her, not this time. The damage was too much. He watched her as she turned her eyes back to his home.

"Wish I could have seen it, just once" her voice becoming quieter.

"You will see it I promise!" He said with such conviction she knew she would. One last adventure with him. He looked to the Tardis, and she moved without being told, no shudder, no jolt. Smooth as the day she was built. Her landing the same, only the dull clunk and ring of the bell gave any indication. The Doctor picked her up with reverence as the Tardis doors were opened from the outside. The face of a Time lord, one of the council if his dress was anything to go by, greeted him. The large back bit connected to the robe fanning about his head looking like a sun rising behind him. The smooth cap like a monk covering his head and ears.

"Doctor it is…" he stopped as he saw the human in his grasp "what is that doing here? I though you would have learned your lesson by no…"

"Shut up!" The Doctor snarled, the arrogant fop, how dare he. He had no idea. No idea at all. He saw President Romana in the distance, they locked eyes, and she knew what Rose had done. She nodded to him, eyes sad. He walked past them all. Behind him the capital. Before him the Dead Zone, the barren wasteland and in it's centre, the tower of Rassilon. He knew now it had been he that guided Rose. He hated Rassilon for that, why Rose, how Dare he take his very heart from him. He placed Rose down on the blue grass, still cradling her upper half in his arms.

"Look Rose, welcome to my home" he smiled, but he knew the tears betrayed him. Rose opened her eyes, the glaze of death already setting in, but she looked with such child wonder. A gasp not of pain, but of surprise leaving her lips. She smiled, so bright it would shame the sun. As her eyes roamed to each knew wonder to her, and so it became a new wonder to him. The boring same old of his planet now looked wondrous. He marvelled at her, how her very gaze could make old things come alive with new life.

"It's beautiful Doctor. I'm glad I got to see it, thank you…for everything." He knew it was time, but he couldn't

"Rose no, don't leave me, you can't. What am I to do? What of Rowena?" his tears flowed without heed. He could hear the other Time lords utter their disgust at him being so attached to a primitive ape. Heard Romana tell all to their shocked gasps, he smiled then. Shows what they knew.

"You'll do just fine love…..I love you my Doctor" her voice all but a whisper, her blood dripping onto the blue grass. She placed her hand over his right heart, his hand moved to cover her hand as her breath became more laboured. "I'll be right here love, I'll never leave you, I promised you that. Now kiss me goodnight" he placed his lips over those silky sweet of hers. They where akin to rose petals but even put them to shame. The sweet taste of cinnamon and of everything that was Rose now criminally tainted by the copper tang of her lifeblood. He kissed her softly; pouring all the love he had for her in it, and felt her return it with the same devotion. Then her head slipped to the side as the last breath of life left her. The doctor gave a broken sob as he traced the soft skin of her face with his hand, wiping away the one tear that fell from her eye. He held her, rocking back and fourth as his heart died. He looked down to her as she began to glow with a golden light, as her body turned to gold dust, he tried to hold onto her, screaming but he could do nothing. It floated on the wind a moment then was blown over the dead zone towards the tower. The Doctor shouted, screamed at Rassilon. Why? Why her? Until he had no breath, no anger only an empty void. He felt a soft touch on his shoulder, and knew it was Romana.

"Leave me alone"

"No I won't old friend, because you are forgetting something very important" she replied in a soft, kind voice. He scoffed. What was there now? But a small gurgle caught his attention. He looked to Romana seeing she had Rowena in her arms. He rose, tears marking his face and took his child from her. The child smiled, knowing this was her father. Ironic, that Rose would lose her Father at this age and now the child had lost her mother. But he would go on, his right heart may have died with Rose, but his left would love their child for both of them.

He turned to walk to the Tardis, it would be best if Rowena was raised here, but he had to tell Jackie, and show her, her grandchild. As he approached the Tardis he looked down, seeing a bright Red Rose now growing from the soil. Strange, Rose's have never been on Gallifrey. He turned back to the shock exclamations, seeing the dead zone now covered with Roses. And smiled as the wind ruffled his hair as she had done, and his right heart began to feel her presence, to beat again……

He looked to Rowena as the other children were called inside for dinner; she smiled so much like Rose.

"I think my Mum was the best." She got up and hugged her Father, kissing him on the cheek. "Love you Dad"

"Love you too" She turned from him and looked to the field of Roses.

"Love you mum" then she ran to catch up with the other children. The Doctor got to hisfeet, brushing the dirt from his brown coat then looked over the field himself.

"I miss you so much Rose.." he stood a moment, then felt as though two arms embraced him from behind. He caught the scent of cinnamon and of Rose. The feel of her forehead in his back as she hugged him. He dare not breath, was this his imagination? Then he felt a warm breath by his ear.

"Told you, you would do just fine" a quick kiss on the cheek then the sensation was gone, and he was alone again in the field of Roses as the sunset. But he smiled even as a tear left his eye. She had been with him always. And would continue to do so, in his heart….

The end.

KITG: there you go, no idea what possessed me to write this. Think it a follow on from "In my Dreams" but can be a stand-alone. Now I have made myself sad but fluffy. So I'm going under the Doctor who quilt with me plushie Tradis. See you in time 