Title: Jericho Street Junior School
Author: trustno1 (+other assorted variations on that name)
Rating: K
Disclaimer: Not mine.
AN: This idea jumped out at me while I was walking to work – I'm blaming it on the three episodes of Doctor Who I decided to watch at three in the morning, starting at the beginning (where else!). So here it is, my idea of where the Doctor went between disappearing at the end of 'Rose', and reappearing seconds later to gain a new companion :-)
The Doctor stood in the door of his TARDIS watching the incredible human girl in front of him. Who was gazing back at him with a mixed look of longing and excitement. He'd tried to sound nonchalant about asking to come with him, as if it didn't matter either way whether she chose his life over that of a boring human stuck in the 21st Century, but he knew he'd failed.
He saw her hesitate, saw her move instinctively towards him before being grabbed by that annoying, useless lump of a boyfriend, and the burning desire in her eyes was momentarily extinguished, replaced with regret. They light up briefly when he tells her it's always dangerous, and he has never wished so hard that someone would be his companion, someone with the same insatiable thirst for adventure as him, and the more danger throughout the better.
But she's held back again, and it's all he can do to stop himself from running across the alley and physically carrying her to the TARDIS. Somehow, he doesn't think she'd mind much, but it has to be her choice to come with him, to take this kind of life.
So he lets her go, his heart feeling heavy again for the first time since he met Rose Tyler, and tells her he'll see her around. He hopes it's true, but doesn't expect it will be. And, stepping back into the TARDIS, he powers up the engines, trying desperately not to look at the television screen; knowing what he'll see.
He's barely gotten them floating around in a quiet bit of space, when he remembers something Rose said in the underground lair of the Nestene Consciousness, and it's so clear he could swear she's standing next to him:
'I've got no job. No A-Levels. No future. But I'll tell you what I have got. Jericho Street Junior School, under-7's gymnastics team – I got the bronze!'
And in a spur of the moment decision, he's setting a course for Jericho Street, about 12 years ago, despite not knowing the exact day, month or even year; hoping that for a change the TARDIS will surprise him and give him a helping hand.
He's not disappointed. She lands in between a high brick wall and a grubby house, almost directly opposite a small brick school with a banner proclaiming 'Gymnastics Tournament Today!' in bright red letters. Giving the TARDIS a grateful pat, he grins and strides over to the school gates, where a few parents are still making their way to the hall. It's packed, and he just managed to find a small space of floor to stand with an unobstructed view of the main floor, but with few others around him, thereby avoiding him unwanted questions.
He doesn't have to wait long before the teacher acting as the presenter announces the home team, and the parents and children watching applaud loudly as four girls in dark blue leotards walk on, smiling and searching for familiar faces in the crowd. He spots Rose waving to Jackie, surprised at how different she looks with long brown hair that's tied securely in a blue ribbon. He doesn't have time to ponder this though, as an upbeat track begins playing on the speakers, and they move into position with Rose bringing up the rear. The other girls do various types of cartwheels, handstands and jumps, but the Doctor doesn't pay attention to them, only just remembering to applaud with the others in the room.
Rose steps up, a tiny girl of six, maybe seven but no more, an excited grin on her face revealing a gap where a baby tooth has fallen out. She jumps from what looks like a table (the Doctor never was very interested in gymnastics), and grabs onto a thick rope, swinging through the air before dismounting with a graceful forward roll and plenty of applause, led, the Doctor thinks with a wry smile, by Jackie. He feels a strange jolt when he realises that an action almost identical to that which she just performed saved his life, not to mention the entire Earth, barely twenty minutes ago – or in twelve and a half years time, depending on your view. He can still feel the strangely comforting weight of her as she swung into his arms; feel her heart beating against his chest as he grabbed her waist to prevent her from falling, holding her in a kind of hug. And he wonders when he became such a pushover that he'd let such an amazing human go, with such a bare minimum of persuasion.
Turning his back on the crowded school hall, he ran back to the TARDIS, setting a course for exactly where he left, about ten seconds after he did so. Forcing himself to calm down – he didn't want to look desperate when he opened the door again, merely as though he was nipping back to fetch something he'd forgotten – he strides over to the door and flung it open.
"By the way, did I mention? It also travels in time," he asks innocently, leaving the door wide open, knowing she'd be right behind him.
Walking sedately back to the control, he smiles contentedly – he can't give Rose her job back, or A-Levels, though he doesn't think she'd mind much. Because he's going to give her a past, present and future unlike anything she's ever dreamt of. And it's going to be fantastic.