Title: Domestic Space

Rating: T

Notes: Sequel to 'Domestic Battleground'. You must have read that in order to understand this.

Notes 2: The Doctor doesn't do domestic, not even now he's married to Rose. But he's about to find out just how domestic things can get – and Rose will find out just why he and the TARDIS don't do families…

Notes 3: Sorry it took so long, but I've been revising and cramming for my exams. I've nearly done half of them now, though, so hopefully it'll speed up a bit. Assuming I don't perish the moment I open my Latin literature paper tomorrow afternoon, that is…

Day Three

They'd spent the rest of the day hurtling through time and space trying to find the creature. After a while, Rose had made sure the Doctor could manage on his own and taken her cousins through to the kitchen, and later to bedrooms.

It was morning now, and Rose was throwing up.

The Doctor leaned against the doorframe of the bathroom. "Some bad Chinese," he commented, repeating her words of the day before as she wiped her mouth and flushed the toilet. "Infirmary, Rose."

"No," Rose said resolutely. "I don't need it." She washed her hands and face carefully, then leaned against the sink. "I'm alright," she said.

"Yeah, yeah," he muttered. "Sure you are. You want breakfast?" Her stomach somersaulted at the thought and nearly had her back on her knees in front of the toilet. "That's a no, then."

"No," she confirmed, slowly turning and leaving the bathroom. "No, I think I'm just gonna lie down for a bit."

He watched her, concerned. "You want a cup of tea, or anything? There's that Rivellian stuff, s'posed to help when you're sick."

"It tastes like pond scum," she retorted. "No thanks." She pulled the blankets over herself with a sigh. "Could use a cuddle, though," she said, almost as an afterthought. He grinned and climbed into the bed next to her. She sighed happily as he wrapped himself around her. "S'nice."

"This is the second day, Rose. I'm worried."

"It's just a bug or something," she excused. "You'd worry if I got a paper cut, you would."

"Most likely," the Doctor agreed. "C'mon, we'd better get up. Don't want to leave your cousins running around without you.

"Without us, you mean," Rose corrected.

The Doctor looked horrified. "Oh, no. No. You can show them around the TARDIS yourself. I'm going to try to find that time jumper."

"Won't you need help?" Rose wanted to know.

"I managed nine hundred years without you, you know," the Doctor said dryly. "I think I can survive for a couple of hours."

"Says the one who doesn't like letting me out of his sight when I shower," she countered.

"Ah, no, that's entirely different," he said solemnly. "That involves you naked." She laughed and poked him. "Nah, it'll be fine. Just try to keep them away from Charlie, yeah?"

"He wouldn't hurt them," Rose said with certainty.

"Wouldn't put it past him," the Doctor shrugged, pulling away from her and rolling out of the bed. He pulled his jacket on. "Come on, Rose."

"Slave driver," she muttered, and climbed out of bed after him. "Total slave driver."

Fifteen minutes later, she pushed Izzy into the room she'd given Tim.

"Morning, Timmy," she greeted. "Time to get up!"

Tim threw a pillow at her and pulled the duvet over his head. Izzy giggled.

"C'mon, Tim, there's a whole spaceship to explore," she reminded him. "Rose is gonna show us around."

"And if we don't hurry up," Rose said, "you'll miss the rain in the Water Room."

Tim's head appeared. "Rain?" he asked sceptically. "Inside?"

"Sort of," Rose grinned. "C'mon, get dressed. Izzy and me'll be in the kitchen."

"Which is where?"

"Three doors down on the right," Rose told him. "And then up the stairs. It's the orange room at the end."

"Right," Tim nodded. "Bugger off so I can get dressed."

"Rose? Rose, where are you?"

Rose sighed and stuck her head out of the door. "Yes, husband mine?" she asked wryly, eyes twinkling at him.

He grinned at her. "I found it. The time jumper. It's managed to get to the other side of the galaxy somehow."

Rose frowned. "Is that a good thing or a bad thing?"

"Neither, really. As long as the TARDIS can get us there." He patted the metal wall affectionately. "Hundreds of rooms to choose from, and you pick the film room," he continued. "Honestly, little humans."

"Tim picked," Rose protested. "This was enough of a shock for him as it is." She grabbed the lapel of his jacket and pulled him down for a kiss. "You need help, then?"

"Wouldn't mind," he nodded. "Those two can stay here, though."

"Let me tell them." Rose ducked back into the room for a moment, then reappeared, closing the door behind her firmly. The Doctor laughed.

"You do think Charlie'll get them," he said gleefully, starting down the corridor to the control room. "He doesn't open doors."

Rose sniffed. "I do not. I just don't think they should wander around, that's all." She slipped her arm through the Doctor's. "Remember when I was first here, I was getting into trouble all the time."

"Yeah, but no one finds trouble quite like you do," he pointed out. He paused just inside the control room and backed her against the wall. "You feeling better?" he wanted to know.

"Yep," she nodded, looking up at him. "Good as new." She kissed him softly. "You're a sweetheart," she proclaimed.

"Don't tell anyone."

"Would I do that?"

The Doctor grinned. "If you do, I can always tell that story about you and the time you drank an entire bottle of Rivellajian whisky."

Rose pushed him gently. "You wouldn't dare," she said, a faint note of worry in her voice. "C'mon, let's get going, yeah?"

The Doctor grinned. "Right. Start her off?"

Rose stuck her tongue out at him, went to the console and pulled a lever. "One day, you'll stop trying to catch me out," she said.

"One day you'll get it wrong," the Doctor said, sounded very disgruntled, and grabbed hold of the console. "She likes you too much."

"Well, I like her too," Rose reasoned. "Good old TARDIS."

"Less of the old," the Doctor objected, twisting a dial. He swore suddenly. "That little pest! It's gone and jumped again."

"Time or space?"

"Time. I really don't want to make a trip to Ancient Terallia, thanks very much." He raced around the console, nearly knocking Rose over, and slammed his hand against the console. "Behave," he ordered the contrary time ship.

"Please," Rose added in a mutter, ducking out of the way. She hit a switch as something lit up. "That was bloody close," she said.

"Just a sun," the Doctor said, concentrating. "The TARDIS would've missed it without help…"

"What, like last time?" Rose shook her head and almost fell over as the TARDIS gave a lurch.

"Oh yes, it's moved!" the Doctor said exultantly. "Goodbye, Terallia."

"Why don't you like it there?" Rose asked, ducking under his arms as he dashed around the console, jabbing at buttons. "Isn't that where they grow that fruit you like so much?"

"Yes, but the people are rather opposed to men, in that time," the Doctor grinned. "I'd have to pose as your slave, and I don't fancy that much."

Rose smirked. "Oh, like you're not already?" He gaped at her and she nodded at the monitor. "Come on, then. Where is it?"

"It's stopped," the Doctor said, after watching the screen for a moment. He frowned. "That's odd."

"What is?" She inched around the console and ducked under his arm so he was holding her. "Catalla Four," she read aloud. "When are we, then?"

"About five thousand years in your future," the Doctor said absently, pulling a lever down. The TARDIS slowly came to a rest, the whirring stopping. "Odd."

"You said that already," Rose prodded. "What is it, Doctor?"

"Catalla Four is mostly just a human colony," he said after a moment. "Or at least, it was. According to this, half its population is now Falikan."

"And who're they?" Rose asked, trying to be patient.

"Humanoid, kind of purple," the Doctor said briefly.

"And they're not supposed to be there?" Rose tried to clarify.

"Oh, they can be there. Just they shouldn't be, not in such a great number. Like I said, it's a predominantly human colony for another thousand years after this. It's not even a major trading post." He frowned. "That time jumper's started making trouble."

Visions of Reapers came to mind, and Rose bit her lip. "So, we sort it out," she said, falsely confident.

The Doctor rested his chin on her shoulder. "Yes," he said, still sounding a million years away. "You'd better get changed, then. The apes, too."

Rose sighed and ducked out of his arms. "Don't call them that," she reprimanded lightly. "Be back in half an hour. Don't do anything stupid."

"Hey," he said in objection. "It's me."

Rose rolled her eyes. "My point exactly."

"So…where exactly are we?" Izzy asked, trying to keep her outfit intact.

Rose re-pinned the sari-like dress for her cousin. "Two solar systems across from Earth, apparently," she answered.

"And five thousand years after our time," Tim clarified, adjusting the tunic-like top he had to wear. "I don't see why we have to dress up, and he doesn't," he muttered.

"He blends in," Rose said with a faint smile. "Dunno how, exactly." She looked over at her lover, who was tinkering some more with the TARDIS. "You'll be hot," she warned him. "Have you even looked outside yet?"

"I'm colder than you lot," came the absent reply.

"It's hotter than Egypt," she said sceptically. "You can't wear your jacket." He glanced at her, a smile dancing around his eyes. "Well, if you faint from heat stroke, don't blame me."

"And you've been married how long?" Izzy teased. "C'mon, let's go. I want to see it!"

"Hold on," Rose said, moving to the console and opening a drawer. "Spending money," she explained on Tim's odd look. "There's always something interesting to pick up."

"Even if it turns out to be a type of hammer," the Doctor put in.

"That was only once," she said implacably. "And besides, it's interesting to look at."

"Let's go," Tim said quickly, before Rose and the Doctor could get into another squabble. "I want to go out too." He moved towards the door, then paused. "It's, uh, safe, right?"

"Almost definitely," the Doctor said cheerfully, leaving the console and almost bouncing over to the door. He pulled it open and stepped outside. "Lock up, Rose."

Rose pulled a face, making Izzy grin, but she locked the TARDIS carefully nonetheless, and made sure the key was secure on a chain around her neck before slipping her arm through the Doctor's.

"Where to, then?" she asked. "D'you want to find the thing first?"

"Yes," he answered. "But it shouldn't take long – you lot can sightsee later."

Izzy and Tim were looking around themselves in awe.

"There's two suns," Tim pointed out faintly. "That's why it's so hot…two suns…"

"The buildings," Izzy half-squeaked. "It's so – wow!"

Rose grinned. "Yup. Alien planet." She left the Doctor and joined her cousins. "Looks like Greece in the early fifth century BC," she said. The Doctor's knowing grin told her that he knew she was showing off. It didn't make her any less right. "Built to withstand the heat," she continued. "So where's this time jumper, then?"

The Doctor hesitated, glancing between Rose and her cousins. "I can probably find it myself," he said then. "It's mostly harmless. You go have fun."

Rose adjusted the material over her shoulder and looked keenly at him. "You sure?" she asked. "We can – "

"Go," he overrode her. "Have fun. Get something pointless and pretty to stick on the shelf." He cupped her cheek with his hand. "Be careful."

"I always am," she smiled up at him. "You too, yeah? Don't start a fight."

"That's my line," he retorted, and kissed her. "Keep them out of trouble."

"Always do," Rose nodded cheerfully. "You come find me if you need help?"

The Doctor rolled his eyes. "Rose, I've been doing this sort of thing for a long time."

"I know," she said defensively. "Just…I worry."

"I know."

"Oi, c'mon," Izzy said, laughing at them. "I didn't come all this way just to watch you two making eyes at each other."

Rose stuck her tongue out at Izzy. "You be quiet," she said. "Give me a sec, won't you?" She stretched up and kissed the Doctor again. "We'll be in the market, probably," she said. "S'where the best things are, usually."

"Right," he nodded. "Just steer clear of any trouble." He glanced briefly at Izzy and Tim, then disappeared down a nearby street. Rose turned back to her cousins.

"Well, c'mon then," she grinned. "Shopping."

Tim rolled his eyes. "How is it," he complained as Rose and Izzy linked their arms with his, "that we can come to another planet – and another time – and still you want to go shopping?"

Izzy grinned, looking around. "This is incredible," she enthused. "It's like – "

"Nothing on Earth," Rose grinned.

"Are those aliens?" Tim asked in a low voice as they approached a large square, bustling with activity. Humans and others wandered around – mothers with children, women with baskets, men with girlfriends. He was staring at a female who looked human, but had purple skin and a baby in a pouch in its stomach, kangaroo-like.

"Don't stare," Rose reprimanded softly. "It's rude. For all we know, staring's some sort of taboo here. And yeah, she's alien." She glanced around, careful not to watch any one individual for too long. "Possibly a human hybrid," she added, not being able to resist showing off again. "They look really human, see – and there, there's a couple mixing." She pointed out the purple-skinned man who was kissing a human who looked to be of Asian descent.

"This is incredible," Izzy said again. "I mean – wow."

"Yup," Rose nodded. "Ooh, look, clothes!"

"I don't want to shop," Tim complained as he was dragged towards the stall. "Isn't there something else to do? Like a museum, or something, so we can learn about it."

"Better not," Rose said. "Besides, this is fun." They stopped at the stall, and despite himself Tim was drawn into a discussion with Izzy about the materials of the clothes – a little like cotton, a little like silk, but not quite either. Rose leaned against the stall and looked around the market.

There was something…off about it. She couldn't quite put her finger on it – certainly not the way the Doctor could – but she'd been travelling with him for a while now, and she was starting to be able to tell if things weren't right. Even if she hadn't been told that Falikans weren't supposed to be here, she probably would have picked up on it anyway.

Despite the couple she'd pointed out to her cousins before, the humans and Falikans weren't mixing much at all. They didn't make eye contact, didn't smile the way mothers did over irritating children. Transactions between shopkeepers and buyers of different species were brief and terse, with no smile or general conversation.

The only time Rose had seen a marketplace – any market, in any time or place – this busy but almost segregated was in America in the late eighteen hundreds. They'd landed there by mistake – the Doctor didn't like being around slaves, and after seeing Atlanta, she'd agreed with his stance wholeheartedly.

This place was segregated like that. She didn't like it, not one bit.

She hoped the Doctor found the time jumper soon, so he could sort out whatever mess the creature had made of this planet, and they could take Izzy and Tim home and then just go on as normal.

Well, as normally as it ever got.

"What do you think of this, Rose?" Izzy asked. Rose didn't appear to hear her, and she touched her cousin's shoulder gently. "Rose? You in there?"

"Yeah," Rose said quickly, blinking and looking at the younger girl. "Yeah, sorry." She looked at the dress. "It's nice. I like it. It'd fit in back home, too." She looked at the shopkeeper. "How much is it?"

"Twenty creds," the woman said, her eyes darting about the market nervously. "Will you take it?"

Rose frowned. "Twenty creds? Are you sure? It's worth more than that, isn't it?"

"No, no," the woman said. "You can have it for twenty. It's…the end of a line."

Rose frowned and followed the woman's gaze. Her eyes widened.

"Tim, Izzy, get down," she ordered. "Under the table!"

A moment later, the earth trembled and fire and smoke engulfed the marketplace as a bomb exploded.

Rose leaned against the wall of the cell and scowled.

"This," she said decidedly, "happens far too often."

Izzy lay on the metal ledge that served as a bunk. Tim sat on the floor by her head. They both watched Rose, taking their cues from her.

"The number of times I've landed in a cell," Rose continued. "It's what made us decide to go back to Earth this time – I got stuck in a cell. He's completely insane. And the TARDIS – always landing us in the wrong place."

"I thought you liked the TARDIS," Tim ventured. Rose glared at him, and he glanced away. "Sorry."

"No, I'm sorry," Rose said after a moment. "I'm just…tired." She slid down the wall until she was sitting, cross-legged, on the floor.

Izzy sat up and watched her cousin intently. "Rose, are you alright?"

"Yeah, fine," Rose said. "What about you two?"

"It's…different," Tim acknowledged. "It's not the kind of thing I'd want to be doing every day."

"But it's an adventure," Izzy agreed. "Thanks for bringing us along."

Rose smiled. "Sure. I just wish it hadn't ended up like this." She sighed. "I think it was that time jumper," she admitted. "The Doctor wouldn't have let us off the TARDIS if he'd known this was going on."

'This' was evidently some kind rebellion. The bomb that had gone off in the market had been an attack by one side, and Rose, Izzy and Tim had been caught in the crossfire. The rebel group had captured them when Rose had tried to help a Falikan woman and her child, who had both been injured in the blast.

Rose felt sick. Humans and Falikans fighting. This wasn't right – she knew it wasn't, from what the Doctor had said. And it went against everything she hoped in for the human race. She had to remind herself that this was only five thousand years in her future. Humans had been fighting each other for longer than that by the time she had started time travelling.

She sighed leaned her head against the wall. "This is wrong," she said aloud. "This whole thing…it's supposed to be mostly humans here, the Doctor told me – not Falikans as well. And this rebellion thing…" She shook her head. "Even I can feel it, and I'm human."

"So…the alien we saw yesterday has…what, messed up time?" Tim said, trying to understand.

Rose nodded. "Time's very delicate," she said. "If you're not careful, timelines can be altered. It's not safe, when that happened." She gave a weak smile. "The Doctor's people – the Time Lords – they used to keep an eye on it all, make sure it was going smoothly, that no one was messing around with time. But…" She trailed off and shook her head. "It's different now."

There was silence in the cell for a while, then Tim rubbed his knees and stood up.

"Right," he said. "Are we going to try to get out of here, or what?"

Izzy blinked. "Is there any point?" she wanted to know. "I mean, the Doctor'll come looking for us. Won't he?"

"Yes," Rose nodded. "Soon as he can. And we're pretty safe here, really. We might as well stay put for a while." She glanced around. "No way to get out, anyhow. Wish I had a sonic screwdriver, we could try the door then, but we'd get caught again quickly enough."

Izzy looked at Rose oddly. "I'm sure you never used to be this pessimistic," she commented. "You've changed, Rose."

"People do," Rose said quietly. "Does it matter?"

"I don't know."

The door scraped open at that point, stopping Rose from answering. Two humans stepped through, one carrying something that was obviously a weapon.

"Back against the wall," the gun-carrying man ordered. "Hands above your heads." The three cousins obeyed. The men jerked his head. "Well, go on," he said to the woman. "They weren't injured, but…"

"But this is my job," the slender woman said implacably. She held a scanner in her hands, and stepped towards Tim. He shifted away. "It's just a medi-scan," she said, trying to reassure him. "To see if you were injured in the blast."

"You always treat prisoners this nicely?" Izzy asked. "Or are we just special?"

"You're outsiders," the woman guessed. "You're not involved. And yes, we always make sure prisoners aren't injured." She moved the scanner over Tim. "You're fine," she reported, and moved on to Izzy. "Some small grazes," she said, "nothing serious. I'll send some antiseptic lotion, so they won't get infected."

"Thanks," Izzy said dryly.

The woman moved on to Rose, who endured the scan with bad grace. The woman shook the scanner and checked the screen again.

"I'm sorry," she said after a moment. "If you'd been further along, so it was noticeable, we'd never have let the bomb go off with you there."

"What d'you mean?" Rose asked.

"You're pregnant," the woman said awkwardly. "Didn't you know?" Rose gaped. "From what I can tell, you're nearly two months along," the woman continued. "The baby wasn't harmed in the explosion, though."

The man at the door sighed. "I'm sorry," he said. "If we'd seen you were pregnant…we don't want to harm people, we're just trying to get people to listen."

"Then why did you let a bomb go off?" Tim demanded, pushing past the woman to glare at the man. "We could have been killed."

"Pregnant?" Rose asked, voice barely a whisper. "Me? Pregnant? With a baby?"

"Yes," the woman said gently. "Didn't you know?"

"No," Rose said faintly. "I…the Doctor…" She slid to the floor. "Oh," she whispered. "That's interesting."

Reviews will make me so much more confident in my exams, which will help me write more...