A/N: I own nothing except Sumira and Ero but you can have them if you want them, just ask nicely first.
The Doctor mused that he seemed to be losing the ability to breathe quite frequently since he landed in Rose's universe. The day and night he had experienced had been such a whirlwind it was only the quiet of the night, laying with Rose sleeping in his arms had he realised exactly what had happened to him. A lot of questions needed answering but he would be content for a while at least to follow Rose's lead and explore this strange new world. He had awoken to hear Rose in the adjoining bathroom, singing away to herself and it had taken him back to their life together on the TARDIS. He had propped himself up on the pillows and waited for her to emerge rather than getting up and he was glad of it because the sight of her as she exited the small room had rendered him without any motor functions what so ever.
Gone were the jeans and jumpers he fondly remembered from their times of travelling together. Rose stood in tight, black trousers that hugged her in all the right places and a low cut, black top. On her feet were heavy, military boots, not too dissimilar from the ones he had worn in his ninth incarnation but it was her coat that caught his attention with interest. Long, black and leather, it brushed the ankles of her boots, flared open to reveal her shapely legs before being buttoned up tightly around her waist, leaving the top of her frame open. The collar of her jacket came up against her neck, framing her face, her hair pulled back into a French plait behind her, and the sleeves flared at the bottom to reveal her slim, ivory wrists.
"Wow," was all he could mutter as he ran his gaze over her, "What's the occasion?"
Rose laughed at his expression as she fastened two leather gauntlets around her wrist, deftly fastening them one handed, "Its my uniform," she said, "I wanted the leather jacket look that you had when I first met you."
"I never looked that good in mine," said the Doctor, "You look gorgeous!"
Rose blushed deeply at the compliment, "It terrifies most people, Mickey says I look like a vampire but it works and I've got used to it over the years. I thought you looked good in your jacket, all dark and moody like you used to be but the suit works better on you now."
The Doctor shook his head as he watched her fuss with her hair in the nearby mirror, "You're so confident," he said, "I'm so proud of you."
Rose flashed him a smile before steepling her fingers together in front of her and murmuring into a small device on her left gauntlet. She opened her hands and a misty, blue sphere appeared around her fingers, she toyed with it for a second, expanding and then shrinking it with her fingers before clicking her fingers and causing it to disappear. The Doctor's mouth dropped open in surprise.
"That was a temporal field!" he cried, "How the hell did you do that?"
"Its one of Sumi's inventions, completely illegal but Rasillon turns a blind eye to me having it. Its called a temporal disruptor, it gives me limited control over time, like you lot have naturally," said Rose walking over to the Doctor and sitting on the bed next to him, "Don't think I don't know what you're capable of now."
The Doctor examined the device on her wrist before wrestling his jacket off the bed post and taking out his sonic screwdriver. He ran it over the device, humming appreciatively at the design, "That is so beautiful," he said, "Amazing work, Sumira must be very talented."
Rose nodded, "I'm lucky to have her," she said, opening the drawer of her bedside cabinet and pulling out a small knife that she stuck down the side of her boot and her own sonic screwdriver. She noticed the look on the Doctor's face and giggled, "I had a lot of cabinets to put up."
The Doctor laughed, noticing the design was not too dissimilar to his but when activated the light glowed a soft red rather than blue, "You really are the Doctor aren't you?"
Rose pressed a kiss to his lips before getting to her feet, "Just a well trained copy with a few nifty gadgets. You'd better get dressed, I need to head down to the Valiant and run some systems checks before we leave, unlike you I don't wait until something breaks," she said throwing him his trousers and shirt from the bed post, "There's some breakfast out in the living area that Sumi made while you were sleeping. Grab something and meet me down at the ship, we leave in an hour."
The Doctor gave her one of his excited grins as she made her way out of the bedroom before scrambling into his clothes, pausing only momentarily to regard the elegantly drawn picture of him that sat on the bedside table and smiling happily to himself.
XXXX
The landing bay was a bustle of noise and activity as the Doctor made his way into its heart, heading towards the Valiant. His own TARDIS had been moved to a small parking space near to the East wall, looking battered and worn against the TARDIS' on Gallifrey, all sitting in their true form. He smiled at the memory of when his TARDIS had born a similar shape but he was glad of the distinction now. Several of the on duty soldiers gave him a cautious look as he passed but he merely gave them a sarcastic wave as he passed them by. He noticed Mickey talking animatedly with several young crewmen and waved at him briefly before carrying on towards the Valiant. He stood outside the ship, admiring the subtle differences between his ship and Rose's. He noticed the small gaps above the door which intrigued him as to their purpose and made a mental note to ask Rose about it when they got a chance. He tapped on the door and then, finding it unlocked, pushed it open.
The interior of the Valiant took his breath away as it had done to night before, bathed in the soft green light of the central column the room was elegantly fashioned in sweeping chrome, all the edges upholstered in velvet to avoid any bumps on landing. The grates on the floor were covered by the same velvet fabric and the Doctor bounced experimentally on his toes. It was a very feminine look within the ship, but strong, like its pilot. He noticed the pilot's chair bore three seats rather than the two of his and that very little of the original control panel had been altered since the TARDIS' creation, unlike his which had been patched and re-patched over the years. The Doctor could almost see the newspaper add' TARDIS for sale, one careful lady owner.'
He started as a soft computerised voice rang out in the silence of the ship.
"Good Morning," it said, in his own language he realised, unaffected by the language translator, "Please state your designation."
"Um… I'm…"
"Designation John Smith," came Rose's voice from underneath the console, causing the Doctor to jump once again, "Crew member."
"Welcome John Smith," said the computerised voice, "I am designated Valiant."
"Nice to meet you," said the Doctor before crouching down next to Rose, "Your ship talks!"
"Of course she talks," said Rose, clambering out from under the console, "She prefers it that way and it gives me a chance to practice my Gallifreyan. Hope you don't mind me using your alias its just she recognizes me as the Doctor."
The Doctor watched in amazement as Rose began to work away at the computer screen, finding no difficulty with the Gallifreyan text swimming before her. He laughed softly to himself as he sat down in the captain's chair. He heard booted footfalls on the stairs behind him and turned to see Sumira dressed in grey army combats descending into the control room. She flashed him a friendly smile before reeling off several readings to Rose that made even the Doctor's mind ache with her rapidity.
"Weapons check shows we're battle ready just in case," said Sumira.
"Battle ready?" said the Doctor, "This is a battle ship? I thought it was a type 40, exploration only."
"Sumi made some upgrades," said Rose simply, "We end up in some pretty hairy territory at times so its nice to be prepared. I flip off the Chameleon cloak and we're a fully fledged battle cruiser. Those holes above the door that I saw you looking at on the monitor are gun turrets, I can fight off the majority of nasties without having to lose the Blue Box effect. Its always a bugger flying back to the fifties again and getting her to cloak properly."
The Doctor sat in stunned silence as Sumira continued her system's analysis and Rose pottered around the console flicking switches and turning dials. The Doctor shifted uncomfortably in his seat as his fingers itched to get involved but he held himself back, the Valiant was Rose's baby and he wasn't going to get involved. He looked up from the console as he heard the door open and saw Rasillon and Chancellor Ero walk onboard.
"Good morning President Rasillon. Good morning Chancellor," sang the Valiant softly as they entered.
Both men ignored the comment and the Doctor heard an indignant beep from the central console that sent him smiling, Rose's TARDIS was as moody as his then. Rose greeted her friends warmly, stepping back in sadness when Rasillon would take her hand but Ero wouldn't. She sighed sadly before returning her attentions to Rasillon.
"Are you ready to go?" he asked.
"Just about, just got to get Mickey onboard and then we're ready to go. Should make Skaro in fifteen minutes, I'm not going to throw her open to wide, just in case. I'll send a transmission when we land and I'll stay in communication whenever I can."
"Good," said Rasillon, "There is something we want you to have Doctor, not a good gift I'm afraid but a necessary one since we heard your stories of the Time War."
"Rasillon?" said Rose as he handed her a small disk, "That's not what I think it is, is it?"
"The Bad Wolf program," said Chancellor Ero, "For use against…"
"I know what its for," said Rose, "I designed it but I don't want it."
"You must take it," said Rasillon, "For everyone's sake Doctor take it and if you need to use it, you made an oath."
"But Rasillon…"
"That is an order Doctor and you will obey me."
"Yes sir," said Rose slipping the disk into the Valiant's central console, tears visible at the corner of her eyes, "You can trust that I will fulfil my oath if the necessity arises."
The charged atmosphere was only poorly alleviated as Mickey bounded into the control room like an excited puppy dog, throwing back a warm greeting to the Valiant's welcome. Rasillon nodded briefly to Rose before heading out of the door with Ero on his heels but Rose caught the Chancellor's sleeve before he could leave.
"Ero please," she begged, "Don't leave like this. We are friends."
"I don't know you Doctor, I never knew you," he said, "How can we be friends?"
Rose raised a hand to cover her eyes as he left the Valiant before taking a deep shuddering sigh and turning back to her companions, any sign of tears cleverly concealed under her confident mark. She noticed the questioning expression on the Doctor's face but her eyes told him not to query anything with her and he obliged, merely offering her a supportive smile as she began to move dials on the main console.
"Everyone ready?" she asked, fiddling with the destination controls.
"Careful that they're locked Rose, you could land a hundred years off the mark if you're not careful," said the Doctor getting to his feet and steadying her hands on the console.
He heard Sumira's snorted laughter and looked up to see Rose with an incredulous expression on her face, she wasn't used to being told how to fly her own TARDIS and found the Doctor's advice endearing and amusing. A restrained grin flitted across her face as she struggled not to laugh.
"Thank you, I'll bear that in mind," she said, giving his hand a brief squeeze in reassurance before releasing a nearby lever that sent the central column working. The Doctor huffed and leaned against the console as he watched Rose work, laughing at himself as he realised he had just advised Rasillon's best pilot on how to fly her own TARDIS. Rose as the Doctor was going to take a lot more getting used to. He was pulled from his thoughts as a warm hand closed over his and he looked up into her smiling face, amazed as she guided his hands to the controls.
"You going to help me then?" she said softly, a gentle smile playing on her lips, "Always a smoother ride with two. You keep her steady for me and I'll make sure we don't land in the wrong time line."
"You don't need me," he said.
"Yes, I do."
XXXX
The Doctor gripped Rose's hand tightly as they exited the Valiant to be greeted with several armed Kaled soldiers. Rose gave his hand a quick squeeze before pulling her hand away. She stepped forward to the guards, not phased by their weapons.
"I am The Doctor, I represent Gallifrey and I am on a diplomatic mission to see Davros, he is aware of my coming here today," she said, her voice resonating with a confidence the Doctor had only heard when she was consumed by the Bad Wolf.
"And your…companions?" said one of the guards, running a glance over her mixed band of friends, "Security Officer Sumira Lalerel and Second Officer Jonathan Smith of Gallifrey and Mickey Smith of Torchwood, a representative from Earth who is currently serving under my command. They were all authorised alongside myself to see Davros this morning as you are well aware and I'd hate to keep your master waiting with idle chatter, best you tell him we're here. Now get to it or do I have to get demanding?"
The guards shrank back slightly at her tone before pulling themselves back upright, "Yes Ma'am," one murmured as they disappeared back into the main part of the Kaled dome.
Rose turned to her friends, "I've just released I have two Smiths on board, this is going to get confusing," she said, "Just remember to call me Doctor here you two ok. Sumi, if they even start to say Rose kick them or something."
Sumira smiled wickedly, "My pleasure Doctor."
Rose turned back to the door as the guards returned and she followed them inside, her eyes alert for any changes in the dome since her last visit. Despite being three paces back she felt the Doctor stiffen as they moved further and further in. In the dim corridor she reached back and gave his fingers and featherlike brush before turning back to her task. Light flooded to corridor as another door slid open to reveal a sparse scientific laboratory, several men hunched over desks as they worked. She heard the familiar whirring of an all too familiar wheel chair and then the rasping, grate of her host's voice.
"Welcome Doctor, it is good to see you have returned to us and so soon after your last visit. How may I accommodate you?"
"Hello Davros," said Rose, her voice dangerously low, "Just a visit, wanted to review the details of the weapons treaty with you. That's alright isn't it?"
"Perfect," said Davros, "Come right this way."
A/N: Ooooh I love Davros, he's one of my favourite baddies. Please review as it makes me smile and stops work being so boring.
Nova x