Disclaimer: I don't own the Doctor, the TARDIS, Rose or any of the characters, planets, technology etc that appear in Doctor Who. I wish I did but who doesn't?

Chapter Summary: The Doctor and Rose finally meet Liana, and the Doctor gets the shock of his life.

Chapter Six: Liana

'I'm bored,' Rose said.

'Huh?' The Doctor looked around, eyes wide and bemused. When her words finally sank in, he said, 'Oh, come on!' He held his arms out. 'Look! This is great! I could spend a fortune in here. If I had one.'

Rose shook her head, smiling. He was like a little kid in a sweetshop. Full of very complicated, expensive and scary looking sweets.

'The technology here is amazing,' the Doctor observed cheerfully, examining some large, strange looking contraption made of metal and plastic. 'This really reminds me of home.'

'Home?' Rose echoed uncertainly. The Doctor rarely mentioned anywhere he referred to as home; she still wasn't sure what his planet had been called, what it had been like. The few times she had ever asked he had changed the subject. And made it very clear he didn't want to talk about it. It happened every time she tried to find out more about him that he didn't willingly offer. He didn't ask her about her family and friends other than those he had met before. She recalled he had told her that he didn't do families. She had never quite dared to ask his previous incarnation but she had felt that this one was more – approachable. He wasn't. There seemed to be a wall, a wall of ice, that he built up around certain parts of himself, of his past and his people, and simply froze whenever anyone asked about them. He was her best friend, but she never dared push the subject.

He shrugged, smiling and looked across the room.

There was a woman stood directly opposite them. She was very beautiful, tall and slim and with very long, black hair. She was wearing a dark green dress and seemed to be the person in charge. The Doctor turned his head, glanced at her, and then stared.

'What is it?' Rose asked, a little worried by the expression on her face.

He ignored her. His gaze was fixed upon the woman and there was an expression on his face that Rose had never seen before. It was an expression of incredulity, astonishment, sudden hope and startling vulnerability. He was looking at the woman as if he could not quite dare to believe what he was seeing, as if he thought that he might simply be imagining it.

'Doctor?' Rose said, waving a hand in front of his eyes.

He knocked her arm aside, not even looking at her. He seemed to have forgotten that she was even there.

The woman who was the focus of his attention smiled at something someone had said to her, looked around saw the Doctor staring at her. She smiled, and then noticed that he was still looking at her, intently. A frown crossed her face and then her eyes widened in amazement. She crossed the room, ignoring the couple of people who tried to speak to her. She stopped a couple of feet away from the Doctor.

They looked at each other for several minutes. Gradually, the noise level in the room dropped as everyone continued about their business but still looking occasionally at the pair.

The Doctor spoke first. 'Are you – what I think you are?' he asked in a hoarse voice that was unlike his usual one.

'I think so,' she replied. Her voice was a little unsteady too. 'I had no idea – I never thought – '

'Neither did I,' he said softly.

She held out a hand. 'You are real, aren't you?'

He reached out and took hold of her hand. 'As real as you.'

Rose felt suddenly, terribly, alone and left out. The Doctor was ignoring her, he seemed to totally forgotten her existence. She had no idea who this woman was, why the two of them appeared to be so emotional.

The woman suddenly moved forwards and wrapped her arms around the Doctor. She was crying and Rose realised that he was struggling not to, as well.

'Who are you?' the woman asked, eventually, drying her eyes.

'Me? I'm the Doctor,' he said, stepping back. 'Who are you?'

'Lianalas,' she said. 'Most people here call me Liana, though. How did you get here? This place is supposed to be secure – I should know, I made it so that nothing could get through our defences, no teleportation device, nothing.'

He smiled, almost normally this time. 'My TARDIS. She goes where she wants, very little can stop me going where I want.'

'But of course,' Liana agreed. She also looked almost normal, although both she and the Doctor still looked slightly shell-shocked. 'Who is your friend? Human, I see.'

'What?' The Doctor looked around. 'Oh, this is Rose Tyler. She's my travelling companion.'

'It is very good to meet you,' Liana said, smiling.

'Yeah, whatever,' Rose said shortly.

Liana's smiled faded. 'Yes,' she said slowly. 'I have – things to see to,' she said quickly. 'We'll talk later?' she asked, with a surprising urgency. He nodded.

'Bye,' Rose said, a little rudely, as Liana walked away.

The Doctor looked annoyed. 'What was that for?' he demanded.

Rose scowled at him. 'What was all that staring and big sad eyes for?' she demanded straight back. 'You totally forgot about me! What was that about?'

He sighed. 'She's a Time Lord, Rose,' he said simply.

For a second she was lost for words. 'You mean – she's the same species as you?'

He nodded. He looked tired.

'I thought you said there weren't any left, that you were the last and you'd know if there were any others,' she said, bewildered.

'I thought I was the last,' he said shortly. 'So you'll understand why I might be a little shocked, right?' he added in a sharp tone, still looking annoyed. 'Think how you'd feel, Rose. I thought all my people were gone, everyone I knew and loved, my family and friends, all gone. Dust in the void. And now I've found another.' He met her eyes, his anger fading. 'Can't you understand that?'

She smiled weakly. 'I guess,' she said quietly.

He nodded. 'Come on. I want to look around. We should ask Liana if she knows anything about that distress call.'

Rose nodded, but she still looked a little upset and concerned.

I know, this isn't a great chapter, but I wrote it during a REALLY busy time, so I didn't spend the time on it that I should have. Next one should be better.