Rose watched with detachment as the Doctor recovered himself and straightened up. There was a rush in her ears, fire in her arms and legs, electricity coursing through her brain.

"Rose?" There was an edge of wariness in the Doctor's gentle tone as he stepped forward again. He seemed so far away, calling to her from the other side of a void. So, so hard to hold on… It was like Cassandra all over again.

She tried to move. Had to speak to him, somehow… they were passing the console. Rose couldn't remember how they'd got there. His hand was warm on her arm, guiding her out of the room. In his other hand was the sonic screwdriver. He was a threat.

Don't control me. She yanked her arm out of his grasp, facing him with fire in her eyes. Then she attacked.

Time rushed by in jumps and flashes. Minutes became seconds. She felt powerful, indestructible. As he slumped backwards against the console once more, she lunged again, grabbing and throwing him to the floor with barely any effort.

He dodged her kick, managing to scramble halfway to his feet. He was speaking, maybe even yelling, but she couldn't hear him.

She launched on him another time, but he caught her legs and pulled her down with him. Furious at his defiance, she lashed out viciously, seized his neck and shook him.

She didn't know what she was going to do. Maybe she wanted to kill him. Something inside her was struggling to be heard, but she quashed it down. He stopped resisting for a second and stared at her. Somehow that infuriated her more. He was meant to fight. He wasn't supposed to give up. He didn't.

She couldn't let go. Couldn't hold on. I am bad wolf. Nothing can stop me.

But something was stopping her. Someone was holding her back. One kick dispatched the resistance. She targeted the Doctor once more, only to find the resistance had returned more forcefully.

A blue light. A high pitched whine. Ice seeping through her brain. And bad wolf was no more.

(Blimey, have I gone dramatic! Hmm shall I be evil and leave it there? No, I'll be nice and try to explain some of this madness)

Breathing. Breathing is good. Breathing alive. But is it mine?

Jack's face was inches from her own. As her eyes began to focus properly she could see the sonic screwdriver in his hand.

"Hey," he said quietly. "You all there now?"

"Jack…" Rose recognised her surroundings, the Tardis infirmary. She sat up slowly, feeling shivery and realising that she was still in her pyjamas.

"How are you feeling?"

"I…dunno. Jack… what's happening… where's the Doctor?"

Jack straightened up and paused in a way that nearly stopped her heart. "He's…alright. Bella's taken him… listen, he's gonna be fine, don't you worry."

Part of Rose had no idea what he was talking about, but another part that did was rapidly surfacing. She looked down at herself, let out a gasping sob. There was bloodin her fingernails.

It was another 10 minutes before Jack managed to calm her down. As Rose wiped the tears away and tried to get a grip on herself, he looked her in the eye. "I know what you're like, Rose, but you've got to promise me that you won't go charging off. You've got to rest, your brain – "

She remembered. "Jack, I know what it was – "

"So do we." He walked over to a black, shiny box that looked vaguely like an old record player. Except that there were little waves running all over it, as though the whole thing was a living screen. "This is Bella's tri-cerebral myo-perietal machine."

"The brain-altering thingumy?" Rose remembered what the Doctor had said.

"Yeah… when Bella and me were tackling the Healdon she used it to stop its metamorphosing… but we think it did more than that. Without a physical state the Healdon exists only in essence. So we think it somehow managed to possess your mind. I don't know how it could have escaped..."

"So where is it now?"

"In here." Jack patted the instrument. Rose looked at the undulating brain waves with more clarity. "I managed to separate your brain patterns with the sonic screwdriver and transfer the Healdon to here."

Rose tried not to think about brains mixing up, especially as she could feel a headache coming on. Then infirmary door opened and her heart jumped. Doctor? It was Bella. The amber eyes glared at her underneath a deep frown.

Ok there is a slight attempt at dramatic irony here. Y'know I've just done an English AS and I've already forgotten exactly what that term means… Anyway, hope this starts to unravel things...