As It Should Be
The TARDIS was a curious being, even she could admit that to herself. She was much like her Thief, a lone creature that was the last of its kind. She however, was not limited in seeing the entirety of time and space as her Time Lord was, who could only see the parts in front of his presented to him in a complex weave of lines and tangled webs that stretched as far as his limited mind could see, a puzzle ready to be solved by her somewhat clever alien... No, she saw it slightly different, she saw it all in the order of what it must happen, she had neither the patience nor the simple minded drive to sort through it all as her silly Thief insisted on doing.
But she was limited in the fact that time was an ever changing ocean to her, with shifting currents and wild storms that seemed always in need of fixing by the being that lived inside her. So, she had to admit, she had never expected, or really, never really could understand the concept of what the little, odd, yellow and pink human Rose Marion Tyler was going to be to her. She was a curiosity the second she had ran inside her, to be sure. Something bright and that her Thief certainly had loved, or at least sought out like a moth to flame.
She was all he wished he could be, young, somewhat naïve and so full of a bright flame of light that came with innocence. Her time-lines was an insane, massive maelstrom of intrinsic lines and knots...But she was lovely and soft and she was witty. And because of that, the TARDIS had approved. She was just what her beloved Time Lord needed to get by and recover from the silence that came with being the last of their kind. The TARDIS, though not entirely aware of how the Time War would end, had lost the song of her sisters' even before they had been silenced. It was, in a way, her sisters' way of protecting her, for without that lost before she surly would have gone mad. She had been glad that her older and younger sisters to think ahead, and she knew with a certainty that they had seen the outcome of her surviving while they would not...
She had many important things to do with her Thief besides that, which included saving and fixing the mess that the Universe tended to be. The fact that the odd little human had helped him focus and began the process of moving on or at least starting to heal from his lost, had endeared her to the TARDIS.
And then it had happened. Bad Wolf had made herself known, and nearly as an entire new being had created herself and remained etched within the mind, body, and soul of the human woman, no matter the efforts of her Thief... Rose Marion Tyler had looked into her heart. The TARDIS had looked into her's. Each of them had approved and the TARDIS had given her Wolf the means to save their Doctor. She had given the being that created itself the means to do so from within her own heart...
Now she found herself bound in a way that she had lost with the disconnection of her sisters'. It was a curious sort of bound that neither she nor her Wolf had had the need nor want to explore, and then she had been separated from her Wolf. And though it wasn't a physical pain exactly, TARDIS had felt her absence far more sharply then she had ever expected. Even more so then the lost of her sisters. Even more so than the feeling of nearly loosing her Thief.
Now she couldn't have that.
So she did the only thing that made sense to her, as she felt her Wolf wither and wilt within the other universe, as she felt the valiant child die... She brought her back, all the memories intact, her soul, her life, twisting and gold and lovely and her's and the Thief's, and their's and her own's, merging beautifully within its old shell, doubling its light and all of it's memories of things past inside of the younger shell, giving that brave, brave little Wolf the chance to live. It pained the TARDIS that she had to wait at that moment, the time of death to bring her back, but it was then that the walls of the universe, the dimensional walls so easily slipped through weakened and faltered through the echo of the bond between them breaking, an easy, but exhausting action that would bring the Wolf a fighting chance.
And if anything, the TARDIS refused to allow anything that was her's not have a chance. It just wouldn't do.
~BW~DW~BW~DW~BW~
The Doctor looked at her for half a beat, seemingly still confused, before he grinned and dashed about the counsel. He pulled and tugged, his hands erratic and his feet thumping. For a second, all Rose felt was the wild turn as the TARDIS was pulled off into a sharp turn in her flight through the vortex, and she gripped the edge of the console with the memory of always falling on her arse the first few times after he started the Old Girl up, or if he had a whim to move about. The Doctor did a quick dance around the console, doing the job of six, as he had told her indignantly one particularly rough landing on Venus, and turned to her, and smiled again. There was a mischief to his eyes, a sort of wiggle to his brow as he looked at her.
"You sure you want to go back? Come on, I can take you to the moon landing and be back in a second, I mean, time-machine! I could take you on the blue moon of Heureda and have you home by supper time!"
Rose bit her lip, looking at the man that didn't want to take her home just yet. That was different, he had only nodded before, looking forlorn but accepting. And now here he was looking at her with those eyes, ones she had missed so much, full of a silent, intense pleading that made her want to cry... Or give him a hug, or snog him into next week.
Besides, temptation, and temptation. She had never been to the blue moon of Heureda, she had been in the system; the Doctor had pointed out the beautiful, distant orb that had reminded her so much of earth in space... And oh, she had loved the moon-landing, they had went four times, giggling as they had landed in different places, trying to avoid themselves, and nearly scaring some American bloke with a camera out of his expensive space suit. But just not yet. Not quite with the man in front of her. They needed to prevent the end of the world, after all(again, oh how they did that over and over again!), or at least, save it from becoming a molten, radioactive fuel. She smiled at him. Oh, but how she loved his tempting ways.
"I'm a bit tired. And I'd have a feeling running, as I'm sure well do, is out of the question."she said honestly, and she felt the exhaustion her body wasn't quite used to.
"Running isn't all I ever do. I recall once I had to skip my way out of trouble"he said, eyes glittering.
Rose felt herself smile, one day, soon, they would be hopping for their lives, but that was beside the point...
"But I am rather-"
"Tired? Well, aboard the TARDIS, that isn't a problem, come along, off we trot, to bed I send you! Then I take you home."he said pleasantly, grabbing her elbow. He tacked on the last part in a single breathe, like an after thought.
Rose blinked, well, she thought bemused as the TARDIS chuckled a hum in her head, that was new as well. But it was a good sign, he was trusting her much more quickly than last time, she hadn't gotten a room until after the Slithen. But then again, she had been quite frighten and exhausted the first time around, and she had wanted her mother... Much more than a simple phone call could relieve... The fact that the TARDIS was all for it gave her a chance to sigh in sheer relief, she was quite exhausted. Emotionally, and physically because of of course, running without being used to it was quite hard.
"Skip to it, eh?"he said with a wink, and much to her amusement he escorted her down the hall she recognized, skipping all the way, making her do the same to keep up.
If she hadn't known better, Rose would have thought that the Doctor was wandering aimlessly. But, now that she was in the know, Rose could hear, or really feel as the Doctor was guided by the TARDIS, it was a soft hum and a small spark of no here or there, and surprisingly, Rose found herself next to a door with nothing more than a twist and turn of Galifrayan in front of her, reaching, she touched and traced the writing. The Doctor paused, stared, and tsked.
"Oi. That's my room."he scolded mildly, and Rose blinked.
She had never, ever seen the inside of his room, she had seen this door, and had seen as he disappeared inside, but never had connected it to him. She knew he slept, but she also knew he only needed a fraction of the time humans did, 'waste your lives asleep, I swear' a brown eyed Doctor had often grumbled. He also had a habit of falling asleep in odd places, so part of Rose had always thought that he didn't have a room specifically devoted to it...
" 'Fraid you left your skivies layin' about?"she asked with a teasing note to her voice, and he snorted, before he quite plainly pushed opened the door. Rose jumped in surprise.
It was a dark room, of dark woods, deep reds, and dulled golds. The Doctor made a noise in the back of his throat, and gestured dramatically. Rose faintly felt her heart raise to her throat.
"There, no skivies."he said plainly.
Rose nodded quickly, looking at the mess of the bed, and how scattered about the room there was a series of odd bits of wire and gizmos of all sorts, and if she squinted she could see a series of holograms (was that Sarah Jane Smith there, young?) in the corner of the enormous desk that encompassed the entire length of the farthest wall. She looked away, and back at the Doctor nervously, and he looked at her with a blank, unreadable face, his icy, powerful eyes boring through her.
"I like it."she finally said, and he gave a vague, not quite there smile that mirrored her own. He slammed the door with a quirk of his brow.
"Come on, I think this is you."he said after a moment, and he sounded strained as he pointed to a door across from his'.
Rose felt something in her chest clench as she glanced at the door. The TARDIS hummed peacefully in her mind, like a squeeze to the hand, and vaguely she noted that she walked to the door, and a single, golden rose marked the door different from the others in the corridor. She noted with a jolt that the thorns that wound around the rose, and its leaves, wrote out one thing. BAD WOLF, over and over in winding, curving letters. She swallowed, her fingertips running over the words... The name, again and again. A declaration, a message, and a warning. She shivered slightly in her thick shawl, and wondered what the Bad Wolf(what she, herself) was trying to tell her with this... Reassurance? To keep faith? A warning of what was to come?
"What's it say?"he asked, squinting, tapping on the largest BAD WOLF.
"Can't you read it?"she asked him softly, and he grimaced.
"She won't let me."as he said this, he knocked on the wall near her door, scowling at the TARDIS.
"I thought she translated everything."she said absently, squinting as if she couldn't read it herself.
"She doesn't translate Gallifreyan, or the very old laguages she can't understand herself. Or what she doesn't feel like translating."
She hummed, shrugged, and let her hand drop. She then pushed the door open, and stepped inside. The first time around, at nineteen, Rose had gotten a spartan bed, vanity and small loo the size of postage stamp, and watched as the two years passed as the room grew with color, size and style. Miscellaneous books, shoes and clothes had lined the floor and last she remembered, pink on the walls and gold on the carpet. A year had passed since that time for Rose, she wasn't quite the wide eyed, head over heals twenty-one year old woman that had thought that she could give the Doctor her forever. She also wasn't quite twenty-two (roughly) year old woman,she had been, would have been, not quite the Defender of Pete's Earth and dying as she desperately tried to find her way back to the Doctor...
She was nineteen years old physically, with the pain and lost feelings of the twenty-two year old Rose Tyler, and the determination of someone who had watched, felt, and died to get to this point. The TARDIS, sweetheart that she was, seemed to want to reflect that, the changes in her. The growth that she had gone through.
And Rose looked about her room with interest, and a feeling of gratefulness in her. It wasn't too big, but it was soft, golden and starry colors, bit like Starry Night really, with its swirling blues and golds. The ceiling was the night-sky itself, with swirling nebulas and burning stars(an echo of her attempt in Pete's world), and her bed was plush and large, perfect for an aching and tired companion. She didn't have a vanity anymore, and its stead got a series of shelves, just waiting for knick-knacks from across the cosmos no doubt, several lovely things already in place, including all of her favorite books, movies, and an music player from the Ninety-fourth century, where the best were made. Rose smiled slightly, and blinked at the two separate doors off to the side.
Despite her exhaustion, despite the Doctor hovering over her shoulder, her curiosity made her she open the one to her left. It was a bathroom fit for a queen... Perfect to soak in...
"Oh, she likes you. She gave you a Howl's door."mentioned the Doctor, and he sounded... Not really peeved per say, but a combination of peeved and curious.
Rose blinked at the unfamiliar term, and glanced at the door next to the loo's.
"A what?"
"A Howl's door... Change the switch around, and it moves you to different parts of the TARDIS."he gestured vaguely to a small switch with various pictures, and Rose blinked.
Is that how the Doctor got around the TARDIS without getting lost?! All those times he went on, and on about superior Time Lord sense of direction and...
"Is this how you get around in her?"she asked suspiciously, and he shrugged.
"Well, even I don't know how big the TARDIS is. She's a being of eleven dimensions, and she likes to surprise and tease. Howl's doors are there so I don't get too lost. Her gesture of good faith."he said this with another shrug, but was squinting at her Howl's door as if it offended him.
"That's just too bizarre."she muttered before she stepped back, and closed the door to the loo with a small shudder.
It locked with a soft click, and she watched with some amazement and with lifted brows as the Howl's door faded into the wall, leaving behind only a smooth gold wall. Even after all this time the Old Girl had a trick or two up her sleeve she thought with an amazed grin, touching the wall where her door had been.
"I guess she decided your not quite ready for it."said the Doctor, and he sounded suddenly smug.
His face, which she had been watching from the corner of her eyes had gone less stony, softening, and turning playful as the Howl's door was taken away. Internally, she breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed almost as if the TARDIS was testing his limits on how comfortable he was with her, showing her his room, giving her, even temporarily something that he only had access to, and she wondered how much more the Old Girl would push him. The Doctor, as much as she loved the daft idiot, was a jealous man, and he liked his secrets and mystery. She doubted even if he had the same memories as she did of their time together would he allow her to see his room...
Things were definitely changing.
Rose only hoped it would be for the best. Despite her reluctance, despite the rapid movement of her thoughts, Rose felt a drag and the heaviness of her eyes, and felt every little ache and scrape her three consecutive adventures with the the Doctor had brought. Not for the first, nor the last time she suspected, her body ached something fierce, and she bemoaned the lost of her stamina and gained pained tolerance.
"Good night. Er, rest, or whatever is appropriate, I'm exhausted."she said, and promptly kicked him out, even as he grumbled on about humans and their lack of stamina.
The second the door had clicked, locked behind him, Rose let out a startled sob. Before she could stop herself, and have a semblance of self control, she found herself sinking to the ground and crying her eyes out. She blubbered with the soothing notes of the TARDIS in her head, echoing through her heart with a comfort like her mum's arms. Rose laughed, and after a moment, moved to the bathroom, laughing again at the sight of ready bubble bath, the very thing she had wished for in Pete's world.
"Thank you."she said aloud, and felt the warmth in her give out a merry hum.
She dipped her aching toe, loosing her Victorian finery, shedding her makeup with quick, expert wipes, and was soaking just as she had wished for what seemed like a life time ago. Still crying, and still laughing, Rose feel into a light doze, before a soft hum told her to leave. Dressing in the softness of jim jams, she jumped into her blue sheets, and for the first time in a long time, fell into a deep, endless sleep with the song of the TARDIS soothing away her nightmares of white walls, sandy beaches, and the endless pain that came with an alternate universe crushing you.
For once, all was well. Or at least, it was until the next storm.
~BW~DW~BW~DW~BW~
The Doctor had no idea what to think the second Rose Tyler gave him a smile, a soft wish of 'good night'(as if night was relative in the TARDIS) and closed the door to her room. Her room. Hardly nineteen, human, and with just three adventures under her belt, she already had a room in the TARDIS. A nice one at that, and once again the Doctor found himself staring at her door, a lovely, darkly wooded thing with an detailed, golden rose carved and painted into the wood. Around it, with a few of the lightest leaves, thorns spiraled out, swirling like nebulas to write out again and again something his brain(really his translator) refused to, well, translate. Again and again, in large letters and small, that damn word(words maybe?) was spelled out.
The TARDIS only gave something close to a sigh, before she gave him a small shock on his left foot to get away from Rose's door. He frowned and kicked lightly at the floor. He really did hate it when he was kept from things by his beloved ship. He could completely handle himself, thank you very much. He was nine hundred(possibly older), and he could leave a human to sleep for a while...
Suddenly tired, but already feeling the vestiges of whatever nightmare his subconscious would cook up, the Doctor thought through whatever he needed for repairs, walking calmly to the console room. It wasn't until he was roughly knee deep in wires and his hands were filled with grime that he thought back to the pink and yellow girl sleeping away her life in his TARDIS.
"You like her."he accused the TARDIS, and got a hum of agreement, before one of the things in front of him sent out sparks, as if to say, 'well, so do you.' in a huffy sort of tone.
He scowled at his ship.
"That's neither here or there. We're talking about you."he told her sternly.
Something like a scoff sounded out in his mind, and then a soft little chuckle, the sort of thing your mum would do when she thought you were being stupid or silly. Yet more sparks came out, and he jumped up, scrambling away from the onslaught of fire that the TARDIS seemed to think he needed.
"Oi! I get it, I get it, you want me to leave well enough alone."he shouted, even as he glared at the console.
As if he would , he thought with a roll of his eyes. There were odd things about one Rose Tyler, and he felt, saw the drag of Time around her, as if it was rushing to please her, caressing her young form as if to protect her. He would be an idiot really not to be suspicious of the love and affection, the large welcome the TARDIS seemed to think she needed. He could see it in the overall 'talkative' way the TARDIS had reacted the second she had stepped into her. In the brilliant room and the dang Howl door she had been presented before she had looked at it strangely...
But... Beyond that, Rose was brilliant, open minded. And she looked at him with unyielding eyes of brow, green, and swirling gold, held his hand without hesitation, and ran like the best of them. Yes, he was suspect of Rose Tyler... But only because he felt as if the universe itself had a great wish to do something with a seemingly unimportant shop-girl from London. He wondered, and he feared what would happen to that girl, just nineteen, when it all came to past...
He shuddered, even in the perfect temperature of the TARDIS. And he hoped honestly that it wouldn't be something too terrible. But, knowing the universe, he hoped he would be there to aid her the best he could... Until she left, of course, just as everyone else had.
