Bits In Between
By Lumendea
Chapter Forty-One: Chess IV
Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or any of the spinoff material, and I gain no income off this story, just the satisfaction of playing with the characters.
AN: I had other things I wanted to get done today. Instead, I sat down and wrote this in one go.
…
The scent of spring hung in the park though none of the flowers were in bloom yet. Rose had seen the park workers or maybe volunteers out planting on her way to the chairs and chess area. Her hands ached from typing another paper, and she inhaled the fresh air with relief. Her flat might smell a bit heavily of oils at the moment. None of the neighbours had complained, so Rose counted that as a win.
When she reached the chess area, Rose found an empty place for herself and sat down. Without much thought, she began to arrange the pieces. Then someone stepped up next to the table and immediately drew her attention.
"May I join you?"
Looking up, Rose shifted her right hand in case of trouble but found someone very unexpected. Rose barely kept her surprise contained. It was the Doctor in his third incarnation. There was a wide smile on his face, and his eyes were bright with a hint of mischief. He gestured to the chair and repeated his question. Shaking her, Rose chuckled and nodded.
"Please," she said. "An opponent is always more fun."
"I tend to think so."
Glancing past him, Rose located the TARDIS tucked under some of the park trees that hid it fairly well in their shade. She immediately relaxed. That told her that this was after the Doctor's exile had been lifted after that mess with Omega. Jo had told her that he occasionally took off on little trips, sometimes with her and sometimes not; during that time, though, he always returned to UNIT HQ.
"Are you happy with black?" the Doctor asked her.
"Oh, yes," Rose answered. "That's fine." She picked up her travel mug of tea and unscrewed the top that could serve as a separate cup. "Would you like some tea?"
"That's very kind of you," the Doctor said. "But I'm quite alright."
Nodding, Rose poured herself a cup of tea while the Doctor made the first move. She moved one of her own black pawns forward and tried not to stare at him. In his future, they would play chess from time to time. While not as good as the Doctor was, Rose was more patient than his tenth incarnation and could manage a win from time to time. This incarnation, though, was more patient from her understanding of his character from Jo and Sarah Jane.
"Do you play chess often," the Doctor asked Rose as he moved his next piece.
"Not often," Rose answered truthfully. "School and my other hobbies keep me busy, but I have a couple of people who enjoy a game from time to time. It… I suppose I find it restful in a way as it forces me to focus on one task and use another part of my brain."
"Ah." The Doctor smiled and nodded as he captured a pawn. "I can certainly see the value in that. I don't often play either, but I also have a… friend that I play with from time to time. He keeps me on my toes."
Rose laughed. "Yeah, my opponents are like that. One of them, the one I play with the most, he's all chaos. Never met an official opening or strategy that he liked. If he ever uses one, then it is by pure accident." Rose made her move and rested her chin on her left hand. "The other one is the opposite. He likes to play a very precise and structured game. So, I have to play the two of them very differently."
That drew a laugh from the Doctor. "They sound like interesting friends."
"Friends?" Rose repeated the word. "Not sure that's exactly the right word for them. Though… it isn't exactly wrong either."
"Yes, my opponent is rather like that. He understands me better than most." A soft sigh escaped the Doctor. "But there are some things that we will never agree on. Big things."
Rose nodded. He was talking about the Master then. "It's like that for me as well. I like the pair of them most of the time, but there's always this… you have to be a little on guard. It's even that they'll try to hurt you; it's that your natures are too different to ever be completely on the same page."
"Exactly." The Doctor was nodding now, and a sense of relief overtook his features. "Most people would tell us to avoid them, to move on."
"It's not that simple, though." Rose made her move. She was already losing with fewer pawns, only one knight, and one bishop now. "Not sure what I'd do even if it did suddenly become simple."
"Yes. It's much the same for me. I've taken to calling him my best enemy, as strange as that might sound."
"Strange, maybe, but more interesting than anything else," Rose chuckled. "Mine are more…." She laughed out loud this time. "Honestly, mine might be trying to be older brothers based on how they act sometimes."
How did one explain or describe her relationship with the Black and White Guardians? They were protective in a manner that she knew was important. In personality, she had some overlap with each other but was also their opposite in other ways, like a Venn Diagram with Rose in the centre of good and chaos.
"How does one form a relationship like that?" the Doctor asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Honestly, I'm not sure. Exposure and acceptance mostly, I think."
The Doctor laughed now. It was different from the laughs that Rose knew well, but she liked it. This incarnation still carried his sharp intelligence, and he was highly aware of their surroundings, potentially more so than the later incarnations she knew. Rose liked him. But then, she usually liked the Doctor. It was a bit of a problem sometimes.
"There are worse foundations," Rose defended.
"Indeed, there are."
"What about yours?" Rose dared to ask.
"We grew up together." The Doctor sighed and turned more sombre. "And I know that he has changed dramatically; I know that we've gone in different directions, but there are some things that haven't changed."
"And some days, that's enough," Rose guessed.
The Doctor blinked in surprise and nodded. "Yes, though, as you said, you have to be on guard."
Rose was pretty sure that someday her relationship with Black and White would find stronger footing. It was that thing that she didn't want to think about, that nagging sense that she knew what was coming. Something way too big and scary for a university student to be worrying about. But someday, she wouldn't need to be so worried about what she said around Black and White or what they said around her.
They slipped into a thoughtful silence as the game progressed. Rose took a rook and a knight but lost a rook protecting her queen before using the queen to take the Doctor's queen. She quickly lost it to the Doctor's remaining knight.
"You're very good at this game," Rose chuckled. "Your opponent must be very good."
"He is. I daresay that he would consider himself a chess master." The Doctor chuckled as if amused by his words. "Your friends must be good as well."
"Quirks aside, they are fairly good," Rose agreed.
She was going to lose. Rose knew it and accepted that. This incarnation of the Doctor was not so easily distracted and more easily kept his focus on the board even as he asked general questions.
"Are you a student?" he asked.
"I am, at Cambridge," Rose agreed. "Needed a break from a paper and decided some fresh air would do me good."
"A wise choice. I should probably follow your example more often."
"Well, to be honest, the smell of drying oil paints helped push me outside. Had my flat not smelled, I likely would have had a cup of tea and a nap."
The Doctor laughed. "Also a valid option. Tell me, do you know Liz Shaw? She's worked as a researcher at Cambridge in the past."
"Sorry, I haven't heard her name around campus." That much was true. Liz hadn't worked at Cambridge for some time.
"Not surprising," the Doctor murmured. "Still sorting out navigation."
Somehow Rose didn't comment on that. She focused on putting forth an effort to recover. The Doctor's eyes glittered with amusement. He already knew the conclusion of the game as well. Rose had let him get too strong a position, and even without his queen, he was dangerous. She was able to take a pawn that was itching too close to her side of the board, but it was more of a token protest.
"So," Rose asked. "Are you just visiting the area?"
"Oh, yes. Merely a day trip."
"Well, I'm glad the weather is nice for you then," Rose answered. "You never know what spring is gonna do to you."
"You English and your weather," the Doctor laughed.
"You certainly sound English yourself, mate."
"Ah, such things can be very deceiving."
His smirk made it so tempting to toy with the Doctor and ask more questions or give veiled hints. She pushed the urge down. His gaze was a touch curious when he looked at her, likely from her timelines, but he hadn't asked her name or poked at her history. Rose could manage the same. So instead, Rose gave him a smile and tipped her king. The Doctor chuckled as Rose slumped back in her chair.
"Thank you for the game," he said kindly.
"It was fun," Rose agreed. "And made for a good break." She drank down the last of her tea and sealed the canister back up. "But I probably should return to my work. Professor Chesterton doesn't have a lot of patience with me."
She let herself enjoy the way the Doctor's eyes lit up at the mention of his old friend before she stood up. There was open nostalgic fondness on the Doctor's face. He stood up and held out his hand. Rose accepted it, holding back a shiver of pleasure as their hands connected. Smiling at the Doctor, she shook his hand.
"Safe travels."
"Thank you, my dear," the Doctor replied with a pleased smile. "May your term be smooth and rewarding."
With that, they parted; Rose walked away and glanced back to find the Doctor watching her with a curious expression. That was dangerous, so she gave him a smile and hurried away, resisting the urge to run back and hug him. Her hand tingled, and Rose allowed herself a moment to wonder if he ever felt that when they met out of order. Then, behind her, she heard the familiar wheezing sound of the TARDIS as the Doctor departed.