The Captain in Navy

"Rose!"

The sound of her name made her turn around, and she smiled at the young man who ran up to her.

"Hi, Mickey," she said. "Been a while."

"And whose fault is that?" he laughed as he gave her a big hug.

"Yours, as always," she said cheekily, as she pulled away. "Aren't you warm in that?" she asked, looking at his overalls.

"Dying," he laughed. "You don't look much better either, you know."

She stuck her tongue out at him, but knew her uniform was sweaty as well. "Thankfully I won't have to wear it until school starts back in autumn," she said.

"You done with your exams then?" asked Mickey as he fell into step with her.

"Yeah, had the last one today," she said. "How's your apprenticeship going?"

"Good," he nodded. "I've got another month and Bill said he'll consider me for the junior mechanic position after that."

"Well done, Mickey," beamed Rose. "Knew you had it in you."

"Thanks, Rose," he said, bumping his shoulder against hers. "So, what are you up to? Still got that job at the PI's?"

"Yeah, but I had the week off for exams," said Rose. "I start back again tomorrow. River's letting me work full-time during summer. I can definitely use the money."

Mickey was quiet for a moment. "Jackie mentioned you were looking at going to university," he said, finally.

Rose gave him a look. "Mentioned it? Or yelled out how I was dreaming and didn't have a chance in hell?" she asked.

"The second one," he grinned, and Rose rolled her eyes but smiled. "You're serious about this, aren't you?" he asked, amusement slipping away a little.

Rose shrugged. "Nothing to lose by trying, is there?" she asked. She glanced away from him, because she knew he would be looking at her with pity, too. It was the same look she had been getting from all her other friends and some of her teachers for the past few months. She was used to it by now, but knew it would hurt being on the receiving end of that look from her oldest friend.

"Well," said Mickey, awkwardly. "Good luck, then."

Rose gave him a small smile. "Thanks, Mickey," she said, seeing her building come into view. "I'll see you around."

Mickey looked at her like he wanted to say something else, but he nodded and waved as he jogged away. Rose continued on her way home, her thoughts melancholic. She and Mickey had only recently been on talking terms again, and she was grateful they'd managed to salvage their friendship, especially since she had been the one to ditch him for Jimmy.

Jimmy was ancient history by now, having moved onto his next conquest and left the poor girl £1,200 in debt before running off to Amsterdam with the next girl foolish enough to buy into his lies. Rose didn't need whatever-the-hell power Lia had, to know she had absolutely made the right choice that night to decide against going to Jimmy.

The flat was empty when she got home, so Rose took a nice, freezing cold shower, wishing the depressing late June heat would go away. She got dressed in a pair of shorts and a tank top, before sitting in front of her dresser to brush through her hair.

Her mum had given her a haircut last week, but there hadn't been time to let her dye it so the roots were coming in. She would definitely need to get her mum to fix it this week. It would mean three hours of her mum chattering about how Rose needed to get her head screwed on straight and forget the whole university nonsense, but it wasn't like she had any other choice unless she wanted to fork out an ungodly amount of money to get her hair done at a salon. Or she could just let them grow out, she supposed, wondering if the dark blonde would suit her.

She spent the rest of the afternoon cleaning her room and folding away clothes, since her mum had done laundry earlier that day. Once she was done, she carefully piled up her books and notebooks and put them away in a box to be placed at the back of her wardrobe. The school year was over and there was no need for those books anymore.

When the room was tidy, Rose pulled out her journal and flipped back to an earmarked page. Looking at the timeline, she carefully circled the word 'June'.

Oxford's brochures said that students who wanted to attend in autumn the year after to choose their course and figure out the requirements by June. Rose had already looked into the course and the requirements for the Archaeology and Anthropology program. There was no entry test for the program; she only had to submit two written pieces by mid-November and if selected, attend an interview in December. Conditional offers would go out in January and then she only had to make sure she got the A-levels she needed next summer.

"Easier said than done," muttered Rose, closing the journal and putting it away. She'd need three As even if she did get the conditional entry. She qualified for enough government assistance to cover the tuition fees, though it would be a loan she would need to pay back eventually. She and River had worked out that if Rose kept working the hours that she was and worked full-time during the term breaks, she would save up enough for the room and board for the first year at least. Rose would definitely need to get a job when she started at Oxford, but there was a plan for now.

Rose must have taken a nap because she was woken up by the sound of a slamming door. She could hear her mother out in the flat and a quick glance at her alarm clock said it was 7.33 in the evening.

"Rose! You gave me a fright!" said Jackie, when Rose emerged out of her room. "I thought you were at work."

"I start back up tomorrow," said Rose. "Did you eat yet?"

"I went out for dinner with Bev and the girls," said Jackie. "There's curry from yesterday in the fridge if you want." Rose nodded and went to heat up the leftovers. "How was your exam today?"

"Fine, better than I expected," said Rose absently, pulling out a plate.

"What about the rest of the exams?" asked Jackie.

Rose paused and glanced at Jackie. She was looking at the telly, but Rose knew her mother better than anyone and she knew when she was doing her best to appear nonchalant.

"Yeah, fine," said Rose, keeping a keen eye on her.

Jackie nodded and there was silence for a few moments. Just as Rose thought her mum had changed her mind, Jackie spoke again.

"When do you need to start applying for university then?" asked Jackie.

Rose stared at her, not having expected that. "November," she answered. Jackie nodded and kept watching the telly, seemingly bringing the conversation to an end. "Why do you care?" muttered Rose.

"I heard that," said Jackie, sharply.

Rose rolled her eyes and decided to go and eat in her room instead.

"I care, Rose," said Jackie, turning the telly off. "I care about my own daughter's future."

Rose felt her irritation flare. "You have a funny way of showing it then," she said, setting her plate down and crossing her arms angrily.

"Don't you get smart with me, Rose Marion Tyler," said Jackie.

"Mum, you just spent months telling me how I don't have a snowball's chance in hell of getting into university," snapped Rose. "And now you suddenly care how my exams were?"

Jackie shook her head in apparent disbelief. "Forget it," she said. Rose shook her head and turned to go to her room. "You're too much like your father, you know that? Head in the clouds, stomping around us mortals like we are holding them back."

Rose stopped and turned to her mother in shock. Jackie never spoke about Pete Tyler in that manner, not ever. She had always told Rose stories about how he was the greatest man she had ever known, the best father.

Jackie's eyes went wide as well, as if she hadn't meant to say that. "I…" she paused and glanced away. "Never mind."

"No, I want to know!" said Rose, anger flaring in her eyes even as she felt like she was rather close to tears.

Jackie was shaking her head and Rose thought she looked very tired and sadder than Rose had ever seen her. "Never mind, I must have had too much wine with dinner," she said. "I didn't mean to say that."

"Maybe not, but you did mean it," argued Rose.

"No, I didn't," said Jackie, voice shaking and looking so very vulnerable that Rose felt her anger seep out of her.

"Mum," said Rose, going over to her. "What's going on?"

"I always thought," murmured Jackie, as if she hadn't quite heard Rose's words. "If I'd believed in him, that if he'd met a woman who'd believed in him rather than someone like me…I know we can't change what happened in the past, but…"

"But what?" asked Rose. She had never seen her mother like this, not even at her drunkest, and she had to wonder how much Jackie had been keeping bottled up inside her all these years. "Mum, what are you talking about?"

"Pete, he was...smart," she said.

"I know, you told me," said Rose. "You said he was always inventing things."

"No, I mean, he was very smart," said Jackie, her gaze boring into Rose's. "He always kept saying he was one idea away…'just one, Jacks.' I never believed him, because no matter how smart he was, he was dreaming if he thought it would take him away from the Estate." Jackie's face fell into a look of deep sorrow. "I knew he was right. Knew he was smart enough that he could leave the Estate behind and take over the world. I was jealous."

Rose blinked in shock. "Why?"

"Because he would have left me behind," chuckled Jackie bitterly.

"He wouldn't have left you behind," said Rose. "He loved you." Jackie smiled but it didn't reach her eyes. "I'm not leaving you behind either," she said, finally realising the reason behind Jackie's behaviour about Rose's decision to go to university. "Not ever."

Jackie smiled and placed a hand on Rose's shoulder. "Eat your dinner before it gets cold," she said.

Before Rose could protest, she went to her room and closed and locked the door. Rose remained standing in the living room for a long time, wondering why things could never be simple.

Jackie was gone by the time Rose woke up next morning. Rose didn't know if it was on purpose or if Jackie had had some plans in place, which would not be out of the ordinary at all. Knowing the conversation would have to wait, Rose got dressed and went to work.

Despite the row with her mother the evening before, Rose was oddly excited to get back to work. She was also looking forward to catching up with River and maybe even getting some advice about how to broach the topic with Jackie again. Rose did not like fighting with her mother, despite the fact that it seemed like all they did these days was fight with each other.

But when Rose got to the Luna Detective Agency, the door was locked. It was not unsurprising since the shop didn't open for another ten minutes but River usually left the door unlocked for Rose. Rose shrugged and unlocked the shop with the key that River had given her not long after they had returned from Cardiff.

The shop's interior was always dark, even during the day, and the lights needed to be on at all times. However, when Rose stepped inside, the lights were off. She fumbled in the dark for a moment before turning the lights on.

"River?" she called, seeing that the shop was empty. Rose frowned and went to check the backroom, which was similarly empty. When she came back out, she saw a man in the shop who seemed to have just walked in. He was tall and very fit with dark hair, handsome features and blue eyes, and appeared to be wearing an old-fashioned navy coat from World War II.

Rose blinked a few times, because he was a bit too handsome for her brain to form words right away. "Oh, hello," she said, tucking her hair behind her ear in an involuntary motion. "Sorry, we're not open yet," she added, as she forced her monkey brain to take a backseat.

"You must be Rose," he said, with a wide beaming smile which did not help her monkey brain situation. "River described you to a tee." She noticed he had an American accent.

Rose smiled uncertainly as the man approached her and offered his hand. When she took it, instead of shaking her hand, he kissed the back of it and winked at her.

"Captain Jack Harkness," he said. "Very nice to meet you."

"R-right," said Rose, eyes wide as he slowly released her hand. "I'm Rose Tyler," she added, belatedly.

"I know," he said. "River said you'd be here, though I was hoping to get here before you to avoid confusion."

"What?" asked Rose, confused regardless as Jack walked past Rose to River's desk, and pulled off his coat and hung it up on the back of River's chair.

He smiled at Rose and rolled up the sleeves of his blue button-up shirt to the elbow. "River got called away on an expedition," he said. "She asked me to come and run the shop for a few days."

Rose was still a bit confused, and Jack chuckled as he rifled through his trouser pockets before pulling out a folded note that he held out to Rose.

She took it and saw 'Rose Tyler' written on it in River's writing. With a slightly suspicious look at Jack, Rose unfolded the note.

Dear Rose,

My apologies for not giving you any more notice. I have been called away on an expedition and I won't have access to my phone or the internet so I thought this would be the easiest way to let you know. I don't anticipate being gone for long; a week at the latest.

I have asked an old friend of mine to come and watch the shop. Despite how he may look, Jack is very knowledgeable about our line of work. Trust him as you would trust me. If he flirts too much, remind him you're seventeen still.

Look after the shop in my absence. I'll see you soon.

Love,

River

Rose looked up at Jack, who had apparently gone and put the kettle on while she'd been reading River's note.

"Don't worry, I know you're seventeen," said Jack, with a grin. "River was sure to point that out thoroughly. I was a little insulted, if I'm honest."

Rose chuckled, despite herself. "How do you know River?" she asked, putting the note in the back pocket of her jeans before moving to help Jack make tea.

"We're in the same line of work," he said, stepping aside to allow Rose to make tea for both of them.

Rose looked at him in interest. "Are you an archaeologist too?" she asked.

"No sugar in mine," he said, just as Rose was reaching for the sugar bowl.

Rose wondered if he'd dodged her question deliberately as she handed him his cup of tea without the sugar. "You said you're a captain?" she asked, remembering how he'd introduced himself.

"Did I?" he asked, lightly. "Force of habit. I'm no longer a captain."

Rose thought there was something slightly subdued in his tone when he said that, so she hastily decided to change the subject. Their neighbour two doors down was an Army veteran and Rose had learned very early on not to pry too much when it came to soldiers. Jack certainly looked like a soldier and when she glanced at his face, she saw that there was some sort of a deep sadness in his blue eyes though it was gone the next moment when he noticed Rose's gaze on him.

"So, River tells me you just finished for your exams," he said, taking a seat in River's chair.

"Yeah," said Rose, as she took her own cup and sat down in her usual chair opposite River's chair. "Just school exams. I don't do my A-levels until next year."

Jack nodded and sipped his tea. "Any plans after school?"

Rose hesitated briefly, but Jack's gaze was clear and curious. "I'm applying to Oxford," she said.

"Oh, interesting," he said. "To study archaeology, I assume?"

Rose nodded, glad that he didn't have that judgmental or pitying look she had been used to getting. She immediately liked Jack a bit more.

"Fair play," he grinned. "Archaeology isn't to my personal taste, but I see the appeal."

"So, how do you know about all this stuff?" asked Rose, curious how other people got involved in it.

"I've been around the block a few times," he said. "Seen a few things, met a few people who had seen a few things, you know how it goes."

Rose rather thought that was not an answer at all, but smiled and sipped her tea instead of prying. He paused briefly, as if she had surprised him somehow. "What?" asked Rose.

"Nothing," he said, and then smiled to himself as he drank his tea. "So, what does River have you do around here?"

"I don't think we have any clients coming in today, unless we get any walk-ins," shrugged Rose. "Otherwise, I'm in the middle of sorting out River's book collection, which isn't very exciting but needs to be done."

Jack nodded and regarded her contemplatively. "How do you feel about a field trip then?" he asked.

Rose's eyes lit up immediately. "You've got a case?" she asked.

"I'm not sure yet," he said. "I've received a tip-off about a guy around here who apparently has quite the collection of alien artefacts. I want to see if any of them are genuine."

Rose frowned a little. "Do you think he'll just let us investigate?" she asked.

Jack grinned and finished the rest of his tea. "I'm hoping having you with me will soften the old fellow a little," he said. "What do you say?"

Rose narrowed her eyes at him, not appreciating that she'd been reduced to being the pretty young thing for Jack to find a way in to inspect those artefacts, but unable to stop her curiosity from showing.

Jack grinned again as if he'd known what she was thinking and stood up. "Excellent," he said. "Shall we, Rose?"

The little house in Putnam was in a quiet neighbourhood and was identical to all the other houses on the street. Jack drove them in a dark SUV, tinted windows and all, and parked one street away from their destination. When Rose asked why, Jack just answered he didn't want to announce their presence to the whole street. Rose wasn't sure why anyone would care about the SUV but didn't push the issue.

Jack strode up to one of the houses and rang the doorbell. Rose stood behind him a little, as the door was opened by a middle-aged man with thinning red hair and a sallow face. He scowled when he saw Jack and crossed his arms.

"Mr Harkness, I thought I told you I was not interested," said the man.

"Mr Robbins, how are you today?" asked Jack, and though Rose couldn't see his face, she knew Jack would be laying the charm on thick, judging by his tone.

"Not interested, Mr Harkness," repeated Mr Robbins.

"Did I introduce Miss Rose Tyler?" asked Jack, stepping aside slightly.

The man, Mr Robbins, sighed in exasperation but when he saw Rose, his demeanour softened a little. "Hi," said Rose, with her best charming smile.

"Rose here works for a friend of mine and is interested in alien artefacts," said Jack, clearly seeing the opening. "I told her that you're rumoured to have easily the best collection outside of whatever the government has in their vaults."

Rose almost turned to Jack in surprise at the mention of the government knowing about aliens, before realising it made perfect sense. If ordinary citizens had noticed, surely the government had too. The thought did not inspire any confidence, and she added it to the ever-growing list of questions in her head.

Mr Robbins sighed again. "Fine," he said, stepping aside to invite them in. "Come in."

Jack winked at Rose as they walked into the house. Mr Robbins closed the door and fixed them both with a firm stare in the entry hallway.

"I have some conditions," he said, looking at Jack as he said it.

"We won't remove any artefacts," said Jack, without missing a beat. "We will only be cataloguing. And it goes without saying but we will not be divulging any details to anyone."

Mr Robbins nodded and after yet another piercing look at Jack, he led them down the hallway and opened the door at the very end. "I know exactly where everything is," he warned them as he let the two of them into the room. "I'll know if you take anything."

"Thank you, Mr Robbins," said Jack, but Rose's attention was on the room which was chock full of...everything.

Rose had never been particularly neat in her life but even her skin was crawling at the sight of the room. She vaguely heard the door close and she checked to see Mr Robbins wasn't in the room with them before turning to Jack. "It's like a hoarder's room," she whispered to him.

The large, rectangular room might have been the master bedroom at one point, but it had been turned into a room for Mr Robbins' collection. It was full of random bookshelves, tables, desks and end tables of various shapes and sizes, all of them strewn with odds and ends all over the surfaces and even the floor. There was barely room for the two of them to stand, and though she wasn't claustrophobic by any means, Rose felt a bit uneasy just the same.

Jack's eyes were looking around as well and at Rose's words, he grinned down at her. "The good thing is, it will keep us busy," he said, taking off his coat and hanging it up on a hook on the back of the door, which thankfully was empty. "Ready to do this?"

Rose nodded and pulled out two pairs of white gloves, along with a camera, notebook and pen from her satchel before hanging the satchel on the same hook as Jack's coat.

Jack smiled at Rose gratefully when she handed him a pair of gloves before putting on the other pair. He moved to the top right corner of the room and picked up what looked like a metal snuff box. "Interesting," he murmured, examining it carefully. "Unless, I'm mistaken, this is a recording device favoured by the Uvodni." He glanced at Rose, who had already started to take notes without needing to be prompted. "They are an alien race from the Spiral Cluster in the Dragon nebula…"

"Morning, Jack," greeted Rose, and Jack raised a hand in greeting. Rose belatedly noticed he had his cellphone pressed to his ear and mouthed a quick apology.

"Yeah, just keep me posted," he said, to the person on the other end of the line. "Thanks, Susie. Bye." He hung up and smiled at Rose. "Sorry about that, Rose."

"Everything alright?" asked Rose.

"Yeah," he said. "Just a minor work crisis."

Rose nodded. Over the past three days and between cataloguing various artefacts in Mr Robbins' spare room, Rose had learned a few things about Jack.

For one, he worked for some sort of an organisation but wasn't allowed to divulge details of his job to civilians. He'd sounded honest when he'd said that so Rose thought it must have something to do with his past in the military and had not pried any further. The other thing, she had learned about Jack Harkness, was that he knew a lot. And by a lot, Rose meant a lot.

Each artefact they examined in Mr Robbins' spare room, Jack would know a great deal more than anyone Rose had known so far, including River. That wasn't to say he knew everything, but he knew more than what Rose had come to expect. His methods, however, were completely different to River's.

While River was all about the history and authenticating the artefact with appropriate archeological techniques, Jack's methods were more...avant garde.

Each artefact would be accompanied by a story. Like the time he'd salvaged the recording equipment from an Uvodni ship and used it to keep a record of his favourite concerts. Or the time that he had used a transfusion module from a medical ship belonging to the Sontarans to replenish his blood supply so he could continue drinking without getting drunk in order to win a game of cards. Or the time he had run naked through a forest, after being shot with a tranquilising gun full of a hallucinogenic drug from Alpha Centauri. Or the time...well, Rose got the picture after a few hours of such stories.

She had no idea if they were all tall tales, but he really did show her how the Uvodni recording equipment and the Sontaran transfusion module worked and Rose couldn't help but be fascinated by the breadth of Jack's knowledge and experience. She had asked him if he were an alien, but he'd denied it. When asked if he'd been to space, he had just shrugged with a secretive smile and Rose had been in complete awe of the fact.

"Most countries around the world have been involved in pushing the boundaries of space travel in some ways," he'd told Rose, at one point. "There is a lot more beyond what they want civilians to know about. For example, did you know there has been a base on the moon since the 1960s? America was the first one, and now there are several functioning bases on the moon."

"You're having me on," Rose had said, eyes wide.

"Not really," he'd said, without missing a beat. "Governments all over the world have salvaged alien equipment and utilised it to expand their reach beyond the planet. I mean, considering the way this planet is going, do you not think it is wise for them to have options?"

Rose had thought about those words frequently for the past two days. It made sense; which is what it kept coming back to. It made sense for there to be aliens. It made sense for the technology belonging to those aliens coming to Earth in some form. It made sense for governments to use that technology to further their development. It all made sense.

And as River had said, Rose was seeing and experiencing these things with her own eyes and her own senses. She could not claim it was the tinfoil hat conspiracy of a lunatic when she saw the evidence right before her.

"We should get going soon," said Jack, now. "I think we should be able to finish up on the last few artefacts at Mr Robbins' house."

Rose nodded, not even having set her bag down, since she knew they would be going to Mr Robbins' house. "Ready when you are," she told Jack.

Jack grinned and the two of them locked up the shop before driving to Putnam again. Mr Robbins had softened a bit since his initial frosty reception and he had been content to leave them alone to their examination for the past couple of days. That morning, when he opened the door, he greeted them with a broad smile which caught both of them off-guard.

"Good morning," he greeted. "Welcome, welcome, come in."

Rose blinked in surprise and looked at Jack, who looked a bit taken aback as well. While Mr Robbins had started softening up, he still would not be this cheerful or welcoming.

"I'll leave you to your work then," he said, stepping aside to let them in. "I'm afraid I have some reading to do so I'd rather not be disturbed."

That sounded more like him, so they nodded in agreement and watched as he disappeared upstairs.

"Maybe he's been smoking something from his herb garden," said Jack, as he and Rose went into the artefacts room.

"Stop it," giggled Rose. "He's probably just tired of pretending to be crotchety around us."

"Around you, you mean," grinned Jack.

Rose just shrugged, as they got to work.

"This is interesting," said Jack, a little while later. He was holding up a metal ball the size of a baseball, with a smooth coppery surface.

"What is it?" asked Rose.

"It's a prison cell," he said, and felt along the surface before grinning triumphantly as the sphere split in half. "An empty one, but a prison cell still."

"Who is it supposed to hold?" asked Rose, eyeing the sphere's size.

"Would you believe me if I said it was bigger on the inside?" he asked, as if it were an inside joke.

Rose just raised her eyebrows at him, and he grabbed a nearby box that was considerably larger than the sphere. To Rose's surprise, when he placed the box on top of one half of the sphere, the box vanished. Jack grinned at her before reaching inside the sphere and pulling out the box again.

"How does that even work?" asked Rose, amazed.

"Dimensional relativity," said Jack, closing the sphere back up again. "It's quite a find this one."

"I wonder how he managed to get his hands on all these things," said Rose, as she took careful notes about the prison cell.

"He won't say," said Jack. "I told him it was dangerous to keep them in a house in Putnam, but he's not very open to feedback as you may have noticed."

Rose shot him a smile but continued taking notes. "Couldn't you...or the people you work for...couldn't they convince him?" she asked.

He gave her a slightly amused look. "Maybe, but I am hoping to do it nicely and not frighten the poor man," he said.

"Will they harm him?" asked Rose, stopping what she was doing. When Jack didn't answer immediately, her concern grew. "Jack," she prompted.

"No, not if I have anything to say about it," he said, but he wouldn't meet her gaze.

"But you might not get a say about it," said Rose, inferring his meaning without him having to say it. Jack didn't respond and Rose supposed he didn't have to, because she had hit it right on the head. She sighed a little and sat back. "Can I ask you something, Jack, and please, I'd like a straight answer. Don't," she added, before he could make the awful joke. It had only taken a few stories for Rose to learn that Jack was not what anyone would call 'straight' by any stretch of the imagination.

He grinned but nodded. "Fire away," he said, setting the artefact down and looking at her.

"How did you get into this stuff?" she asked. "Your job, I mean?"

He considered her thoughtfully and smiled, though it didn't quite reach his eyes. "I have always been a bit of a...drifter as you may say. One of my dealings...it brought me face to face with something. With someone, I should say." His smile turned fond and he looked at Rose with a look she couldn't decipher. "And it changed me. Changed in me in ways that I still can't believe sometimes."

"They must have been really special," said Rose, since it was obvious by the way he spoke. He gave her a look and for some reason, it made her want to blush down to her very roots. "Is it the Doctor?" she blurted out.

Jack's eyes went wide with confusion. "What?" he asked.

"You know, the one that River wants to find," she said.

Jack chuckled. "Right," he nodded. "No, I didn't mean the Doctor."

"But you know the Doctor?" asked Rose, noticing he didn't seem confused about that part.

"I have heard of them, yes," he said. "Hard not to."

Rose nodded. "So you think they're real," she said.

"There's enough floating around that I have no reason to think otherwise," he said, and picked up the next artefact to examine. His brow wrinkled and frowned as he looked at it.

"Something wrong?" she asked.

"No," he grimaced. "Just add it to the weapons list."

Rose felt goosebumps erupt across her skin. They had found a few things in the room that Jack had said were weapons. None of them looked like any weapons Rose had ever seen but they sent a shiver of fear through her regardless. She'd naively asked Jack if there were evil aliens when they'd found the first weapon, a tranquilising gun that looked like an ordinary metal straw, only to have Jack point out that good and evil existed across all species, aliens or not.

"What is it?" asked Rose, about the artefact.

"A sonic blaster," he said, his face grim as he examined it. "From the weapon factories of Villengard. 51st century."

Jack's eyes went wide and Rose's mouth dropped open. "D-did you just say the 51st century?" asked Rose. "You did. I heard you," she added, before he had a chance to deny it. "Jack," she said sternly, when he didn't respond.

He sighed and set the sonic blaster down. "Rose," he said.

Rose shook her head. "Don't try and deny it," she said. "How can it be from 3000 years in the future?" she asked, before something else occurred to her. "And how could you even know about it?"

Jack's phone rang loudly and he pulled it out of his pocket. "I have to take this," he said, and answered the phone before Rose could protest. "Yeah? No, I can't hear you. Susie, your voice is…" he pulled the phone away and frowned at it. "Hold on," he said, holding it to his ear again. "I'm going to have to go outside." He shot a look at Rose and left.

Rose stood up slowly, her mind going a thousand miles an hour. Jack...was he from the future? Or could he go to the future? "A time traveller," she murmured, as she slowly paced the room, without even realising it. Of all the things she had encountered so far, time travel seemed the most far-fetched. She had to know; had to ask Jack if it was real and if he really was a time traveller.

The room to the door opened again and she turned toward it but instead of Jack, it was Mr Robbins.

"Is everything alright?" asked Mr Robbins. "I thought I heard the front door close."

"Yeah, Jack's just on his phone," said Rose, trying to smile. "I think he was having a problem with the reception in here."

"Not surprising," said Mr Robbins. "All these artefacts make it difficult to get proper cell service in here." He was looking around the room, and it took Rose a moment to realise what was wrong with that gesture.

"Mr Robbins," said Rose, looking at the man standing in the doorway and watching the room with undisguised fascination. "Are you alright?"

He looked at her and tilted his head questioningly. "Yes, of course," he said.

Rose smiled, feeling her heart thundering in her chest. It sounded stupid, she knew it sounded stupid but she knew Mr Robbins did not usually look this fascinated by his own collection. He was protective, sure, but the way he had been looking around had been almost like he was looking at it for the first time. Even if Jack was right and he had been smoking (and Rose seriously doubted Mr Robbins took anything stronger than an aspirin), it would not explain it.

"I-I should go and see what's holding Jack up," said Rose, attempting to keep her smile steady as she went to walk past him.

"Why did you ask me?" asked Mr Robbins, blocking the door.

Rose stopped and struggled to hold her smile. "What?" she asked.

Mr Robbins stared at her, unblinkingly. "Why did you ask if I was alright?" he asked, and there was a strange echo to his voice that made Rose's vision swim a little.

Rose took a step back, and another, not knowing what was happening but her instinct was screaming at her to run away.

Mr Robbins tilted his head unnaturally and Rose felt herself stumble a little. It was like being drunk and she could see double. Mr Robbins, or whatever he was, started walking toward Rose, head still tilted in that unnatural manner.

"You-what are you?" asked Rose, her tongue feeling sluggish as if she really were drunk.

"Clever one, aren't you?" said Mr Robbins. "My venom is not slowing that brain of yours, but it's working just fine otherwise. You won't be standing in another minute."

Venom, blinked Rose, trying hard to focus. She had been drugged. She wasn't sure how, but if she couldn't run, she had to do something. Jack had left through the front door, so it meant he was all the way at the front of the house and Rose knew she didn't have enough energy to scream even if he could hear her. She had to do something, and do it fast, because Mr Robbins was almost upon her.

Rose took another step back and bumped into a table. She glanced behind her and saw the metal straw that Jack had examined two days ago. A tranquiliser gun, her brain supplied and she grabbed it quickly.

Mr Robbins stopped in his path when she pointed it at him. Rose blinked rapidly, trying to focus, and his face split open in a wide, grotesque grin.

"You need razor sharp focus to fire one of those," he said. "I am betting you have ten seconds before you collapse."

"No time to waste then," was what she meant to say but it came out as garbled mumblings. He was right; Jack had told her that the tranquiliser gun was a highly precise weapon and the civilisation it belonged to would train for years to be able to accurately fire it. Rose couldn't even see straight (ha!) to fire them.

"Shall we have a countdown?" asked Mr Robbins. "Seven...six...five…"

His words were distracting and it was making it even harder to focus. She quickly remembered an old tv show where a hunter had closed his eyes and used sound to guide his shot.

"Four..." continued Mr Robbins. "Three…"

Hoping this insane plan worked, Rose closed her eyes and focused on his voice.

"Two…"

Rose fired and opened her eyes, just in time to see a little silver needle sticking into Mr Robbins' neck, stopping him in his path. She vaguely heard Jack calling for her, but she slumped to the floor, unconscious.

When Rose woke back up, it was on Mr Robbins' sofa with Jack hovering over her.

"There she is," he grinned, when her eyes opened. There was visible concern in his eyes but he looked relieved. "How are you feeling?"

"Tired," said Rose, thankful that apart from her voice being a bit hoarse, the word came out fine. "Where's-?"

"Mr Robbins?" he asked, and Rose nodded. "The real Mr Robbins is in a hospital, being treated for dehydration."

"Wh-?" Rose was cut off as a cough racked through her.

"Easy there, kiddo," said Jack, and held up a cup of water to her lips. Rose gratefully took a sip. "The other Mr Robbins was a member of a venomous species from a civilisation in the Horsehead nebula. They have the ability to shapeshift into other beings and it is their usual MO to infiltrate civilisations and feed from their victims before posing as them."

"H-how did it get here?" asked Rose.

"Not sure but I suspect that's what was inside that little prison cell we found today," said Jack. "Mr Robbins, the real one, must have let it out yesterday. It had him tied up in his bedroom and was feeding from him."

Rose felt a bit sick, before something else occurred to her. "I hit it with the tranquiliser gun," she said.

"Yes," he nodded, looking a bit proud. "I don't know if it was luck or skill but you hit it where it hurts. I got there in time just to watch it collapse."

"Where is it now?" asked Rose.

"Safe and in a place where it can't harm anyone else," said Jack, and judging by the look on his face, that was all he would say about it.

"Alive?" persisted Rose, and was relieved when he nodded. "How long was I out?"

"A few hours. It's about four in the afternoon. The venom will have worked itself out of your system," said Jack. "Its only purpose is to immobilise its victims, not harm them permanently."

Rose nodded and closed her eyes. "So you're a time traveller, huh?" she asked. She opened her eyes and saw the look on his face.

"Rose," he began.

"No, I am not letting this go," said Rose, as she struggled to sit up. Jack huffed but helped her into a sitting position.

"Rose…" said Jack, as he sat on the coffee table next to the sofa. "Time travel is...messy. I have to be careful."

"So it's true," said Rose, leaning forward eagerly. "Time travel is real?" Jack chuckled but nodded. "And you're from the future?"

"Yes," he said.

"Why are you here?" asked Rose.

"I'm stuck," he shrugged. "My ride's gone so I'm...waiting, I guess."

"For that someone?" asked Rose. "The one who changed you?"

Jack smiled and Rose thought she had once again hit the nail right on the head. Jack's eyes softened and he placed a gentle kiss on her forehead. "Come on," he said, pulling away. "I'll drive you home."

Rose knew she was blushing but she didn't protest as Jack helped her to her feet. She wasn't quite sure what to say and it didn't help that she didn't know what the look in Jack's eyes had been before he'd kissed her. He'd looked almost sad but strangely comforted as well. Rose knew whoever that person had been to change him meant a lot to Jack and hoped he found them again.

As they left Mr Robbins' house behind, Rose finally said the only thing she could think to say under the circumstances. "I am only seventeen still, you know," she said.

Jack glanced at her and then burst into peals of laughter. "Oh, Rose Tyler," he said, and patted the top of her head affectionately. "Trust me when I say that if I ever make a pass at you, there will be a line of people waiting to kick my ass."