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Chapter 13 - Zeus

Shakes walked them out to the car to return to the mansion. The Doctor had put on a hospital scrub top since his shirt had been cut off of him in the chaos. He was thankful that Rose had ordered him some more shirts at the rate he was going through them this week. He still couldn't believe he had punched Thomas out. But, he was thankful he managed to get out of the building without seeing him again. He was still livid with Thomas for accusing him of having something to do with hurting Rose. He kept running it through his mind as they rode in the back of the car.

Rose sat beside him in the car. His anger melted away as soon as she lay her hand on the inside of his thigh. He looked over at her to see her smiling with her tongue in her teeth. It made him smile and blush.

He then cupped her cheek and whispered to her, "Have I kissed you today?"

She lied and shook her head no.

He leaned over and kissed her 'good and proper' as she would say. He smiled back at her as he rubbed the bridge of his nose against hers.

Suddenly remembering that their bodyguards were there, they pulled away from each other. Rose said, "I wonder why Pete went back home so early?"

"Oh! I know why! Oh, Rose, I've been meaning to tell you!"

Rose looked at him and saw that her mad alien's eyes were positivity lit up.

"What are you on about?"

"Pete told me what it is! The thing that Tony will love and Jackie will hate! Oh, Jackie is going to be so cheesed off!"

"Well, what is it?"

"A dog."

Rose considered for a moment and began laughing with the Doctor. They laughed hysterically for a long while. When they calmed down a bit, Rose took both of her hands and lay them on the Doctor's face. She leaned in and whispered, "I'll tell you a secret. Pete doesn't know that mum has always wanted a dog."

The Doctor was shocked. "WHAT?!"

This caused Rose to laugh hysterically again.

"How is this even possible? Are you joshing me, Rose Tyler?"

She continued to laugh as she shook her head no. "We always lived in a flat where pets were not allowed. Mom always said she would love to have a dog. She had one growing up that she used to tell me stories about him."

The Doctor looked so disappointed. "Damn that Jackie Tyler. She's always ruining my fun."

Rose shrugged her shoulders.

"I wonder if the dog will be right-handed or left-handed?" the Doctor asked her.

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As they walked into the front door of the mansion, they were met by no one. They let themselves in the house.

"I need to change my shirt." the Doctor told Rose.

Rose was looking down at her phone. Pete had just texted her.

'We are outside in the garden. Once you are settled, come on out.'

"They are out in the garden. Let me help you with your shirt. We'll join them in a minute." Rose told him as they walked up the stairs, and then down the hallway to the room they had been staying in.

The Doctor popped a pill as he walked into the room. He took his cast out of the sling and dropped it on the couch. Rose disappeared into the bathroom where they had left the 'bigger on the inside' suitcase.

"I'll get you shirt." she told him. The Doctor lay down on the couch and closed his eyes.

His head still felt weird. Thankfully, it wasn't swimming anymore. But it wasn't back to normal as yet.

Rose came out of the bathroom with his shirt draped over her arm. She saw him laying on the couch. She sat down next to him and rubbed his chest with her hand. "What's on your mind?"

"That private lingerie show I'm going to see tomorrow," he told her without opening his eyes.

"Come on, let's change your shirt."

He took off the scrub from the hospital and put on the dark grey t-shirt that Rose handed him. He looked down at the bruises that were forming on his arm from where he had the IVs in earlier that day.

"Nah, this won't work. I need to put something else on, too. These bruises will scare Tony."

Rose agreed and returned to the bathroom to get him a brown oxford with cream stripes. He stood up carefully put it on around his cast. Rose helped him button up the front of it.

"That's sweet." she told him.

"What?" he said, watching her dress him.

"Thinking about Tony. I'm grateful you two get on so well."

"He's a good kid. I worry about him though. Being in this huge house, alone. Is he lonely, you think?"

Rose finished his buttons and looked up at him. What was he getting at?

"I mean, does he have friends?" he asked as he put back on his sling and slid his cast in it. He then turned back around and wrapped his arm around her waist. She wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Sometimes, people come over and have kids that he plays with. People that Dad works with or whatever. He plays well with them. I don't think he's lonely. Why?"

He shrugged his shoulders. "No reason. Just looking out for my comrade." He leaned in to kiss her. Then took her hand. "Let's go see this dog!"

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They walked out to the garden. There was another man there and a beautiful German Shepherd. The dog was currently chasing a ball that Tony had thrown. Pete saw them and waved. They joined them.

"So, how's your head?" Pete asked.

"Well, it's not swimming anymore. I'd say that's progress."

Pete looked at him and laughed. "I'm sure Thomas will try to cause some trouble over it. I'll handle it. Don't worry about it."

"Thanks, Pete." the Doctor told him. "Sometimes it's hard to know whether to it is nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune-"

"- or to take arms against a sea of troubles, and by opposing end them." Pete finished for him. "Hamlet is my favorite of Heminges and Condell."

That made the Doctor roll his eyes. "Heminges and Condell." he gritted his teeth. "Oh, those guys."

Tony had just noticed that Rose and the Doctor were there. He shouted, "Doctor!" and ran over to meet them. The Doctor saw him running towards him so he knelt and held his hand out to catch him. Tony tackled him and knocked him over backward in the grass. Tony sat on the Doctor's chest. Both of them were laughing at one another.

"Good grief, Comrade. Knock me over next time, will you?"

"Come see what Daddy got me!"

"Wait... " the Doctor got stern with him for a minute. "You forgot something."

Tony, still sitting on his chest, looked confused. The Doctor pointed up at Rose.

Getting what he was trying to say, Tony smiled. "Hi, Rose! Come see my dog!"

He grabbed her hand and took her over to where the trainer stood with Jackie and the dog.

The Doctor and Rose were introduced to the dog trainer, and politely shook hands. Rose, Jackie, and Pete engaged in some conversation. Meanwhile, the Doctor knelt in front of the German Shepherd and offered his hand to him. The dog put his hand in the Doctor's and shook it.

"Nice to meet you, too...Zeus is it?"

The dog jumped playfully.

"Oh, I know. Tony always smells like food. What does he smell like today?"

Tony heard what the Doctor was telling the dog. He came over and lay his little hand on the Doctor's shoulder.

"Zeus. This is my buddy. One of my dearest friends, Tony. I want to know if you will make sure he's always safe. I'm not always around and need to know you'll look after him for me. Keep all of the monsters away from him."

Zeus looked at Tony and seemed to consider the Doctor's words.

The Doctor laughed. "Of course you can have a hot dog. How about two?" he said as he scratched his face.

Zeus' tongue wagged all over.

Rose saw the Doctor scratching Zeus' face and called to him. "Made a friend, have you?"

The Doctor didn't stop scratching the dog's face. "Yes, Zeus is a good boy!"

The trainer looked confused and asked Pete. "Did you tell him the dog's name?"

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Just like Rose predicted, Jackie was absolutely over the moon about Zeus. Pete was extremely pleased. He had prepared himself for a huge fight that it appeared that he wouldn't have to have now.

The Doctor helped Tony toss a ball to Zeus over and over in the garden.

Tony wasn't able to throw it too far, which Zeus enjoyed because it meant he didn't have to run too far. The Doctor would toss it far, which made Tony jump up and down with laughter.

Zeus returned one of the Doctor's pitches only to ask him to let Tony throw it for a while.

The Doctor rolled his eyes at that.

The Doctor scratched Zeus a little rough and Zeus bit down on his sleeve. He wasn't intending to hurt the Doctor, but still tore his shirt sleeve.

"Oh, Zeus! I tell you. I've been rough on some shirts this week. Geez."

Tony laughed at the Doctor.

The Doctor turned to Tony and said, "See, you can't be too rough with him or he will tear your shirt off, or worse!"

He turned to Zeus and scratched his face. "Yes, I know you are sorry. It was my fault, not yours."

Jackie and Rose returned from getting Zeus the hot dogs he had asked the Doctor for. Jackie brought them over and handed them to the Doctor. The dog sat perfectly still while the Doctor balanced one of the hot dogs on the top of his nose.

"Look at this Tony. Ready? Now tell him it's okay to eat it."

Tony waited just a moment, and then said, "Okay, Zeus!"

Zeus twisted his head around quickly and the hot dog fell into his mouth. Tony laughed as he covered his mouth.

"Wow!" Tony told him.

The Doctor gave Zeus the other hot dog for being such a good sport.

After Zeus was finished eating his hot dogs, the Doctor asked him to show Tony his teeth. Tony got scared and backed away from Zeus.

The Doctor remained squatted down next to Tony. He caught him as he tried to back away.

"No, no, no, Tony. He's not going to hurt you. Look at these brilliant teeth. That's what he will keep the monsters away with." the Doctor told Tony.

The dog licked his lips and returned to his normal "non-teethy" look.

The Doctor scratched him again. "You are a good boy, Zeus. I'm so glad you are here!"

Rose just watched the Doctor with her little brother. As he scratched the dog, she noticed the sleeve of his shirt.

"Have you ripped your shirt?" She asked him.

"Yeah. Pity that, too. I like this shirt."

"How many shirts is that today? Two?"

He stood up and thought, "I think it's three. Wasn't I wearing another oxford with my t-shirt today?"

"Three?"

"A new daily record for me!"

She didn't notice that Jake had walked into the backyard until she heard Pete say, "Oh, hey! Jake!"

Jake showed up carrying a box under his arm. After they all exchanged greetings, Jake took Pete, the Doctor and Rose over to the edge of the garden to discuss something.

"So, you aren't going to like it. But we questioned the people who kidnapped Rose... and the Doctor was right, they don't know anything."

Rose looked confused. "What makes you so sure?"

The Doctor looked furious. "Because he had Melissa probe their minds." He turned to walk away.

Pete asked, "Under whose authority?"

"Thomas ordered it done," Jake informed them.

The Doctor looked at the sky and shook his head, gritting his teeth. "Pete, this is not something that can be allowed to continue."

Pete waved his hand to calm the Doctor, "We're on the same page, Doctor." He turned to Jake and said, "Under no circumstances will that happen again. Are we clear, Jake?"

"Crystal, Director Tyler."

"What's in the box?" Rose asked.

"All of the gizmos. Thomas is demanding to put them in everyone's hands again. I figured the best idea was to gather them all up and bring them here and give them to you. I don't want them accidentally falling into these HPA people's hands. All research regarding it is in the box as well. Torchwood has no record of them anymore." He handed them to Rose.

Rose looked down at them. "I know just the place to put these."

The Doctor looked confused. "The what?"

Jake suddenly remembered. "Oh, that's right. You probably don't remember. One of the kidnappers told us that an organization was behind all of this called the 'Human Purification Army'. She wanted to cut a deal to get a lesser sentence. You warned us that she didn't know anything, and not to bother."

"Well, it's good to know I still have good judgment after I've had a few drinks." the Doctor smiled.

"I'll never forget that, Doc. That was bloody awesome." Jake told him as he laughed.

Tony ran over to see what was keeping them. "Come play with Zeus!" he told them.

"I'd be happy to play with Zeus, Comrade. Thank you, Jake." and the Doctor followed Tony away.

Pete turned to talk to the Doctor as they walked away together. "I might end up joining you and Rose in Washington. As it turns out, they are honoring me about something or another. I hope you don't mind me crashing your party."

The Doctor smiled at Pete. "Sounds like we are crashing yours'! That would be fine! Taking the cruise, as well?"

"Nah, I'll just grab the bullet. The Transatlantic Tunnel."

The Doctor stopped and looked surprised. "So, they built that here! I wondered if the only way to get across the great big pond was just a ship."

"Oh no. Dignitaries and such don't have to hang out on a cruise ship for a week. There are different trains. Some for business, general travel, or first class."

"How long does it take to cross using that?"

"The top speed is right at 5,000mph. There are also connectors to other countries as well, all running under the ocean."

"That's faster than the SR-71 Blackbird. Impressive."

"The best time I've made has been four hours from London to New York. They don't run it wide open unless there is an emergency."

"Fantastic." the Doctor marveled.

Meanwhile, Jake and Rose were left alone. "Don't worry, Rose. We'll get them."

"I have no doubt," Rose assured him.

"Have you told him? About Bad Wolf?"

Rose looked like someone had kicked her in the stomach. "No, I don't know how."

"Tell him, Rose. Don't let this wait."

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Later that night, the Doctor and Rose were in their room watching telly. Rose was sitting on the couch with her feet propped up on the coffee table, and the Doctor had his head laying in her lap with his eyes closed. She was playing with his hair.

"Are you asleep?" she quietly asked him.

"No." he responded without opening his eyes. "Just resting my eyes. It's been a strange day. My head still feels...off."

He felt her brush the edge of his consciousness, and he welcomed her right in.

'I love how you are playing with my hair.' he told her telepathically. 'Just you being here is soothing. I feel more like me when I'm with you.'

'It has been a weird day, hasn't it?'

He hummed in agreement, still without opening his eyes. Rose kept running her fingers through his hair.

'It made me smile today when you called us "your family." I'm happy to know you think of us that way.'

He didn't open his eyes. 'This is the closest I've felt that I had a family in a very long time. I just hope I don't screw it up.'

'When I first met you, I thought you were perfect so I loved you. Now, I see that you are not perfect. It only makes me love you more.'

The Doctor didn't open his eyes, 'Thank you, Rose.'

There was a knock at the door.

"Come in!" the Doctor and Rose called out together. Tony opened the door and ran into the room with Zeus.

The Doctor greeted Tony as he climbed up in his lap.

Zeus lay down on the floor.

"What you doing?" Tony asked them.

"Wondering why you aren't in bed, Comrade. Didn't I just tuck you in?"

"I needed to see you," Tony told him. "Daddy says you are going away tomorrow. Is that true?"

"Yeah, I'm taking your sister on a holiday! But, we'll be back."

"Don't go, Doctor. I'll miss you too much."

"Ahhh... " he said as he hugged the little boy and held him. "I'll miss you, too. You can call us every day that we're gone. Do that facetime thing on your Mum's phone so I can see you. Your sonic will boost the power so the picture will be even clearer!"

"That's right." Rose told him.

Tony rose up and looked the Doctor in the face. "Doctor? Are you my brother?"

The Doctor laughed. "No, not really. Why?"

"Well, Rose is my sister. And you are her..." the boy was looking for a noun.

"Lunatic?" Rose filled in, helpfully.

The Doctor rolled his eyes at her. The entire conversation was making him a bit uncomfortable. He couldn't imagine being without Rose. He started rubbing the back of his neck.

"Well, what do you think, Comrade?" the Doctor asked him.

Tony scratched his chin. "Well, if she's your Rose...and she's also my Rose...then I think that makes us brothers. Would that be alright?" his eyes lit up as he asked the Doctor.

The Doctor smiled like a loon. "Oh, Tony. It would be my honor." Tony stood up on his knees and hugged the Doctor. He looked to be choking the Doctor a bit. Rose just chuckled at the adorable moment that was playing out next to her.

"So, will Zeus be my uncle?" the Doctor teased Tony.

"No! He'll just be the dog!" Tony corrected him.

"Oh! I see. Well, you probably need to get back to bed, Comrade. Do you need me to take you back?"

"Nope! Night, Doctor. Night, Rose!"

They watched as Zeus and Tony left the room and closed the door behind them. "Well, if I can't be ginger...at least my brother is!"

"Well, at least there is that!" Rose smiled laughed with him. "You know what might make your head feel better?"

"Don't suggest another drink." he warned her as he rubbed his face.

She smiled, "I would never! I nice hot bath, with bubbles. How does that sound?"

He looked at her and smiled, "That sounds wonderful. Bubbles."

She laughed as got off of the couch and turned off the television. The Doctor took her hand and they walked into the bathroom together.

Rose turned on the water in the bathtub. After she was satisfied with the water temperature, she went to the cabinet and pulled out a jar of bubble bath solution. She took off the lid and poured it into the water. She turned to find the Doctor leaned against the cabinet, watching her.

"Almost creepy." She told him.

"What?" he inquired.

"You standing there just watching me."

He walked over to her and put wrapped his arm around her waist. "Sorry, just tired." He told her as he lay his head on her forehead.

She helped him undress and then told him to get into the bathtub. He lay his cast on the edge to keep it out of the water. She then got undressed and sat in the bathtub in front of him, leaning into his chest. He leaned in and kissed her neck.

"This is nice." he told her as he wrapped one hand around her waist.

"Sometimes a strange day just needs a hot bath to wash it away." Rose told him as she heard the Doctor chuckle behind him.

"And with a beautiful woman, this is a great package deal."

Rose spun around in the bathtub so she could face him. She put her hands on the sides of his face and kissed him. "Looking forward to leaving tomorrow?"

"Change of scenery? Go see something else? Oh yes." he told her.

"How are you doing with this?" She knew that he was used to traveling so much, that just saying in one place was probably driving him mad.

"I'm alright. Don't worry about me, Rose." he told her as he leaned in to kiss her.

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The hot bath did the Doctor in. He was so relaxed that as soon as they had gotten dressed and climbed into bed, he was sound asleep. Rose lay on his chest listening to him breathe for a long while before she finally drifted off to sleep.

A few hours later, Tony came into the room. He climbed into the bed with the Doctor and Rose, and curled up in the bend of the Doctor's arm, and covered himself up with the duvet.

The Doctor woke up a little bit later to find Tony laying there. "Comrade, are you sleeping?" his deep voice asked the boy quietly. That woke up Rose, but she continued to lay still on his chest.

"No, Doctor. There is a monster in my room. I think it followed me in here." Tony whispered to him with fear in his voice.

"What makes you say that?" he asked the boy.

"I can hear it. Not all the time. But, listen." the boy whispered.

The Doctor lay there listening for whatever might have scared Tony. Rose had already given up and decided it was just an excuse for Tony to climb back into the bed with them. Then she heard it.

It sounded like a growling snarl. It reminded her of the werewolf that she saw when she was traveling with the Doctor. She raised up in the bed. "What is that?" She asked.

"You heard it, too?" Tony asked quietly.

"Shhhhh..." the Doctor insisted.

The Doctor rose up out of bed and pushed Tony over to Rose. Without turning on a light, he walked across the floor of the bedroom slowly and quietly. He got over in front of the couch and knelt to inspect something.

Rose and Tony watched him from the safety of the bed. They heard the snarl again. Rose could feel her brother's fear and wasn't ashamed to admit that it nearly matched her own.

The Doctor then tapped the floor next to whatever he was looking at.

"Hey, Zeus. Will you stop your snoring? We are trying to sleep here."

Rose was so relieved and embarrassed at herself. "Really? It was the dog snoring that loudly?"

The Doctor looked back at the bed, "Tony, come here and see your monster."

Tony climbed down from the bed and joined the Doctor. The Doctor wrapped his arm around the small boy. Zeus was laying on the floor wagging his tail at all of the attention he was getting.

"It was him?" Tony asked.

"Yep!" he popped the 'p'. "Your great protector had a long day. He's worn out. He's a noisy sleeper. Are you alright?"

Tony laughed. "Well, that's just silly."

"Come on, Comrade. Let's go back to bed." the Doctor brought him back to the bed with Rose. They all three got settled again. The Doctor lay there with a Tyler in each arm. He leaned down and kissed Tony's head, then turned and kissed Rose goodnight.

Tony was snuggled into the Doctor's bend in his arm again.

"Doctor, you are the best monster hunter ever," Tony told him sleepily.

"You're not bad yourself, Comrade. Goodnight."

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