1.6 Dalek

The TARDIS had dematerialized almost as soon as Adam had stepped inside. Adam had… not handled it well. Which is to say, he had passed out.

"Oh for god's sake," the Doctor had snorted, crossing his arms incredulously.

Rose had just stood, looking down at his prone form, eyebrows raised. After a moment, she nudged him with her trainer-clad foot, garnering no response. "Great," she sighed.

The Doctor looked from him back up to Rose, one eyebrow raised skeptically. "Well?"

Rose rolled her eyes at him, and then crouched next to Adam's sprawled form, shaking him by the shoulder. "Adam? ADAM."

"Huh? Wha?" Adam woke, looking blearily around himself. "What… oh god. What IS this place?"

The Doctor rolled his eyes toward the ceiling before addressing Rose sardonically. "Have fun with your new boyfriend. I'll be in my room if you need me." Rose looked up at him, but he'd already turned his back and walked out of the console room and down the corridor. She watched his retreating back for a moment, then turned back to Adam.

"Can you get up?" she asked him kindly, extending her hand to him.

"Yeah, I think so," Adam said dazedly. Taking her extended palm, he stood with her. She quickly dropped his slightly damp palm.

"Welcome to the TARDIS," she told him lamely, waving a hand vaguely around.

"TARDIS?" Adam asked.

"It's our… his ship. His space ship. 'S like he said, yeah? The Doctor's an alien; last of his kind. This is his time and space ship." She glanced around at it before looking back at him and adding, "It's bigger on the inside," with a shrug.

"Yeah, noticed that bit," Adam answered dazedly.

"Do you, ah… want a tour or anything?" Rose asked him somewhat unenthusiastically.

"No," Adam answered hurriedly. "Thanks," he added as an afterthought. "It's only… sorry, it's a bit overwhelming, isn't it? Guess I'm just a bit…" he trailed off. "Is there maybe somewhere I could lie down? It's been a long day."

"Yeah, 'course," Rose responded with no small amount of relief. "C'mon, just down here, I'll show you a room you can use."

After settling Adam into an empty bedroom, Rose leaned her back against a wall in the corridor, breath whooshing out of her. She was already realizing that inviting Adam along had been a bad plan. She wasn't entirely sure why she'd done it. Well, okay, no, that wasn't true. She'd had several reasons. His earlier attitude, talking about how he was a genius and then apologizing for it, so condescendingly. How he'd proceeded to explain the wonders of the stars to her as though he were granting her some life changing revelation, assuming he knew more than her when she'd actually been to the places he so certainly stated that humans couldn't get to. And then, later, her confusions at the Doctor's failure to contradict the Dalek when it had referred to her as the woman he loved (why hadn't he just said she wasn't?), followed so rapidly by his attempt to kill the creature in cold blood (What are you becoming, Doctor?). And okay, yes, Adam was a bit pretty, and maybe Rose had wanted to impress him just a bit. It was a perfect storm really: irritation, confusion, fear, and a desperate need for a distraction.

It had been an impulsive decision, but here they were, so she'd have to make the best of it. Now that he was safely tucked away to rest, she needed to get back to what mattered. The Doctor's assertion that he would be in his room worried her. This was the first time he'd gone there since she'd been on board that she knew of, and he was usually so derisive of her human need to rest that his admission that he might need to partake himself was concerning to her. Especially in conjunction with his distress over the Dalek.

"Help me find him?" she asked the TARDIS softly. She hadn't tried to communicate with the ship since the Doctor had revealed that she was sentient, but since she'd been able to do things like provide a robe, Rose assumed she'd also have a way to guide her to the Doctor. Sure enough, some of the lights along the juncture between the wall and the floor lit up a bit brighter, guiding Rose deeper into the ship. The brighter path ended at an unremarkable door which was closed over but not latched, which Rose knocked on softly before pushing open.

"Doctor?" she asked softly. He was standing with his back to the door next to a large, plainly made up bed, and appeared to have been in the act of trying to remove his jacket, but was wincing noticeably. "Doctor, are you okay?" she asked, her voice a little louder, her concern audible.

The Doctor grimaced in pain as his jacket slipped the rest of the way off his shoulders and tossed it over the back of a straight backed wooden chair nearby. "Rose," he greeted her. "Course I'm okay. Where's your boyfriend, then?"

Rose huffed at him in irritation. The Doctor looked over his shoulder at her and raised an eyebrow. Rose rolled her eyes at him. "Adam was overwhelmed, so he's gone to bed. Don't try to distract me. Why are you moving like that?"

The Doctor shrugged, and then grimaced again. "Slight case of torture. The adrenaline kept the pain off for a bit, but now it's making itself known."

"What?!" Rose exclaimed, crossing to him quickly, "What d'you mean, torture?"

"Van Statten collected aliens," the Doctor said, his voice carefully casual. "I'm the last of my kind. Couldn't resist, could he?"

Rose put her hands on either side of his face and made him meet her gaze. His expressive blue eyes were full of pain, both physical and emotional, and she could feel herself tearing up a bit at his distress. Gently, she ran her thumbs across his cheeks; his eyes closed in response as he let out a shaky breath, the artifice of "always okay" dropping away momentarily. Carefully, Rose pulled the Doctor into a hug. His head drooped to her shoulder for a moment before he brought his arms around back.

"I'm so sorry," Rose whispered into the side of his head.

"I almost killed you," the Doctor murmured, his voice unsteady.

"I told you, that wasn't your fault," Rose chastised him quietly. "You were trying to save people. I was the one who healed it."

"I'm sorry I scared you," he mumbled into her shoulder.

"'S'okay," she told him, "I get it. The Daleks killed your people. I'm sorry I yelled at you."

The Doctor snorted. "Doubt it'll be the last time that happens."

"Yeah well," Rose grinned, stroking the back of his head, ruffling his short, soft hair, "don't point any more giant alien weapons at me and we should be okay." Her hands dropped back to her sides as the Doctor straightened, cheerful mask snapping back into place as he stepped away from her. "You sure you're alright?" she asked him again.

"Always," he responded. "Just have to rest up a bit and I'll be good as new. Fast healers, Time Lords. Should be right as rain by morning."

"Kay," Rose answered, "good. I'll just let you do that, then." The Doctor gave her a small smile as she turned back toward the door, making to leave. She had the door halfway open before she seemed to second guess herself, biting her lip. "Doctor?"

"Rose?"

"Do… would you want me to stay?" Rose's question was hesitant, her wish to take care of him warring with her need to not further muddy the waters of what, exactly, their relationship was. The Doctor waited several beats to answer her. Rose kept her back to him, her body tense.

"I'll be fine," he finally stated softly, "but thank you for asking."

"'Course," Rose answered, head dropping slightly. She began to move again, continuing her exit from the Doctor's inner sanctum. "Goodnight, Doctor."

"Goodnight, Rose."