Domestics and Divisions

Disclaimer: Nothing you might recognise belongs to me.

Part Thirteen: Reunited Again

The next few days were spent getting reacquainted and turning the living quarters of the Hub into home. Jack had groaned when he'd first entered his room to see splashes of pink everywhere but Rose knew he didn't really mind. She'd also had some basic retraining by Jack to check she was up to standard to be out on the field but had steadfastly refused to have a gun. She shared the Doctor's belief about them and Jack respected that. The only reason he carried one himself was because it was engrained into him from Time Agent training all those years ago. He rarely fired it at any rate.

Right now, he was driving Rose and Jonny down to London, having left the team in Gwen's hopefully capable hands. He hadn't seen Matt or the girls for a long while and had decided now was a good as time as ever to visit them. They were both very excited and Rose was also slightly nervous.

"Have they changed much?" she asked, "I mean, five years, it's a long time!"

"They're still the same people," Jack answered, "Same personality, same everything. The only thing's that changed is relationships and jobs and stuff,"

"Oh my God! Did Kirsty get married?" Rose said excitedly.

Jack grinned and nodded. "I didn't go 'cause it was too late by the time I came 'round but I've seen the photos,"

"What about the baby?"

"Born and absolutely gorgeous," Jack replied, loving telling her all this,

"Boy or girl? I remember she was hoping for a girl but didn't mind either," Rose laughed,

"I'm not gonna tell you!" Jack teased, "Wait and see!"

"Aww!" she whined, "What about Lauren? Has she found a boyfriend yet? And Matt?"

"Yes and yes," Jack said, "But my lips are sealed. They'll want to tell you all the juicy gossip themselves!"

Rose giggled. She'd missed this playful banter with Jack. "Oh, I can't wait!" she shivered, "Are we nearly there yet?!"

They arrived in London just over two hours later and carefully navigated through the familiar streets of London to the Powell Estate. Rose climbed out of the SUV and stared up at the tall building in front of her. It still looked exactly the same; new graffiti here and there and repainted garage doors but the essence was still the same. She wrapped her arms around herself, shivering suddenly, as she silently crossed the worn tarmac and headed up the stairs to her old flat. Someone else would live there now. All of their stuff would be scattered around her bedroom; they would be having the laughter and tears and arguments that she'd had inside those walls. Without meaning to, a tear dripped down Rose's cheek. She had a powerful longing for her life as it had been before everything had gone terribly wrong. She wanted to be able to run out of the TARDIS, laughing as the Doctor chased her, and speed up the dirty white stairs and skid to a stop outside this door before hammering on it cheerfully, waiting until it opened and then receive a warm, loving bear hug from her mother. Rose sniffed, wiping her eyes hastily. She wanted her mum so much.

A warm arm appeared around her shoulders and she leant into Jack. Jonny was balanced on his hip.

"Mummy, why you sad?" he asked worriedly.

She smiled weakly. "This is where Mummy used to live when she was with Daddy," she told him, bending the truth slightly so he could understand.

Jonny nodded. "Daddy here?" he asked.

Rose shook her head. "No Jonny. I don't know where Daddy is but I wish I did."

Jack kissed her hair comfortingly and she smiled up at him. "Let's go."

He nodded. She took a last look at the door before turning and walking down the landing with her best friend and son. When they got to the bottom, she had a sudden thought.

"Jack, do you have any paint or something that will write on walls?" she asked.

He frowned before nodding and went and grabbed a can of spray paint out of the SUV before handing it to her. She smiled and went over to the wall where the TARDIS always landed. She had to take this chance.

Carefully, she sprayed the words 'Bad Wolf. Cardiff 2018' onto the wall. "I don't know if he'll ever see it," she said to Jack, "But I have to try. And I do know they don't scrub the graffiti off the walls around here,"

"It's a good idea," he nodded, taking her hand, "Come on, let's go. It's nearly time to meet the guys."

Ten minutes later, they entered the park where they had all arranged to meet up. Coincidentally, it was the same park that Rose had last seen her friends before she had run off to make it up to the Doctor and then Canary Wharf had happened.

She was tightly holding on to Jack's hand, inexplicably nervous of the meeting. She desperately hoped none of them had changed too much and they would still gel the same way. She drew to a stop as she saw a group of people sitting underneath the tree they always sat under when they chilled out in the park. Her heart entered her throat and tears sprung to her eyes.

"ROSE!" came three cries.

She dropped Jack's hand and started running towards the three figures that were sprinting towards her. They met with a crash and the next few minutes were filled with hugs, tears and happiness.

"Oh God, we missed you so much!" Kirsty cried,

"I missed you too," Rose whispered, happy tears in her eyes, "I can't believe I never got to say goodbye,"

"It doesn't matter," Matt insisted, hugging her again,

"Yeah, least we've got you back now, right?" Lauren checked.

Rose nodded. "I'm staying with Jack in Cardiff at least until we find the Doctor again,"

"Still no sign then?" Matt asked sadly.

She shook her head. "I just got to keep on praying. I've just left him a message at the Powell Estate which hopefully will help. Have any of you seen him since it happened?"

Her heart sank as they all shook their heads. "All we got was a text message," Kirsty said, "About four months after you'd all gone missing. We honestly thought you'd all died. Had to put the wedding back and everything,"

"Oh no, Kirsty!" Rose said guiltily.

She shook her head. "I couldn't get married when I was still grieving for you. Scott understood though and we postponed it. Course as soon as I knew you were still alive, it happened." She smiled, displaying her wedding ring which glittered in the sunlight.

"That's so beautiful, Kirsty," Rose whispered, examining it, "Lucky girl!"

"Oh, I know!" she joked.

Rose giggled. "So about the text message?"

"Oh, I'll show you," Lauren said, digging out her mobile phone, "I still have it. We all got sent the same thing from an unknown sender but we assumed it was the Doctor." She handed her phone over to Rose who looked at the message on the screen,

"Rose is still alive," she read out, "but she is trapped in a parallel universe. She said to tell you she loves you and misses you. I'm searching for a way to get her back but chances are slim to none. I'm sorry, so sorry. Thank you for everything." Rose shivered as she looked up. "He was in agony when he wrote this," she whispered, not knowing how she knew, "I asked him to do it and he did even though it was killing him inside,"

"But how did you ask him to?" Matt asked, "That's been puzzling me for years."

"Oh!" She quickly told them about when the Doctor had come through and said goodbye to her. Lauren and Kirsty were crying by the end.

"That must have been so difficult," Lauren murmured, "God, Rose."

She smiled sadly before looking around and seeing Jack strolling towards them with Jonny and a strange little girl who looked slightly older than her son. They all had an ice cream grasped in their hands which they were enjoying immensely.

Matt looked over too. "Hey, since when did you have a kid, Jack?" he asked, eyeing Jonny up,

"Not mine," he replied easily, glancing at Rose, "Guess you haven't got to that bit yet, Rose?"

"That's my name!" piped up the strange little girl,

"Thought you preferred Rosie," Jack said cheekily.

Rosie stuck her tongue out at Jack.

"Rosie, manners!" Kirsty said sharply, "And I hope you thanked Uncle Jack for your ice cream,"

"Thank you, Uncle Jack!"

Rose laughed, loving the little girl. She glanced at Kirsty, putting two and two together, "Kirsty?"

"Rose, may I introduce my little scamp of a daughter, Rosie," her friend said, "Aged four and a half and cheeky as anything,"

"Hi Rosie," Rose smiled, waving.

Rosie waved back before darting to her mother's side, "Mama, who is that lady?"

"That is Aunty Rose," Kirsty explained, "One of my best friends and who you are named after."

Rose smiled, touched before she turned her attention to her son who was tugging at her top,

"Mummy, do you want some ice cream?" he offered.

"Mummy?" chorused her three friends before she had time to reply,

"Uh, yeah," she said sheepishly, "Guys, I'd like you to meet Jonny, my son."

Her friends all cried out at once.

"What?" Lauren asked,

"Your son?" Kirsty gasped,

"Since when?" Matt exclaimed.

Rose couldn't help but giggle at their reactions. "OK, do you remember when we last saw each other and you, Kirsty, suggested I might be pregnant because I was being a moody cow?" She waited until they had nodded before continuing. "Well, I was pregnant although I only found out about a month later. About seven months after that, Jonny arrived,"

"And the Doctor's the father?" Lauren asked quietly.

Rose nodded, fussing with her son's unruly hair. "I don't know what happened. We always used protection. I guess we must have forgotten or maybe the condom split?" She shrugged. "I won't ever know but I wouldn't change having Jonny for the world. He's my everything."

Kirsty and Lauren 'awwed' in unison before rushing forward to coo over him.

"How old are you, Jonny?" Kirsty asked,

"Nearly three," he said, grinning toothily,

"How?" Matt asked, "It's been five years. Surely he'd be the same age as Rosie?"

Rose shook her head. "Only three years has passed for me in the alternate universe." She laughed slightly. "Only! Ha!"

"Does the Doctor know about him?" Matt continued.

"No," she said sadly, "I bottled it the only chance I got to tell him when we said goodbye. I just hope when they finally meet, he accepts Jonny." She sighed, revealing something that had worried her since she found out about her son, "He told me he didn't want children. I don't want him to be angry at me,"

"Hey Rose, it's not your fault!" Lauren said strongly, "It takes two to make a baby. If he kicks up a fuss, I'll kick him up the arse, OK?"

Rose laughed. "Thanks Lauren. So, me and Kirsty have kids, what about you?"

She blushed and shook her head. "Not yet," she smiled, "But maybe soon,"

"Oh?" Rose raised an eyebrow, especially after seeing Kirsty's grin.

Lauren waved her hand in front of Rose's eyes, proudly displaying an engagement ring. She gasped. "Oh my God, Lauren! Congratulations! When? Who's the lucky fella?"

Lauren smiled shyly. "Do you remember Danyal, Scott's best friend? He came with us on the bikes to the wedding shop?"

"Oh yeah," Rose nodded, before her eyes widened, "Him?"

Lauren grinned and nodded. "He called me while you were away on that planet and asked me out for a drink and we just gelled." She sighed, "He was so supportive when we were grieving for you. We've been together ever since and he popped the question last Christmas. We're getting married in September. You will come, right? Rosie's going to be flower girl and everything,"

"I'd love to," she beamed, "Oh, I'm so happy for you!"

They spent the rest of the afternoon sitting in the park and catching up on everything they had missed in each other's lives over the past three to five years. Jonny and Rosie made friends and were soon playing happily under the watchful eye of the adults- a term that sent a wave of amazement through the group of friends who still firmly thought of themselves as teenagers.

At half past five, they reluctantly decided it was time to part company as the children needed feeding and Jack and Rose had a long journey back to Cardiff.

""We'll meet up again as soon as possible," Lauren promised, hugging Rose tightly,

"Yeah, once a month minimum," Kirsty agreed, "We could come to Cardiff next time and maybe make a little holiday out of it."

Rose nodded. "Sounds great. It's been fantastic seeing you all again,"

"Same here," Matt smiled, kissing her cheek, "We'll keep searching, Rose. Let us know if he turns up, yeah?"

"Yeah," she smiled bravely, "Bye,"

"Bye, Rose," her friends waved, "See you soon."

Several months passed by quickly. Rose focused on her work with Jack's team and was soon seen as a very able member of the gang which the original members liked and respected. She kept in touch with her college friends, usually speaking to one or the other every couple of days. They met up regularly as promised and fast became the inseparable friends they had been previously.

Two months after she had arrived back in her home universe, Rose and Jack happily saw Lauren walk down the aisle to be married to Danyal. The news that she was pregnant that came a couple of months later was of no surprise to anyone and Rose eagerly awaited the arrival of another niece or nephew.

Jonny settled down happily into this new universe. He was enrolled into the local nursery and made several new friends but was just as content messing around the Hub, talking animatedly to members of the team and playing aliens with Jack much to the amusement of everyone else. His third birthday passed with a noisy party with cake, balloons and lots of presents of which he was delighted. Rose was pleased to see how well he got to grips with his new life. She knew he missed his grandparents and friends from the other universe- she did so, desperately sometimes, especially when it felt like the Doctor was never going to come- but Jonny retained a positive outlook and she followed his lead determinedly.

Rose shivered in the cold January wind, huddling further into her coat. She sighed out and pulled up the hood, covering her blonde hair as it began to rain heavily.

'Bloody Welsh weather, she thought grumpily to herself. She was attempting to track a group of Weevils that had been spotted by a passer-by about an hour ago. They had called the police who notified Torchwood and now here she was freezing in a deserted alleyway on the dodgy side of the Welsh capital. She had originally been tracking with Jack and Gwen but had lost them about ten minutes ago. She maintained radio contact with them and Tosh back at the Hub but hoped Jack would decide to give up on the aliens for now. She wanted to go back home and have a hot cup of tea and read Jonny a bed time story rather than freeze her arse off outside.

She frowned to herself as she turned a corner before letting out a scream as a Weevil came out of nowhere. She frantically rummaged in her pocket for her repellent spray as she backed away before letting out a cry as she tripped over an empty can left lying on the group by some thoughtless yob. She flung an arm over her face as the Weevil prepared to strike, trying desperately to move away off the floor.

Suddenly, a hand gripped hers, tugging her up and back onto her feet. From behind her, a voice hissed:

"Run!"

Review please. Constructive criticism is gladly received.