Chapter Eleven

Despite her protests, the Doctor finally urged Rose to go back to bed for a while. He wanted her beside him, but he knew she would need her rest for what lay ahead.

While she slept, he sat on the couch and stared into space going through every scenario he could think of to free her from Ian's control. He was so engrossed in his thoughts he didn't realize that Jackie was behind him until she put a hand on his shoulder. He let out a startled yell and spun around.

"I'm…I'm sorry," she said. "I didn't realize you were that deep in thought."

The Doctor breathed a sigh of relief.

"No, it's alright," the Doctor said.

He looked up at Jackie's face. Her left eye was swollen shut.

"How you feeling?" he said

"Aside from the fact that my possessed daughter knocked me out, I'm feeling just peachy," she said.

She sat down in a chair beside him.

"Don't worry, Jackie, we'll get her back," the Doctor said.

"Did you figure out a way to rescue her?"

The Doctor sighed.

"The only thing I can think of is to offer myself in exchange for her life, but I don't think he'll go for it since he wants us both. It's hard to do anything with her mind in his possession. It's not like I can rip Rose's brain from her skull and keep it from him. The mind is a tricky battlefield, and I have to be very careful because he can torment or kill her at any time. That's why I'm stuck."

Jackie watched, as he ran his hand through his hair in frustration. She smiled and reached up to pat his hand.

"You can do it, Doctor. You've saved Rose before and I know you'll save her again," she said.

The Doctor smiled his thanks and stared off into space once more. Jackie watched him for a moment and then got up to make some tea for them. When she went into the kitchen, she glanced at the wall clock and noticed that it was now nearing 9:30. Sighing, she opened the cupboard and reached for the tea.

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Jackie glanced up at the wall clock and saw it was now 11:20. Both she and the Doctor had gone through 3 cups of tea, and they were no closer to figuring out how to free Rose. The Doctor sighed, and he turned his head and glanced at the clock.

"I guess I better go wake Rose and prepare her," he said.

"There's no need, Doctor. Rose is already awake."

The Doctor and Jackie looked over as Ian walked into the room. The Doctor stood and walked over to him.

"And how am I supposed to bring Rose to you?" he said.

"I will guide her and you will follow," Ian said. "And you will follow, Doctor. I can see through Rose's eyes and you will stay with her every step of the way and behave yourself. Because if I see you missing from her side or if you try something…"

He gave him an evil grin.

"Well, something nasty just might happen to your little Rosie, eh?" he said.

The Doctor gritted his teeth, and he muttered Gallifreyan curses under his breath. Ian took note of this, and his smile widened.

"Come, my little Doctor. It's time for us to meet at last," he said.

Without another word, he turned and walked towards the door. The Doctor glanced over at Jackie.

"Take care of her," she mouthed to him.

The Doctor nodded and gave her a reassuring smile before he turned his attention back to Rose and followed her out the door.

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The Doctor sighed. He had been following Ian for the past half hour and every few minutes or so he kept looking back to see if he was still there. Now he was doing it again.

"Yes, I'm still with you. You can stop checking up on me now," he said.

"On the contrary, Doctor. I know how clever you are and any moment you could slip away and cause trouble so I have to keep checking up on you," Ian said.

"I won't do anything while Rose is under your control. Now quit staring at me and let's get this over with, shall we?"

"Oooo, so eager to see your new master face to face? Well, then, how can I refuse?"

The Doctor rolled his eyes while Ian turned back around and resumed walking.

Think, think, think! Come on, Doctor, you gotta figure out a way to free Rose before it's too late.

He sighed when Ian stopped ahead of him. He stopped behind him and stared at Rose's back waiting for him to go on.

Oh, crap, he's gonna start taunting me again.

He folded his arms waiting for Ian to turn around and begin to taunt him. He frowned when nothing happened.

"What are you waiting for? I thought he were supposed to be at your place by midnight!" the Doctor said.

"Doc…tor?"

The Doctor's eyes widened and hope began to swell in his hearts.

"Rose? Rose! Fight him! You can do it! Fight his control!"

"Doctor…I'm…trying."

The Doctor quickly hurried around to the front of her body and grabbed her upper arms.

"Rose! Look at me!" he said. "Look into my eyes! I'm here, Rose! Fight him! Fight him for both our sakes. You can do it! You are the Bad Wolf! You destroyed the Dalek Emperor; a vampire is nothing to you! Fight, Rose, fight!"

He grinned when he noticed that Rose was winning. His hearts swelled with pride and love.

"That's it, Rose. I knew you could do it!" he said.

His eyes widened in terror when Rose suddenly let out a scream of pain, grabbed her head, and fell to her knees.

"No!" the Doctor said.

He fell to his knees beside her and watched helplessly while Rose screamed and writhed in pain.

"No! Stop it!" he said. "You've won! Don't hurt her! We won't resist! Please stop!"

The Doctor gritted his teeth when the scream of pain turned into a shriek of laughter.

"Damn you," he muttered.

"You see, Doctor. Not even your pride and joy can resist me," Ian said. "I am stronger than even the power within her. After all that, all you got was the sight of your beloved in agony. There is nothing you can do to stop me apart from killing her."

He rose to his feet and smirked when the Doctor did the same.

"Come along, Doctor. Time's a wastin'," he said.

The Doctor glared at him and stiffened when he kissed him on the lips. Letting out a little chuckle, he beckoned and moved past him.

The Doctor turned and followed him.

"It isn't over yet, Ian," he said. "Just you wait."