Part Three – No Need For Words

Standing beside the wood-panelled window, Rose decided that Jane's dress may have looked pretty but now that she was in a similar albeit green dress, the whole thing seemed less appealing. For the dozenth time, she tugged at the tight bodice, wishing she had not agreed to have her jeans and t-shirt washed.

Jane herself was standing at the fire, golden bracelets glinting in the light. She turned to Rose.

"Perhaps we should turn in, Miss Tyler. It is late and we can search in the morning for your friends."

Rose peered through the thin glass, wishing she could make out more than a blank wall of grey. Without looking at Jane, she waved a hand. "You go on ahead. I'll be up in a bit. T'was the second room on the left, wasn't it, mine? I'll see you in the morning!"

There was a pause. "As you wish, Miss Tyler. Dominic will be downstairs should you require anything. Goodnight."

Rose waited until her footsteps had faded then spun around. She had no intention of waiting around until morning, anything could have happened to the Doctor and Jack by then. She crossed the kitchen to pick up the candle, wincing as a drop of hot wax spilled on her finger.

"Gotta remember to bring a torch next time," she muttered to herself as she stepped out into the hallway.

It was cool and quiet. Feeling only slightly guilty about lying to Jane, she tiptoed along the hall, stopping momentarily when she heard a cough. She glanced in a half-open doorway.

Dominic was sitting at a rough wooden table with cards laid out in front of him, the maid who had helped Rose dress was reading by a small fire. Just the servant's quarters.

Suddenly Rose spotted a low door, hidden almost out of sight at the back of the staircase. It wasn't ornately gilded like the rest. She crossed over to it and gently turned the handle. It didn't move.

Could be a cupboard, she thought to herself. But why lock it? Sonic screwdriver would be handy right about now.

Rose held the candle closer. The wood of the door wasn't in great shape, like the rest of the house. Maybe a push…

With a creak, the door gave way and one of the panels cracked inwards. Startled, Rose toppled in after, barely managing to hold onto the candle. She waited for a second, her heart beating wildly but no one came to investigate. With a quick sigh, she pulled herself free of the wood, tearing the green silk dress.

She held the candle up in the gloom. It certainly wasn't a cupboard anyway. The flickering light revealed a narrow stone corridor, seemingly hacked out of the bedrock. She made up her mind instantly. A secret passageway in the dead of night? She just had to follow it.

A long time later, she began to have her doubts. She had lost count of the minutes and was beginning to get tired. It was damp and cold down here and the thin dress wasn't adequate covering at all. Her eyes were aching from the feeble light of the candle, which was burning alarmingly fast.

Suddenly the stone walls on either side disappeared. She slowed, confused, before realising that the passageway had opened out into a larger cave or cavern.

"Who's there?" Rose froze at the sound of the voice through the silence.

"We're not going to harm you!"

A grin appeared on her face. "Doctor!"

"Rose?" The sound of footsteps was followed by the Doctor emerging out of the darkness. He smiled broadly and gave her a quick hug. "You're okay!"

"Not too bad. You gave me such a fright, you and Jack disappearin' like that! Where is he anyway?"

"Right here!" He stepped into the light, blinking. "Well, what are you wearing?"

Rose smoothed the dress over her hip. "I tore my stuff. This lady back at the manor have me this to wear."

"A manor? Did you find out where we are?" the Doctor asked urgently.

She smiled. He didn't know."1800s Yorkshire."

"You'll fit right in, Doctor," Jack grinned.

The Doctor ignored him. "Did you find out what's been going on?"

Rose quickly related what she knew, leaving the Doctor looking thoughtful.

"You know what we do next?" she asked him. "Go back to Jane?"

"No, I don't think so. Actually, wait, yes. Jack, you go find this Jane. I don't really fancy splittin' up, but what can we do? Rose, you're going to come with me."

"Where are we going?"

"We're going to find us some locals."

Poking around in dark caves with only the glow of the sonic screwdriver as a light and only wearing a thin silk dress wasn't overly fun, Rose decided. They seemed no better off for all their searching. Even the Doctor appeared a little stumped.

He glared at the sonic screwdriver. "Readings still seem a little off. Well, at least I don't think we've been walking around in circles for two hours." He grinned. "That'd be worse."

"D'you reckon we could take a rest?" Rose asked, almost tripping over the torn hem of her dress again.

They stopped and sat side by side on the uneven rocky ground. The Doctor extinguished the faint light of the sonic screwdriver. Catching her breath, Rose let her eyes adjust to the darkness.

"You think Jack's okay?" she asked, folding her arms around herself.

"Jack? Course he is. Probably sitting at a roaring fire right this minute with a cup of tea, waiting for us to show up so he can explain everything that's been happening here."

She smiled at the thought. "Yeah, probably."

They lapsed into silence, listening to their quiet breathing and the ticking of the Doctor's watch. Rose lost track of time again, the minutes stretched out endlessly.

She broke the silence with a hushed, "Doctor?"

"Yeah?"

"Is it just me or is it getting colder?" She rubbed her goosepimpled arms again.

"Could be, I s'pose." She could imagine his face crinkling into that frown of his. "Can't imagine why though." His leather jacket rustled and Rose blinked in the sudden glare of light from the sonic screwdriver. "I don't understand what's up with this!" He glared at the device. "Honestly! Well, as long as it doesn't get much colder, we'll be alright." He suddenly seemed to notice that it wasn't only the light of the sonic screwdriver contributing to the blue hue of her face.

Worry creased his features and he shifted across to sit beside her, slipping his leather jacket off and wrapping it around her shoulders. He threw one arm around her and pulled her to him.

She nestled against his chest, listening to the comforting throbs of his hearts, letting his warmth soak into her cool skin.

"Hey, don't worry bout this," he murmured into her hair.

"Who's worrying?" she said, moving slightly to rest her head on his shoulder.

His warm hand came up to caress her icy cheek. It tingled from his touch.

"That's my Rose, always so brave" he whispered, a murmur so soft she wasn't sure if she'd imagined it or not.

Suddenly he dropped his hand from her face, as if fearing he'd gone too far, crossed the invisible line they'd never mentioned. Rose reached out and caught his hand in her own freezing one, intertwining her fingers with his.

They sat there like that for a minute, then the Doctor tried to disengage his fingers. But Rose turned her head to his and he looked down at her, their faces only centimetres apart. Even in the gloom, Rose could feel the intensity of his gaze as he stared into her eyes.

For a moment, neither said anything. Her heart was beating painfully hard against her ribcage. She could sense his reluctance to move, his desire to protect her and his uncertainty of what could follow. But all she could think of was his body pressed against hers, tensed. In what? Fear? Anger? Nervousness?

Anticipation?

His breath was warm and misted the little space between them. Rose's heart beat faster and faster. She couldn't tear his eyes from his.

On impulse he leaned down, closing the gap and pressing his lips against hers. They were warm and soft, the kiss leaving her breathless and trembling when he pulled away.

She couldn't let him do that. She took his face in both her hands and kissed him again, more deeply. This time he was the one looking flustered.

For a few seconds, neither moved. Then the Doctor opened his mouth to say something. Rose put a finger on his lips.

"Shh," she whispered, wrapping her hands around his waist and leaning back against his chest. His hands encircled her waist and he rested his head atop hers.

There was no need for words.