x x x Chapter Nine: The More Things Change… x x x

Turned out that she did still enjoy chips — though now more so now with an extra sprinkle of salt, a little bit of pepper and, oh, spicy mustard.

Lots of spicy mustard.

"That there is wrong, Rose. Just… wrong," the Doctor shook his head as she finished up the last of the chips. She paused, fork halfway to her mouth, and grinned at him.

Then she shoved the mustard-dipped chip into her mouth, chewing thoughtfully. True, this wasn't something she would have eaten before. But it wasn't half-bad. In fact, she quite liked it. Judging by the look on the Doctor's face, she suspected he most likely wouldn't be offering up stops for chips as often anymore.

Shame.

She put the fork down and sighed. That was that, then. Even eating the chips as slowly as possible, delighting in the way that the flavors excited this new tongue, she hadn't been able to delay the inevitable by more than an hour's span. "Do we have to…?"

"Visit your mum?" the Doctor's asked, eyebrows rising. "Do you think putting it off will make it any easier?"

Rose frowned and leaned back in her chair. She crossed her arms over her chest and tilted back so that she was looking at the ceiling. Her hair dangled down and she imagined that it might sweep the floor with its ends if she just leaned a little farther. And what was that spot on the ceiling? Unappetizing, definitely. She was glad she hadn't seen it before she started eating. She sighed, "Is it wrong if I don't care?"

"Rose —"

"I don't want to," she moaned. "She's going to get all angry or frightened and it'll just be bad — you know that."

Laughter. He was laughing at her. Rose slowly sat back up, until she was looking into the Doctor's laughing eyes. "What?"

"Nothing." Everything about the way he was looking at her said that it was anything but 'nothing.'

"What?" she demanded.

"Just the changes in your personality," he grinned.

Rose pouted and the Doctor's grin grew.

"See — right there. You're pouty — whiny even." The grin never left his face. Rose felt distinctly teased.

"Am not!" Rose argued, realizing even as she said it that maybe, just maybe, he was right. Replaying her conversation with him in her head, she could see where she might've come off sounding like a petulant child. "Am I?"

"Don't worry — it's a cute whiny," he assured her, pushing back from the table with a wink. He stood up and Rose felt her heart drop. She opened her mouth to beg — no, plead — that they just put this off; only to snap it shut again when she realized what she was about to do.

The Doctor was right. She was a bit whiny.

She couldn't reign in her sigh, though, as she stood up and threw away the remains of her snack. Taking one last draw of her drink, she tossed the cup. There was one tactic she hadn't tried yet. When she turned back toward the Doctor, she had a new plan in mind.

"You sure you want to do this right…now?" she murmured, closing the distance between them until her body was practically pressed against his. His eyes widened, dilating a tad as he looked down into her face. There was open lust and curiosity there — two things that she knew very well what to do with. "I still have so many questions about this body, after all. I think — and I'd love for you to help me figure this out — that I might be more…sensitive in this skin."

Her hand went to his tie, tugging on it playfully.

"Rose. We really…"

She licked her lips, slowly. Starting with the bottom and working her way around to the top. He watched her tongue and Rose felt a surge of power work its way through her. She smiled up at him, watching the emotions play across his face. Still her Doctor, just as she was still his Rose. She was just a flirtier — somewhat whinier — Rose.

And he was a much more…hands on Doctor than he'd been when they first met. Also a more tongues-on Doctor, if that was even a phrase that she could use. Still, it fit. He did so enjoy licking things. It was that fixation that she could readily admit she had some curiosity about.

"Rose," the Doctor said quietly. His palm came up to her cheek, cupping her face. She had the impression of falling into his eyes as he leaned forward, brushing his lips over hers. Then, "We need to go visit your mum."

x x x

He had adored Rose version one, but there was no doubt in his mind that Rose version two might be his favorite.

Well, out of the two he'd seen so far, the Doctor mused. And he'd rather not see versions three through whatever for a long while, if he had any say in the matter. Losing her once was hard enough.

She was glaring — quite petulantly — at the doors of the TARDIS; as though doing so would keep them shut. It was all the Doctor could do not to start laughing again. This version of Rose alternated between being a sexy siren and a sulky child so quickly that it made his head spin.

It was definitely a good thing, therefore, that she was equally adorable either way.

In fact — and he was certain that this might make him a little mad — he thought that maybe, just maybe, she was even more adorable as a sulky pseudo-brat.

"She's going to slap you and I'm not going to stop her, either," Rose offered, turning to glare at him over her shoulder. Apparently if she was going to suffer, then so was he. Well, he could nip that quick enough.

"Then maybe I'll stay down here."

"What?" she turned so quickly that her hair fanned out for the briefest of moments, caught in the breeze of her motion. "Oh, no — you have to come. I'm not even going to try to explain this without you being there. What if she doesn't believe it's me?"

"You don't look that different, you know. I'm sure you'd be able to convince her after a fashion," he said as he leaned back on the console. Actually, that sounded like a good idea. "Yes, that's perfect, come to think of it. You go on up there and tell her what happened and I'll stay down here, where it's safe."

Safe in the Tardis; working on the old girl while Rose dealt with her psycho mum. Perfect didn't even begin to describe this new plan.

"I'll let her in."

The Doctor frowned. That threat had merit.

Now that was something he hadn't thought about. How long would it take him to change the locks on the TARDIS, anyway? One glance at Rose's face said clearly that she hadn't thought of that, but also that him thwarting her any further would only serve to cause him pain in the near future. Considering he was hoping — very much so — to get to do that exploring of Rose's new body that she'd tried tempting him with, the Doctor decided it was best to concede.

"Fine."

Oh, for want of a piece of nice, sonic duct tape to go over her mother's mouth, though. He sighed. Well, if he was going to be forced along anyway, he supposed he might as well do this the easy way. Well, the easiest way for Rose, anyhow.

"Give me ten minutes with her and then come up."

Rose turned to look at him, confusion marring her face. "What?"

"I want to explain it to her before she sees you," he offered.

"Brilliant. Best. Plan. Ever," Rose nodded. "You explain it, get her calmed down, and then I'll come up and show her… me."

"If she kills me… be kind to my next regeneration, all right?"

Rose didn't look amused by that. Well, good, then. He wasn't completely joking.

The walk up to Jackie's flat seemed more like a stroll to the gallows. He certainly felt as though it would end in death or pain — or both. Most likely just pain. But let it never be said that he was a masochist. He didn't enjoy pain in the least, especially when it was being administered by one angry mother.

He knocked on the door, waited a moment, then knocked again.

"Well, no one's home. Try again later," he declared with a grin, shoving his hands in his pockets and preparing to walk — no, run — back to the Tardis. He was being hypocritical, he knew. Wasn't it he who had insisted that Rose need to tell her mum here and now?

He made it no more than three steps from the door before he heard it open behind him. Shoulders slumping, the Doctor turned.

"You!" Jackie greeted. "Where's my Rose?"

"Down in the Tardis," he said, evenly. "Needed to talk to you a bit, first."

Jackie's eyes narrowed. "She all right?"

"Never better." At least that much he could say with all honesty. Rose was better now than she'd ever been. No more silly human frailties or constraints. She'd outlive everyone she had ever known if she played her regenerations right; which might not be too consoling, and he vowed not to mention that to Jackie or Rose unless forced under the pain of torture.

"Then why's she not up here with you, then?"

The Doctor sighed. "Can we talk inside?"

Distrusting look firmly in place, she moved aside to let him enter the flat. It looked the same as it always did. Cramped, but cozy. A hodgepodge of color and style that was at once both comforting and irritating on the eyes.

He noticed that Jackie didn't offer him tea; just sat herself on the couch and stared at him, hands clasped in front of her, elbows on her knees.

The Doctor sighed and chose 'standing' as the option that made him feel most secure. He looked down at Jackie. "You remember when I changed?"

"When you went and changed your face, you mean?" she asked. "Yeah, of course I do. Same time those aliens came here, trying to make people jump off roofs."

The two events were completely unconnected, but the Doctor didn't see any benefit to pointing out her inaccuracy when he was already about to tell her something that was going to upset her.

"Yes," he nodded. "And — that was a good thing, right? Because it means I didn't die. And it means I won't die next time or the time after or the time after or —"

"I get it, already," Jackie snapped. She rolled her eyes. "What's that got to do with anything?"

"Rose —"

"Rose what? What've you done to her?" Jackie stood so quickly that the Doctor rocked back a step before he could stop himself.

"Long story short," the Doctor cut her off before she could get going. "She's like me now. Rose is. She can change to keep from dying."

Jackie stopped in mid-step. A step he was sure she'd been taking to cause him bodily harm, for that matter.

"She's like you? My Rose?"

The Doctor nodded. "When she…" he stopped, fumbling for the words. Jackie didn't know what had happened on Station Five. He settled for the condensed version, "When she came back for me, right before I changed, she did something she shouldn't have done, Jackie. And it changed her. Slowly — so slowly that we didn't even know it was happening and even when we figured it out, there was no way to stop it. But she's healthy. Completely, one hundred percent happy and healthy and you don't need to worry about her because she'll always be your Rose."

Silence reigned as his speech came to a close. Jackie didn't speak and he didn't prompt her to. It didn't take a genius to know what was going through her mind. She was working through everything he'd just said. Working through what this meant. He wanted to help her, answer any questions she had, but he was slightly afraid that speaking would turn her attention back to him and away from her internal musings.

And that could lead to a slap or three, which he definitely did not want.

They stood there like that — her staring into space and him just watching her stare into space — for what seemed like forever.

But, really, it couldn't have been more than a handful of minutes, because the sound of Rose unlocking the front door ended it all.

"That's her," he murmured to Jackie, catching her eye. All the years he had spent with humans, and he couldn't gauge how this was going to go. She could freak out or be angry or —

"Rose!" Jackie gasped. "My poor Rose!"

In a blur of blue tracksuit, Jackie was past him and latching onto Rose. He turned, his speculative look fading to a smile. Rose grinned at him over her mother's shoulder, leaning into the hug.

He fell into a chair with a sigh.

Well, that went better than he'd thought.

END CHAPTER