Salamander Theory - Chapter 6: The Longer Path

A/N: Sorry for the delay. Life kinda took over. Some flicks of spoilers below for the 3rd season of Doctor Who and a bit of Torchwood.

Truth be told, there many reasons that the Doctor believed Rose Tyler's story. There was the fact that she described places and things that no human of this time period could ever know. She knew things about the TARDIS that no one knew--not even his closest companions. But most of all, the Doctor recognized the look in her eyes when she described the horror of the Daleks and Cybermen. However impossible her tale was, Rose Tyler spoke the truth.

Rose Tyler did not belong in this world.

Well, at least she was not supposed to be in this particular universe. In fact, the time lines became all muddled when he looked at her and that made things complex. Well, more complex than usual. At least she was not exposing herself to any more psychic damage. The device was hidden away in the TARDIS. A Lenux Protocol Center left on earth. Oddly enough, that box ending up in the hands of the one being that could handle. Curious, that. Or convenient. Rose mentioned spreading messages across time and space for herself. Had she gone through the Void to give herself tools to return to her Doctor?

Complex, indeed.

Of course, what Rose Tyler didn't say spoke volumes to him. When she spoke about her Doctor, everything she was feeling laid out before him, as if she could hide it ay longer. She did not shield anything from him. Pain, loss. And loneliness. He was intimately familiar with that particular emotion. There was a little voice inside him whispered that if he reunited them, perhaps some part of him would at least have that small measure of peace.

So the Doctor found himself knocking at the front door of the palatial Tyler mansion at 8am on a crisp autumn morning the day after the TARDIS decided to drop into Torchwood quite unexpectedly. Pete Tyler opened the door, closely followed by a toddling blond boy.

"Morning, Doctor. Perfect timing," Pete said, his arms swinging down to capture his escaping son. "Rose will be down in a bit. Tea? Jacks and I wanted a bit of a word with you before you head off."

The Doctor wasn't sure if he was supposed to reply to that statement. Instead, he followed Pete into the kitchen where Jackie Tyler sat at the table, sipping tea and brooding. Pete gestured for him to sit, placing Jamie in a high chair and moving next to his wife as Jackie poured them both tea.

"Doctor, I know you aren't the same man that Rose--," she began then stopped. "Rose and the Doctor... Rose hasn't been the same since we came here--since he saved us. I just... I just don't want her to be hurt. Not any more. Not again." Her eyes met his as she continued. "Rose wants this so much. She wants to go back. And if she goes back, then I lose her... Probably forever. And I may never--"

"I'm not even sure if there is any way for Rose to go back, Jackie. The Time Lords are gone. No one to guard the paths any longer," he interrupted.

"Thing is, Doctor, she's an adult now, but she's still my baby. Rose was all that I had for a long time. But she wants to go back. And we'll be here. She's fighting her way back to him, you see. Rose is stubborn and won't have it any other way," she smiled wearily, her son babbling happily next to her. "But you don't have much stake in her. You don't know us. I just... I just want you to know that the other version of you loves Rose. And they are meant to be together. I've had two more years with her--more than I had hoped when she went swanning off with the Doctor all those years ago. And I know you can't promise she'll be safe. I-I just want you to try your best."

Pete cleared his throat. "We both love her, Doctor. She may not have been born in this universe, but she saved it--more than once. We just want her to be safe. And happy."

The Doctor sipped his tea carefully before deliberately placing the cup down. "You know I can't guarantee that, Pete."

Jackie replied quietly, "Yes, but you'll try. If you're anything like the man I knew, the Doctor we knew... you'll try." He nodded as Rose stepped into the room.

"Mum. Dad. I'm not going to leave. At least not yet. Nothing is planned yet," she said quietly. "Like the Doctor said, there may not even be a way back."

Her mother shook her head, closing her eyes. "Rose, if there is any way in the world, you'll find it. I'm just... I just have to accept it. I understand. I have Pete again," she said softly. Rose wrapped her arms around her mother, hugging her tightly for a moment, whispering in her ear before turning to her father to do the same. She kissed her baby brother on his brow.

"Love you all. We'll be back," she promised.

"Right. Well, Rose and I are off then. Devon, right? Crash site and all that." The Doctor stood up, patted Jamie on his head, and strode towards the door, taking Rose by her hand.

"Dartmoor... And oodles of mysterious alien stuffs. Oh, and pixies," Rose laughed, grabbing her bag on the way out.

"Really?" asked the Doctor eagerly.

"So they say," she grinned back. "Of course, we should see about the giant spaceship-shaped hole in the ground first."

"Perhaps the pixies had a hand in that. And what did the Doctor say?" he asked as the walked towards the TARDIS.

"How did you know I spoke with him?" she asked as she hurried to keep up with his strides. At his snort, she continued. "Well, we did speak! And I'll have you know he's going to investigate things on his side. There's a rift in time and space on Earth."

"Yes, yes. Cardiff," he said impatiently as he opened the doors. "A bit of trouble there. But it's a bit more sealed now."

"Somewhat, but the link is still there..." Rose set down her bag as she entered the TARDIS. Everything was the same. Well, almost the same...

"But not that stable, but I'm sure that he'll work on it. He told you to stop using the Lenux Protocol Center." It was not a question.

"And I will. So let's be off. The pixies are waiting." The Doctor grinned and began to turn knobs.

Jack would be waiting, though he no longer had his hand to signal that he was in Cardiff. Captain Jack Harkness. The former Time Agent now headed up Torchwood. As much as he loathed the organization, he did trust Jack. Well, at least in most things. And he knew Jack would do anything he could to help Rose Tyler.

Of course, since Jack didn't have the hand, the Doctor wondered how he should get Jack's attention. The front door, he decided, was the best way as he walked towards the building Jack headed towards when they had dropped him off. Torchwood would also have a storehouse of alien tools. He wondered if he had to do some housekeeping while he was there.

"Can I help you?" asked an man in a tailored suit as the Doctor entered the storefront. The room looked as innocuous as a room could be. As far away from the cold corridors of the London branch.

"Ah, yes. I'm here to see Captain Jack Harkness. I'm the Doctor."

"Doctor? Doctor who?" he asked politely.

"He'll know who I am," he said with a grin. The man spoke briefly on the phone, relaying his message. If Jack's reply surprised him, he did not let on.

"I am Ianto Jones, Doctor. I'll take you to see him now. Welcome to Torchwood."

To be continued...