A/N: Check me out! I'm speed writing! Okay, so I KNOW I didn't really reply to reviews last chapter 'cause I'm a nunce, but I really wanted this finished before series four and it airs on 5th April so I'm gonna get everything done! Only thing really preventing me is something that goes by the name of 'coursework'. Which maybe I'll get around to doing in a bit.

OMG! I had a dream last night about Voyage Of The Damned, but it had Rose and Mickey in it! And the Doctor had a full on fight with the evil guy, then Mickey walked into a light, then the Doctor and Rose were like honoured guests and they were just about to walk onto the stage and I woke up! So I thought "NO!! MUST GET BACK TO SLEEP!" and I managed to get a little bit more but only enough to see them walk onto the stage :P

...Rant over.

Chapter 45 – The Aftermath

They arrived back on the Powell Estate, and never before had Jackie been so please to see that blue box on the concrete. She, Rose and the Time Children practically flew from the flat to the TARDIS, Rory bursting in through the doors and running to his mother, hugging her leg tightly.

"Where's daddy? Can I see daddy?"

Rose shook her head, dropping to her knees and brushing back his hair. "No, sweetheart. Daddy's tired and needs to sleep for a bit. You can see him soon, okay?"

Rory looked crestfallen, but nodded. Jack wandered through the far door and suddenly Rory was off again, launching himself onto the ex-Time Agent and almost knocking him clean off of his feet.

"Whoa kiddo, have you grown since we last met?" Jack gave the mini-Time Lord a wink. Rory grinned, sticking out his chest proudly.

"I'm three foot two!" he declared, beaming from ear to ear.

"Wow!" Jack exclaimed, "you'll be as tall as your old Uncle Jack soon."

"How long were we away?" Rose asked her mother in an undertone as her past self crossed the TARDIS to meet the Ninth Doctor on the other side.

"Around a month. How is 'e?"

Rose Sigma-Tyler just turned away.

That night Rose was watching Owen warily from where she sat next to the Doctor, who was still comatose. Owen was frowning, shaking his head and occasionally turning to speak in low, uninterpretable tones to Jack whilst holding up a few x-rays and pieces of printed-paper. She let her eyes drop to the Doctor, now in a neck brace with about a million intravenous solutions pumping into his body. Temporary bandages were wrapped around the most obvious of the injuries that even Rose could see; broken legs, broken wrist, fractured arm…

So far she, Jack, Jill, Sarah-Jane and Owen had been the only ones to see the full extent of the damage Khthonia had done to him. Everyone else had either just underestimated the situation or made their excuses, all uncomfortable with seeing the injuries. Even Rose's mother had made excuses and kept away from the TARDIS Infirmary, keeping Howard, little Rory, Lottie and the two Zoës close.

The Ninth Doctor had always been uncomfortable being involved with these events, accepting the company of the older Rory and his Rose to confer together in their own TARDIS. He and Rose were still trying accept the idea they were going to be parents to this boy, never mind the fact there were more like him.

Jack had sent Gwen and Tosh back to Cardiff to help out Ianto, though he hadn't stated why. Jill had also sent the UNIT members back to Headquarters, informing them she'd be back to do the paperwork as soon as she was sure the Doctor would make a full recovery. She simply declared it was her duty to by her father's memory.

Rose ripped herself out of her thought trail, looking back up at Owen and Jack in conference. After what seemed like an age Jack finally came over to her, paper in one hand and a resigned look on his face. Owen observed discreetly from a distance, she noticed, which put her on edge at once.

"Rose…" Jack began, shaking his head. "We don't have the capability to fix this. Owen doesn't even know where to start." He raised the piece of paper he held up to her, but Rose could only manage a glance down the list of injuries he'd acquired before she had to look away. "Seriously Rose, one puff of wind and he'll fall to pieces."

"So you're sayin'…you can't do anythin'…" Rose surmised, looking back at the Doctor. "Will he wake up again? The truth, please," she added on the end.

"If he does I doubt he'd be able to do much except blink at you - if he recognises your face," Owen said straight as he advanced towards them. "There's no telling what extent of brain damage he has 'cause of the length of time he's been in a coma. We're talking major concussion here. His skull's cracked and the broken fragments could inflict more damage on his brain, which has already been bruised. Granted I know he's alien and all, but that's only his head. I can't see anything or anyone surviving this... except maybe Jack," he tacked onto the end, giving a shrug.

Rose felt tears prickling at the side of her eyes as she reached up to her husband's face, brushing back the hair from his face carefully.

Jack moved in, holding her close in support. "I'm sorry Rose, he has to regenerate this time," he whispered into her ear.

Seconds trickled by as Rose just cried for her husband, about to die and become someone totally different to the man she knew and loved once more. She finally looked up to his impassive facial features, leaning forward out of Jack's embrace and kissing a bruised cheek. Out of the corner of her eye she could see Owen already wandering towards them with a needle in one hand and a grave expression on his face; ready to kill her Doctor. He stopped on the other side of the Doctor, just hovering for a minute as if waiting for a cue. Finally after a few moments, Rose nodded for the procedure to go ahead.

"D'you wanna to switch off the machines?" he asked, and silently Jack thanked him for not dwelling and joking about the situation.

She instantly shook her head, and Jack retook her into his arms.

"Jack, can you do it?" she requested into his chest, and Jack nodded affirmation, kissing her on the forehead. He looked up to the ceilings, addressing the TARDIS:

"TARDIS, can you turn off the machines please?" he asked gently, and alarmingly for a moment the Infirmary shuddered, as if the TARDIS was crying too. She whined quietly, a few silent seconds passing before the machines surrounding the Doctor finally fell silent around them. The Doctor began to breathe slowly but heavily on his own, sounding as if there were something trapped in his throat.

Owen raised the final executor – the needle full of deathly substance – and lowered it towards the Time Lord's arm.

"Wait!" Rose suddenly jumped up onto her feet, taking Owen and Jack completely by surprise as the TARDIS lurched the machines into life once more. "Our children. They have to see him before he changes."

"Rose…" Jack began and got to his feet, sounding a little hesitant as he looked down at the living mess the Doctor had become.

"No, Jack," Rose cut in smoothly. "We can't hide them forever. They have to know what bein' a Time Lord's about; the risks that we live with. I know Lottie and Zoë are too young, but Rory's growin' up so fast. He needs to know this."

Jack gave a small smile, and nodded. "You're right. Just let me and Owen get him presentable for them."

She nodded back. "Thanks, Jack."

"Rory, wake up sweetheart," Rose said to the boy gently, kissing him on the forehead. He opened his golden eyes and looked up at her blearily from underneath a mess of chaotic bed hair. "Wake up."

"Mummy?" he asked, pushing himself up from under the duvet. "S'all dark."

"Yeah, I know it's late but I need you to be a good boy now, okay?" She distinctly heard the sound of someone coming up and standing in the doorway behind her. "Get your blanket, we have to go to the Infirmary."

"Where daddy is?"

She nodded. "Yes, we have to go see daddy right now."

"Rose?" the stranger spoke – the Ninth Doctor. She ignored him for the moment, leading her son across from his bed to the door where the old Doctor lingered.

"Can you take him wait outside the Infirmary door?" it wasn't a question. He looked puzzled.

"Rose, wha-"

"Never mind that," Rose cut in, rather rudely. "We don't have time for this. Just do it."

He remained still for a moment, before finally nodding and taking the tired boy's hand as he led him along the corridor. Rose crossed to the Nursery, but was met by a hullabaloo as she entered.

"Rose!" Sarah sounded relieved, rocking Zoë back and forth in her arms but seemingly not having the desired effect as she was just crying more and more. Jill was attempting to calm Lottie down, who was screaming just as loudly whilst Jackie mothered the other screaming Zoë. "It's the Zoës, they won't stop crying and it's keeping Lottie up…"

"I think she knows…" Rose said with a sigh. "We have to go to the Infirmary."

"But isn't that where…"

Rose nodded. "We need to get there quick."

"Is Rory going too?" Sarah asked as she, Jackie and Jill followed Rose out of the doorway.

"Yes," she answered shortly.

"Are you sure that's wise?" came the next question from Jill. "I mean, last time I saw the Doctor he wasn't exactly…"

"I know." She held up a hand to stop them as they reached the Infirmary door, where the Ninth Doctor and Rory were already waiting. Jack was there too, kneeling to Rory's height. They looked up as Rose approached.

"Rose," Jack said, gesturing with his head through the Infirmary door. "Ready."

She bent down, taking Rory into her arms as he yawned widely. "Okay, let's go." She led the crowd into the Infirmary; turning to close the door behind her to find the leather-clad Doctor hadn't moved to go in.

"Are you comin'?"

He shook his head and turned away. Shrugging, Rose closed the door and moved over to the bed, noticing how Jack and Owen had pulled the cover up to hide the worst cuts and bruises, and how a few more bandages were wrapped around his head and displaced jaw to make everything look a bit more natural.

"Daddy?" Rory said tiredly, turning around in his mother's arms. "Mummy, is daddy dead?"

"No, sweetheart…" Rose began slowly, holding the boy closer. "But the evil woman hurt him badly."

"He's broked?" Rory asked, trying to pull away from Rose towards his father. "He's broked and you can't fix him."

Rose didn't need – or want – to answer that one. She set him down onto the bed and he instantly crawled over to the older Time Lord, lifting his unbroken arm and hugging it in both arms.

"He's going to regenerate," Jack carried on, seeing Rose on the verge of a breakdown. "Just like you did."

"No, he's not," Rory suddenly said, taking everyone by surprise. "He can't."

"What d'you mean he can't?" Owen asked quickly. "Is that broken too?"

"No stoopid," he answered rudely, "he can't, 'cause I just regerminated and s'not fair for the angels 'cause they're already busy making little peoples for daddy to put in mummy's belly."

Jack and Rose exchanged a glance. "Rory…" Jack began, but the boy suddenly screamed and bounced up and down on the mattress clinging tightly to his father's arm.

"I DON'T WANT HIM TO CHANGE!" he screamed, tears pouring down his face. "Daddy can fix you so why can't youfixhim?!I hate you!" he screamed, letting go of the Doctor's arm and jumping off of the bed, running towards the door. He reached it just in time for it to open, and there was the Ninth Doctor coming in the other way. Rory instantly grabbed his leg into a hug and held on tight.

"They're gonna kill you daddy, don't let 'em don't let 'em!" he said at the speed of light, and the Ninth Doctor looked up to meet Rose's gaze. Her eyes swiftly disconnected.

"You're gonna force him to regenerate," he surmised, panning around the room at Jack and Owen. "Is it reallythat bad?"

Owen stepped forward bearing the list of injuries the Tenth Doctor had acquired and held it out to the Northern man. He took it and gave it a glance.

"There's just too damn much to treat," Owen carried on, positive that he'd get the Ninth Doctor's support on this. "I ain't got the foggiest idea where to start."

"Well, if I were you I'd start at the ribs. By the looks of his breathing I'd say we've got a break and it's punctured and collapsed a lung. You'll need to reinflate that," the Doctor said after a moment's pause. "Then I'd move to the head injury before going onto the simple double fracture of the left fibula and tibia because according to these scans there's a massive amount of internal bleeding suggesting that a blood vessel's been severed…"

"I know but…"

"Then the compound fracture of the right tibia and fibula since it's prone to infection leading to septicaemia, before treating the compression of the vertebrae; by the location and severity of this any possible paralysis will be only temporary and possibilities of Osteomyelitis can be minimised…"

"I can't do it on my own!"

The Ninth Doctor regarded Owen carefully. "Then take him to hospital. Or let me do it. I'm not completely useless. I do know a bit about Time Lord lungs and brains."

Rose was staring at him with a sense of awe. "Are you gonna make him better?"

"Why not?" The Ninth Doctor turned towards the woman with arms folded. "Seems pointless to turn to euthanasia now when he could heal so easily."

A huge, happy grin spread onto her face as she bounded over to him, enveloping him in a huge bear hug, being careful not to crush her son in the process.

"Thank you!" she gasped. The Ninth Doctor looked startled for a moment, a few seconds passing before he slowly reached around and returned the hug.