Doctor 10.5 and Rose find a rift in the universe and time is about to collapse. What happens when they travel back to their own universe, only to bump into a new Doctor and the Ponds? I don't own DW. If I did, Donna would still be around. I do, however, have the Doctor Who theme (series 1-2) as my ring tone, so I feel ridiculously cool whenever I get a call.
Reprive
River Song looked around the empty streets. It was quiet, too quiet. And eerie. She glanced about, looking up at the mansion in front of her. The Tyler's mansion. She checked her belt. 2015, quite late. Why had her transporter gotten her there two years after the fact? She shook her head, curls bobbing up and down. She needed to find Rose and John. She debated buzzing in. Hell, she didn't even know if John and Rose lived there. She shook her head, deciding against it. She took out her phone, searching the name 'Rose Tyler'. She got results about Torchwood, her husband Dr. John Smith of Torchwood, and...their infant daughter. River smiled softly. Good on them. Now she couldn't help but feel guilty that she'd be throwing chaos into their lives when they've finally seemed settled.
Surprisingly, she found the address to a flat. She clicked in the address, showing up right in front of it. She looked around, not believing her good fortune when she saw an older Rose and John walking along the street, cooing over a baby tram. She moved closer to them.
"And that right there, is the sun, little one," John murmured to the baby as the sun set. He picked her up and cradled her in his arms, her light blonde hair glistening in the spring light. Rose pointed to the sky, smiling.
"We were there, once," she said as if it were a secret.
"You'll go too, one day, little duck," John promised, "all the planets and stars in the sky are waiting for you."
Rose began to hum, brushing the baby's cheek gently.
"Look at the stars, look how they shine for you," John grinned, "they shine for you, indeed."
"We should head inside. It's a bit chilly," Rose decided.
"Right. Allons-y," John grinned.
River shook out of her daze. She had been so absorbed in watching the couple and the baby that she had forgotten why she was there in the first place. Now she was even more determined to make sure that they got to have the chance to have a family.
"Rose, John," she called out after them.
The pair stopped short at her voice, looking at her with wide eyes. Rose blinked before biting her lip.
"We were expecting you a few years ago," she told River.
"How? How are you both alive?" she asked.
The couple shared a smile.
The golden dust settled into John's eyes, leaving Rose once and for all. He smiled lightly at her. She sat up, wrapping her arms around him tightly. He returned the hug. Any moment now, he'd be gone. He wanted the last minutes of his life to be with Rose. It had been quite an adventure.
"Don't leave me. God, don't leave me, please," Rose whispered, frightened. No, no, no. They had finally gotten their lives together. They were doing domestic, and here it was slipping through her fingers.
"Shh," John rubbed her back soothingly.
"It's all my fault. Why'd you help me?" Donna choked back a sob. She felt wretched.
"You're the most important woman in all of creation, Donna. I had to help you," Rose said quietly.
The TARDIS console began to glow, the heart of the TARDIS opening up. John stood, walking towards it as if in a trance.
"What's goin' on?" Rose stood slowly, drawn to it as well.
At that moment, River burst through the door, watching the scene before her with a smile on her face, tears of joy in her eyes. It was exactly as she was told. The gold dust particles left John, entering the heart of the TARDIS. How had it opened on its own? Mickey recalled having to pry it open before. All the knowledge of the Time Lords that had burdened Rose, and the Bad Wolf, flittered through, dancing in the air as they left John once and for all. The cover closed once more, and the glow subsided.
"What the hell was that?" Jack asked.
"The TARDIS," Rose breathed heavily.
"It can grant people's inner wishes," John murmured, gaping at it.
"Oh, well done, old girl," the Doctor told the TARDIS and offered a small smile. How had he not even thought of that?
Rose and John rushed to one another, hugging each other tightly. Rose kissed him, worries no longer a weight on her shoulders. The Doctor looked away. Donna put a comforting hand on his shoulder.
"So what's this about rifts?" Wilf asked.
With Wilfred Mott safe at home (despite protests that he was still strong enough to fight anything that came his way) and Rose and John alive and well (despite tired and drained) the Doctor and his companions decided to scan for the rift once more.
"What was that place we went to last time?" Donna asked suddenly.
"Which place?" the Doctor asked, "the Shadow Proclamation?"
Donna snorted, "As much as I adore our exit, I mean the other place."
The Doctor's brow furrowed.
"Medusa Cascade?" John supplied warily.
"That one!" Donna pointed at John.
Mickey groaned, "Honestly? How many times can the same ruddy thing happen? It's like earth's in danger every year."
Rose and Martha shared a laugh while the Doctor and John shared a knowing smile. Oh, Mickey didn't know the half of it. Amy crossed her arms, the emotional turmoil of the past day finally getting to her.
"How 'bout we call it a night?" she asked.
"We could set up shifts for monitoring the rift. Each person gets an hour, and then we switch off," Rory suggested to the other nine people assembled.
"Fine. Who goes first?" Jack asked.
"Seeing as we've had near death experiences, we're going to bed," Donna pointed to herself, Rose, and John.
"Right, go on. I'll go first," River volunteered.
"Time Lords don't need sleep. I'll stay with you," the Doctor told her.
"You really should try it sometime. It's wonderful," John suggested as he walked past, heading towards Rose's old room.
Rose snorted, "You're too difficult to wake up."
"Oi! I went 900 years without sleeping properly. I'm making up for lost time," John defended himself, his voice fading as they exited the console room.
Donna sent a wink to Jack before taking off. He made a face of confusion and mild fear.
Mickey snickered at his predicament before offering to take the next shift. Then Martha, then Jack, and finally Amy and Rory. That should allow everyone at least a few hours of sleep.
The Doctor stared at the console. Who or what could be doing this? What was the aim of splitting the universe apart. Sure, he appreciated the reunion with all his friends. He stopped short. Every single one of his most recent companions were assembled in the TARDIS. All of his friends. His mind began to work at a rapid pace as he put the pieces of the puzzle together.
River turned her attention from the computer to the Doctor, worry etching her face when she saw how pale he had gotten.
"Doctor?" she shook him out of his thoughts, quite forcefully.
"I think I know," he said quietly, a steely glare in place.
Rose rested against John's chest, her eyes heavy. She held on tightly to him to make sure he was still there. John rubbed her side reassuringly, silently thanking the TARDIS. It hadn't even occurred to him that what gave Rose the power of the Bad Wolf could take it away. He smiled lightly, kissing her cheek.
"What's that for?" she asked with a smile.
"We're alive," he responded.
She chuckled, "We somehow to barely make out of it in one piece."
"We're very good runners," John observed.
Rose shook her head and closed her eyes. The hum of the TARDIS, the sound she had so sorely missed, soothed her. She could feel the TARDIS talking to her, lulling her to sleep. John shifted to get into a more comfortable position and fell asleep.
Donna looked around her old room, the smile not dropping from her face. Oh, this was brilliant! He had kept everything. Her luggage, her hat box, the necklace she wore when they met Agatha Christie. Tears pricked at her eyes, but she refused to cry. No, this was a good thing, a fabolous, wonderful thing. She was in the TARDIS, and once again, her life made sense. Sure, being married was nice, but this is where the adventure was. She wasn't joking when she had told the Doctor that she intended to travel with him forever. She sighed, flopping down on the bed. Now, it was more complicated. She was a married woman. They'd have children, eventually. Shaun was a good man, and she didn't want to leave him. She briefly considered if he'd still love her when he realised that her personality was different. She had become a better woman, a smarter, more worldly woman during her previous travels. She wondered if he'd think she was completely bonkers, talking about an alien who time travelled. She was no longer Donna Temple-Noble. She was once again Donna Noble, (and as Rose had said), the most important woman in all of creation. Her destiny was inexplicably tied and interwoven with the Doctor's. Now she had a decision to make.
"Who? Daleks?" River asked, demanding an answer.
"No," the Doctor shook his head, wishing it were that obvious.
"Then?" River persisted. She was afraid to hear the answer.
"The personification of all evil inside of me. My inner darkness. I thought I had gotten rid of him," the Doctor ran a hand through his hair.
River stared at him.
"He's here. He's hiding, but he's always here. Right here in this very console," he hit his hand against the console, the sound deafening in the nearly empty room.
"But how is the rift being caused?" River asked, wanting the logic of how whatever he was cause the universe to tear.
"He's been in the TARDIS. Everywhere we went, he could alter timelines, destroy the planets in our wake without us ever knowing it," the Doctor tried to wrap his head around the entire thing.
River's eyes widened, and she pointed to something behind the Doctor. He turned around to face a balding man wearing a tweed jacket and a red bowtie, smiling slyly at him, just as he had from inside the console.
I'd like to thank everyone who has reviewed and added the story to their alerts and favorites. Please review, I like feedback. It'd be amazing if this story can get to 50 reviews for the tenth chapter.
Can you guess who the man is? I do believe I've made it quite obvious.
To MegWolf: In the last chapter, I was toying with John's darker, more bitter side. After all, the Doctor did just dump him in another world, and the likelihood that Rose wouldn't love him was very much real. I think being back in the TARDIS with the real Doctor and a potentially dying Rose would make him go a bit off the deep end. After all, he has nothing else to live for at that point. His love for Rose ended up driving him to risk his life, even if it meant she'd be alone once more. He's a lot more rash than the Doctor, so I thought it would be fitting. I'm actually in the midst of an early draft of a prequel to this involving him and Rose.
And to sonofafluffymuffin: I am in fact a 'Miss'.
As for the identity of River, I really don't know. Moffat could do anythin g with it. I for one hope it's not Amy. Or his mother. Or sister. Or anyone related to him. I randomly thought it could be Romana, as she is a Time Lady, but if she is a Time Lady, then she'd be dead. Unless she somehow became human or escaped the Time War. I'm open to anything, though.
Thank you every one for your reviews, it means a lot to me that you take the time to leave a comment.