After a few minutes, Rose felt much better – if a little unsteady on her feet. She wobbled slightly as she stood up slowly. The Doctor instantly offered to hold her arm as they walked along and Rose blushed but declined the offer, tempting as it definitely was.
They reached the sewer entrance after a few seconds, and Rose took a deep breath, bracing herself. She couldn't say she was too keen to go traipsing down a sewer after a creature that looked as horrific as that one had done. However, nerves didn't usually wash with the Doctor, so Rose pushed the thoughts to the back of her head and focused on the job in hand. Whatever 'the job in hand' happened to be. Rose never quite knew. Find the creature, sure – but then what? The Doctor was quite proud of the fact that he made it all up as he went along. "But I do it brilliantly," he once remarked, and Rose had to agree.
The Doctor once again shone the screwdriver into the hole. "Not a big drop. Come on." He jumped first, disappearing from view. Rose was just preparing to drop in after him, when there was a groan from below and the Doctor reappeared.
"Well, I'm not fussy about most things, but that smell is disgusting…" the Doctor informed her. "I've got some very stylish gas masks back in the TARDIS - should make the air we breathe in a bit fresher down there. Come on."
The Doctor set off at a jog, and Rose followed him. However, after a minute she came to a stop, suddenly feeling ill again. It felt like the end of the flu virus, that she couldn't quite shake off. She bent over, trying not to retch again.
The Doctor turned round after a few seconds, seeming to sense she wasn't following him. He paused for a second, then jogged back to join her.
"What is it?" he asked.
"I feel odd again… God sorry, I'm being such a wuss -"
"Not like you to make a fuss over nothing," the Doctor commented. He was frowning at her, but not as if he was annoyed. He looked very puzzled. His hand found its way onto Rose's back, which he rubbed gently, absent-mindedly. Rose felt the familiar tingle through her body, but ignored it. Curiosity was poking up its head, and Rose really wanted to get to the bottom of this little mystery.
"Do you have any… I dunno… devices you can use to look inside me or something, see what's causing it? It can't be a bug, it came on so suddenly…"
The Doctor said nothing for a moment, then grinned hugely. "They don't call me a Doctor for nothing, you know!"
Rose smiled back slightly, still not quite feeling herself. She didn't feel too worried, though. She was with the Doctor – he may not like to plan things, but he always pulled through. She was safe with him. She started walking slowly in the direction of the TARDIS, and the Doctor put his arm through hers to keep her steady (or so he claimed).
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Jackie finally stirred just after nine. She rolled on to her side and starred out of the window. The sky was fairly clear, if a little grey. She hoped it wouldn't rain later and spoil the dinner she had planned. Jackie smiled to herself. The Doctor may act like he knew better than everyone, but that was one thing he couldn't control – the weather. Or at least she didn't think he could… Jackie's smile faded slightly. He couldn't do something like that, surely? If Jackie thought about the Doctor too much, it just made her feel more confused than before. There was so much about him she didn't know. "And I don't think I want to know," Jackie muttered to herself.
Half an hour later, Jackie was in the kitchen eating breakfast – corn flakes, which she had never liked. Leave them a minute in the milk and they went as soggy as wet tissue paper. When Rose had lived with her, Jackie had sometimes treated them to different, more expensive food. Now she was alone… Jackie didn't bother. There was no one to enjoy it with, anyway.
She suddenly sat up straight. Rose and the Doctor! Where were they? She had thought she heard them arrive the night before, but they didn't seem to be around. Maybe they left early? Jackie didn't want Rose to go off on her travels again without spending a bit of time with her, so she pulled on yesterday's clothes, ran a quick comb through her hair and left the flat, looking for them.
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Rose and the Doctor finally reached the TARDIS, parked just below Jackie's flat. Rose sat on the console chair, relieved to be sitting down. The Doctor disappeared into another room of the TARDIS for a few minutes, then returned with his hands and pockets full of impressive looking surgical equipment. He even brought a nurses hat, for what reason Rose wasn't sure. He gave her a cheeky smile.
"Are you ready for your appointment with Dr Doctor?"
Rose raised her eyebrows. "Dr Doctor? Is that your title?"
"Well yeah, I'm the Doctor and I'm carrying out doctor-y tests…"
Rose grinned. "OK then – go on, do your worst."
The Doctor cleared his throat. "So, Miss Tyler?" he began, adopting a pompous authoritative tone. "How do you feel at this present moment in time?"
"Not bad." Rose answered, honestly. "Bit sick and shaky, but basically OK." She took the nurses hat from him. "Is this for me? I thought it'd look better on you." She reached up and perched it on top of the Doctor's head. The Doctor produced a mirror from one of his pockets, and examined his reflection. He nodded, and cocked it at a comical angle on his head. Rose took one look at him and went into fits of laughter. The Doctor couldn't help but join her.
A few moments later, the Doctor composed himself. "We really should get on, you know – for a start, Jackie'll be wondering where you've got to."
Rose swore. In the whole confusion of the illness and the sewer creature, she had almost forgotten why she was here – to visit her mum. "God yeah – I should really be getting back to her soon."
"Won't take long. I'll just find out what's inside you to make you feel ill… should be done in a jiffy." The Doctor didn't look quite as confident as he sounded. "Well, hopefully." He paused again. "I'm a bit rusty with all this equipment, but I'll try my best…"
"Come on, stop dawdling." Rose looked at him. "Where do you want me? Should I stay on the chair or -?"
"Um yeah, there's fine." The Doctor muttered, suddenly looking slightly nervous. "OK, well I'll start by listening to your chest – heart, I mean," he added hurriedly. He pulled out the stethoscope and put the earpiece in his ear. He then slightly hesitantly placed the other end on Rose's chest. There was a silence for a moment as the Doctor listened to her heartbeat. "Seems normal enough – maybe a little fast…" The Doctor looked at Rose, who tried to keep her face impassive. "You're not nervous? I may be a little rusty but I'm not about to maim you for life!"
Rose laughed. "I know. Go on, carry on, I'm fine. What else are you gonna do?" she asked.
The Doctor answered without hesitation. "Oh you know, all the usual stuff – check your temperature, your eyes, head, stomach… maybe even throat, if necessary."
"Oh, nice." Rose grimaced. "Can I have a drink beforehand, then? I doubt vomit breath is something you specialise in…"
The Doctor grinned and produced a small bottle of water from his jacket. Rose stared. "Just how much have ya got in there? Would those pockets be bigger on the inside by any chance?"
The Doctor winked at her. "Wouldn't you like to know? Anyway, let's get on otherwise we'll be spending the whole day in the TARDIS."
Rose nodded and took a large gulp of water.
The Doctor laid out all his equipment on the console chair next to Rose, and set to work. He started by shining a small light into Rose's eyes. "Mmm. Eyes are fine," he announced. Rose jokingly fluttered her eyelashes. "Can you open your mouth?"
Rose sighed, but obliged. "Apologies for the cat breath."
"Hey, once you've spent time with a farting Slitheen, you really have smelt it all…" The Doctor peered into Rose's mouth, again using the light he had used to check her eyes. Everything looked normal. "Your throat looks surprisingly alright, considering you threw up - no swelling, no rawness, nothing." The Doctor's forehead burrowed, and he said nothing for a few moments.
Rose closed her mouth and nudged him. "Um – Doctor? Have you left planet Earth? It's probably just because I had that drink of water."
"Maybe." The Doctor shook himself slightly. "Let's carry on. I want to find the answer to this particular problem…"