Rose did a double take as her eyes met the girl's in the mirror before her. She took a few steps forward, timidly lifting her hand towards the glass. How can this be me? She thought, gently running a finger over the dark skin under her right eye. It had been ages since she'd last gained access to a mirror. They were rare to come by in the shop, and Rose was often left wondering how she looked that day. There were some days where she could hardly even remember what she looked like at all.

She was disappointed that this was the image she was met with after such a long time. Dark bags rested under her eyes, showing just how little sleep she was able to get every night in the shop. Her hair was long and tangled, her fingers having done nothing to manage it as she ran them through it everyday. The skin on her lips was chapped and red, making Rose wish she still had some of that chap stick that Janine had found and given to her one day. She had scarcely remembered using it as a little girl, covering her lips in the slick stuff as she grinned at the taste of mint.

As she stared at her reflection before her, she couldn't help but wonder why the Doctor had chosen her to purchase and bring to his home. She had to admit he was a handsome man, and many of the other girls she'd seen at the shop had much better looks to match his. She was still lost in the thought of it when there was a knock at the door.

"Rose, the Doctor's waiting."

"I'll be there in a mo'." She shook herself out of her thoughts as she looked around the rest of the bathroom. It was quite large for a loo, probably bigger than her cell even. Rose just shook her head in disbelief.

The wash clothes were on a shelf right inside the closet, and as much as Rose wanted to take a bath in the large tub at the corner of the room, she knew that her time was short. She opted for just washing her face instead, wishing she could scrub away the dark bags with only the flannel. She was relieved when she opened a drawer to reveal a hairbrush, and let out a hiss through her teeth as it got tangled in her messy strands. After changing into the clothes Jack had handed her, she gave herself one finally look in the mirror before pulling the bathroom door open. She had half expected Jack to still be waiting there, but he must have gone back out to the hallway again. Taking a deep breath, she went to meet him.

"You clean up nice." Jack teased as she stepped out into the hallway. "Though the messy hair look was adorable."

Rose just blushed, linking her hands together in front of her as she looked down at her bare feet. Her nerves were wound too tight at the moment to play along with Jack's playful compliments. Seeming to get the hint, Jack didn't say another word before he started leading her to the dining room.


Rose bit her bottom lip nervously as she and Jack stepped into the dining room. The Doctor was sitting at the end of the table, dark framed glasses perched on the end of his nose as he looked over a paper in his hand. He sat the paper down as they approached the table. "Rose." He greeted, a smile crossing his face. "I brought you some soup." He said, gesturing at a bowl that sat on the table. "I figured you're probably starving."

Rose had to admit that her stomach had been growling quite a bit since she'd left the shop, but right now it was in too many nervous knots for her to even think about taking a bite. "Thank you." She said quietly, giving a polite nod. The Doctor stared at her a moment before grabbing the chair next to him and pulling it out.

"Well go on then. Sit and eat." He looked up at Jack, raising an eyebrow as he did so. "Jack, I trust you already had your dinner." Jack nodded. "Good. Now excuse us please."

"Sure thing, Doc." Jack gave Rose an encouraging smile before turning and slipping out the same door they had entered. Rose's eyes went a little wide, her heart racing at being left alone with the Doctor.

"You don't need to be afraid, Rose." The Doctor said, straightening up the papers in front of him.

"'M not." Rose lied, hoping her voice didn't sound too shaky. The Doctor stared at her, knowingly.

"Rose, the first thing you will discover here is that you can't lie to me. I can hear your heart beat. I know you're afraid." He slipped off his glasses and tossed them onto the table. "Vampires can smell fear." His eyes met hers, and Rose's breath caught in her throat. "So like I said before, you don't need to be afraid."

Rose nodded as she broke the eye contact and looked down at her hands resting in her lap. "It's not like I can really help it though." She said, quietly. "I'd never even seen a vampire before tonight and now I'm in ones house." She looked up at the Doctor again. "I don't even remember bein' out of the shop before now. How am I not 'spose to be scared?"

"Well," the Doctor said, tilting his head as he drew out the word. "Hopefully once you know what's expected of you here you won't be as nervous."

Rose only nodded, too scared to ask what was to be expected. The Doctor took her silence as a sign to carry on.

"First off, you're the only servant in the house at the moment." He gestured at the pile of papers sitting in front of him. "This is the paper work that was given to me at the shop. According to it, I'm your owner. No one else has any claim on you."

Rose chewed her bottom lip again, wondering just how safe it was to ask questions. From what she'd gathered so far, the Doctor didn't seem to mind. She didn't think he would be the kind to punish for speaking out of turn. She decided to just go for it. "Why am I the only servant?"

"I just haven't had the use for one." The Doctor answered.

"But you need one now?" She asked. The Doctor looked thoughtful a moment.

"Well I wouldn't say I really need one. More like I just felt like it."

"Why me though?"

"Why not?"

"That doesn't answer the question."

"Would you rather I have left you?" The Doctor met her eyes, his lips set in a straight line. Rose was caught off guard, not really sure how to answer that.

"I... I don't know yet."

They sat in silence a moment, both staring at the other with a dozen thoughts swimming through their heads.

"Anyway," the Doctor continued, steering away from the tension that had developed. "The things you'll be doing are pretty basic. Cleaning, cooking if it needs to be done for some reason or another, helping Jack with anything he needs." Rose silently waited for him to continued, dreading to hear the word that Jack had mentioned. The Doctor saw her staring at him and leaned back. "What?" he asked, raising an eyebrow questioningly.

"Nothin'." Rose said quickly. "Just... Is that it?"

"Were you expecting something else?"

"No, not really." Rose felt a blush rising on her cheeks. "It was just somethin' Jack said is all." She watched as a smirk appeared on the Doctor's face.

"Ah." He locked his eyes with Rose's. "Is that something that interests you, Miss Tyler?"

Rose felt a blush burn her cheeks as her eyes went wide. All she could do was shake her head. The Doctor chuckled.

"Well we'll deal with those issues as they come, Rose." An amused smile stayed on his face as he reached and dug around in the pocket of his coat. "As for now, just worry about keeping this on your wrist." He pulled a red ribbon out of his pocket, holding it in one hand as he gestured for Rose's arm with the other. Rose hesitantly held up her arm to him. He quickly took the ribbon and tied it in a knot around her wrist. "As long as you're wearing this, it shows that you're mine. If any other vampire comes into contact with you for any reason, this here tells them that you're taken."

Rose admired the ribbon, trailing her fingers across the smooth fabric. "What if it falls off or somethin'?"

"It won't. That knot was tied by a vampire. Believe me, it's not coming off until I want it to... Or unless you find a pair of scissors, but I highly suggest you don't do that." Rose couldn't help but smile a little at his joke.

The Doctor stood from the table and picked up the papers from in front of him. "Well I'm off. Goodnight, Miss Tyler. Well... good day, really. Eat your soup." Before Rose could even respond, the Doctor was gone, the only trace of him being the faint brush of air she felt against her skin. She looked around the room, giving Jack a look of disbelief as she saw him entering the dining room.

"Told ya he was fast." Jack said, a grin crossing his face.