Hello again, and thanks for reading. A great big hug to everyone who's reviewed: love ya all! Here's part 4 xx

For disclaimer see chapter 2.

Chapter 4: No SensePreviously…

She felt drawn to this intriguing machine, abandoned and obviously neglected by the museum staff. She found herself walking round it, her infamous curiosity getting the better of her like it usually did. She made her way to the opposite side, and could see some markings on the paintwork.

She couldn't make them out through the layer of dust and grime that had built up on the surface, so she wiped her sleeve over the markings, and gasped at what she saw. The name of the ship. And it's mantra.

DREAMCASTER.

Follow the Hidden Path.

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Rose stared in disbelief at the writing on the side of the ship. It was impossible. Simply impossible.

A sharp bang came from the doorway, making Rose jumped, and she stumbled back into the wall. Cursing under her breath, she left the strange shuttle and headed out into the bright light of the main museum, where it seemed the teenagers had escaped the Doctor's lectures and he had been left talking to a bored cleaner. Rose shuddered a little, and tried to put the thought of the Dreamcaster to the back of her mind, but strolled over to the Doctor with a false smile that he could see right through. He looked at her with concern, and the cleaner took this opportunity to escape.

"Rose, are you okay?"

She nodded overenthusiastically. "Never better; why?"

"You just look… pale. And exhausted."

Rose couldn't look him in the eye and lie, not when he was gazing down at her with an expression of such concern. She sighed.

"Come and look at this."

She took his hand, and he followed her as she made her way back into the dimly lit room holding the haunting shuttle. The Doctor's eyebrows practically rose off his head.

"Y'know this is out of bounds."

Rose smirked. "Never stops you, does it?"

He couldn't help grinning back at her. That was very true.

He put on his black-rimmed glasses and walked all the way round the shuttle, just as Rose had done only a few minutes before. He stopped when he saw the writing, and his brow furrowed.

"Dreamcaster…" He looked at Rose inquiringly. "Why did you want to show me this?"

Rose shrugged, wondering how to answer. "I… dunno. Just… thought you might wanna see."

He stood with his arms crossed, staring at her. He knew she was lying.

Rose tried to stare back, but she couldn't. Eventually, she sighed. She didn't want to tell him she'd been freaked out by a bowl of pretty water.

But she explained everything to him, leaving out the bits about her hidden path to love. Plenty of time to figure that out on my own, she thought to herself.

When she had finished her explanation (which was pretty vague) she took a deep breath and leant against the wall. She felt completely exhausted.

The Doctor was looking sullen; she could tell he was worrying about something she'd said.

"What?" she said eventually in an exasperated tone.

The Doctor took off his glasses, put them in his inside pocket and stood up tall, his predictable stance for an extensive monologue.

"Dreamcasters are not very common, Rose. You could go your whole life and never see one. And it's probably a good thing if you don't meet one."

Rose gulped. "Why?"

"They have incredible telepathic abilities: they can sense your emotions; a bit like a living mood ring. And, as their home planet is situated within a rift in time, they are also born with the ability to see where someone's life is heading. They call it 'The Hidden Path.' They used to roam the galaxy, thousands of them, millions. They usually attached themselves to carnivals and space fairs, and made business partners with fortunetellers and the like. But they caused a lot of harm: they sapped the energy from their clients to make themselves stronger, and eventually they were considered a threat to the good of the galaxy. The Shadow Proclamation ordered them to stay on their own planet. But it seems one found its way here… to you."

"No," Rose protested. "The thing I saw was only a pool of water. What, d'you mean the old woman was the Dreamcaster?"

The Doctor shook his head. "No, the water, the liquid. That was the Dreamcaster. That's the alien, not the old woman. And I want to know what the hell one of those things is doing on Gambit Junction."

He ran off out of the room, out of the museum, onto the balcony, and kept running. Rose had a hard time keeping up with him; she was so tired. She felt her limbs were fighting against her, and it took all her energy just to stop herself from falling to the ground.

Several people were shoved out of the way as the angry Time Lord ran through the crowds and came to an abrupt halt outside the Tourist Information desk. By the time Rose caught up with him he was mid-argument with the woman sat behind the desk. Rose glanced at her badge and noticed it said 'Rathah Hightj, Hostess.'

"…I want to know why something that's known as a menace throughout the galaxy is being allowed to run it's business here on Gambit Junction."

"I can assure you, sir," Rathah replied icily, "that we do not allow Dreamcasters on this station."

"Then why has one attached itself to my friend?"

Rose looked at him. "What ya mean, 'attached'?"

The Doctor looked down at her with concern. Again.

"It sapped energy from you to make it stronger. And it will keep doing so; that's why you're so tired. And it puts something in your mind, like a mental homing device making you want to go back to it so it can take more energy."

"So you're telling me," the hostess interrupted, "that I have allowed a highly intelligent, menacing, forbidden, energy-draining and highly addictive creature onto my station?"

"Yes," the Doctor replied, after taking a second to sort through her response.

"Well, I can assure you, Mr…"

"Doctor."

"…Mr Doctor, that I take great care in knowing who and what comes aboard Gambit Junction, and nothing harmful would ever be allowed on board."

"Really?"

"Yes!"

Rose's head was swirling. She couldn't follow the conversation, and she felt very cold. She reached out to touch the Doctor's arm.

"Doctor…"

He didn't notice her; instead he continued to glare angrily at the hostess.

"Are you calling my friend a liar?"

"Doctor."

"Because I can assure you, if she said she saw a Dreamcaster then that is exactly what she saw!"

"Doctor!"

He turned round just in time to see his friend collapse beside him, her body an uncontrollable heap falling to the floor. He flung out his arms to catch her, and guided her gently onto the metal flooring.

"Rose?! Rose?!" He tried everything he could think of to wake her up, but nothing worked. He checked her pulse and her breathing. When he was sure she was still alive, he turned back to the hostess with burning anger in his eyes.

"Medical bay. Now!"