Disclaimer: Doctor Who belongs to the BBC. I do not own anything.

A/N Thanks for the sheer amount of love on the last chapter. It was so nice to know you liked the rewrite of the 50th anniversary.

This chapter features a surprise appearance, as well as the beginning of Rose's healing. Thank you to Vampiyaa for the beta.

Happy Reading!

Chapter Twenty Six

Previously

"You don't have to come with me," said Rose.

"Yes, I do," he said. "I have spent a lifetime without you. Now that I have a choice, I want to be by your side. And you are right, I don't like to look back. But maybe this time I should. If only to feel more like myself, like the Doctor, than I have in this life of my mine."

Rose smiled slowly. "Are you sure?" she asked.

He grinned and planted a smacking kiss on her forehead. "I have never been more sure of anything."

"Tea's ready!" announced Clara cheerfully and the Doctor and Rose sprang apart.

"Ah, wonderful!" said the Eleventh Doctor getting to his feet and pulling Rose up with him. "What do you say we have it in the library instead?"

Rose looked down at herself. "Think I need to clean up a bit first," she said, realising for the first time that she probably looked a right mess.

"Tea will still be warm," said Clara brightly and Rose smiled back at her as she walked past her into the TARDIS. Clara looked at the Doctor, who was watching Rose like he was afraid she would disappear. As if she knew what he was thinking, Rose turned around and shot him a reassuring smile before walking into the depths of the TARDIS.

"So, Clara Oswald," said the Doctor, clapping his hands together as he went to the console. "Where is this infamous tea?"

Clara closed the TARDIS doors behind her and walked up to him. "Did you and Rose talk?" she asked him bluntly.

He looked a little startled before it was smoothed over. "'Course we talked," he said, spotting the tea tray that had been balanced precariously on top of the console and narrowing his eyes at Clara who just smiled. "You know me and how much I talk. Even sandshoes said I can talk enough for England and..."

"Doctor," interrupted Clara firmly. "Tell me you are alright."

He smiled at her. "I am alright," he admitted. "I really, truly am alright."

Clara looked relieved and wrapped her arms around him in a hug. "I'm glad," she said, closing her eyes tightly.

"Clara," he said softly.

"It's okay," she said, willing herself to sound calm. "You love her, I know. You really, properly love her." She smiled bravely as she broke the hug and met his gaze. "Besides, you and I, we weren't really…"

"I'm sorry," he said.

Clara looked a little surprised, but pleased. "Don't know why you are apologising," she said. "It wasn't your mistake."

"We both know that's not true," he said, uncharacteristically honest.

Clara's lips trembled but she nodded. "I know," she said and then adjusted his bowtie. "Just take care of yourself, will you?"

He nodded back with a tender smile. "I will," he promised.

"And will I ever see you again?" she asked, pulling away and crossing her arms as if preparing to hold herself together.

"Yes," he said. "If you want, of course. I'll even call before."

Clara laughed at that, despite herself. "Provided you get the time right," she said.

"When have I ever got the time wrong?" he asked, looking outraged.

"You brought Rose home a year late. People thought she was dead," she reminded him.

"One time, that was one time," he said, shaking his finger at her.

"I'm sure there's many more," grinned Clara. "Rose will tell me."

"Oh, I'd rather you were fighting," he grumbled.

"Hah! I know you would," laughed Clara. "Sorry to disappoint you, chin-boy, but I think Rose and I are going to get along just fine." He stopped pouting and smiled softly at her. Clara's eyes twinkled as she smiled back. "Drop me off home then. The same day, if you don't mind. I've got interviews I can't miss."

"What sort of interviews?" he asked, looking up from the controls.

"Job interviews," she said, doing her very best not to roll her eyes at his obtuseness.

He looked at her thoughtfully before a wide grin lit up his face. "I can help with that," he said.

"You can?" asked Clara, trying not to sound sceptical.

"Coal Hill Secondary. A very lovely school, from what I know," he said. "If you are interested?"

"I've got an interview with them...how did you know?" asked Clara.

He just grinned at her and pulled a lever to start the dematerialisation process. Clara considered him thoughtfully but then decided not to ask. "I'm just gonna go say bye to Rose. Let me know when we are there, yeah?"

"Sure," he nodded and Clara left to find Rose. The Doctor waited until she left to pick up the phone and dial a familiar number.

"Chatterton, guess who it is…"

Leaving the Doctor and Clara to talk, Rose had wandered down the unfamiliar hallways of the TARDIS, waiting for a door. She didn't know what she expected to find when the TARDIS placed a solitary door at the end of the hallway for her. Her old room from the war, her room from when she was travelling with the Doctor as a young nineteen year old, the Doctor's room now or a brand new room altogether?

When the door opened, Rose had to take a step back when she saw what was inside. It was their room. The one she and the Doctor had been sharing when they had first become lovers after Krop Tor. It was undisturbed, untouched, no dust on any of the surfaces, no extra creases on the covers...just perfectly suspended in time from the moment they had stepped out with the bazoolium.

She moved into the room slowly, sidestepping a black heel tossed aside after a night of dancing and sat down gingerly on the soft bed. There were tiny clumps of blue fluff on the duvet from the jumper she had been wearing. The Doctor had pulled her back onto the bed after she had got dressed and in their playful rolling, the jumper had moulted everywhere…

Rose closed her eyes and breathed deeply, marvelling at how easy it was for that memory to come to her after all these years. She considered falling back onto the bed and immersing herself in memories, but realised that it would only hurt, so she started to get up, only to see a shadow in the corner of her eye. She whirled around on instinct and saw a woman in a flowing, white dress leaning against the dresser, smiling softly.

"It's the first time I have seen this room," said the woman, walking towards her until she was sitting down on the bed next to her. "Personally, I think he guarded this room better than he guards his hearts."

Rose raised her eyebrows at the strange woman. "Am I seeing things again?" she asked, her instincts going on high alert.

The woman smiled. "No, sweetie," she said. "I am just as much here as you are, though not for much longer. The TARDIS is helping me with this bit and it's not exactly easy for her, but I wanted to meet you. At least once."

Rose's brow furrowed. "Who are you?" she asked.

"River Song," she answered. "It is very nice to finally meet you, Rose Tyler."

"And you," said Rose, her eyes going wide. "I thought you were…" Then she realised what she had said and she nodded. "Right."

River grinned at her. "Don't worry about it," she said. "I'm surprised you know who I am."

Rose smiled a little. "The library was before...before the metacrisis. There weren't any secrets between us," she said. "I am more surprised you know about me."

River's smile became a little sadder. "He didn't tell me about you," she admitted. "I had to find out for myself."

"Why?" asked Rose, genuinely curious.

River sighed deeply. "I wanted to know," she said simply. "When the man you love more than anything in this universe still looks like he sees a ghost in your place, it tends to make a girl curious."

Rose looked away awkwardly, wondering what she could even say to that. "I'm sorry," she said finally.

River laughed loudly. "You don't have to apologise to me, sweetie," she said. "You did nothing wrong."

"Maybe not, but I am guessing that he wouldn't have apologised for that either," said Rose.

"He did, actually," said River. "All he ever did was apologise." At Rose's look of disbelief, she chuckled bitterly. "Not in words, no. For the longest time, he didn't know who I was and when he finally found out, all he did was apologise to me."

"I don't understand," said Rose.

"He would take me away in the TARDIS," said River, her eyes far away. "To all these wonderful places. Even called them dates. I was ecstatic, of course. This man, this legend woven through all of time and space, was taking me out on dates. Until I got a little older, a little wiser, and saw those dates for what they really were. Apologies. He was apologising to me."

River took a deep breath before continuing. "By the time I finally understood, it was too late. I had grown used to it. And I was too scared to confront him, because I was afraid that he wouldn't return for me." She chuckled again, but there was no humour in it anymore. "I was a coward. He was happy to pretend, so I learned to be happy with the same charade. We would flirt, go on dates, tease each other, and I would mean every word and all I would get in return was his guilt."

"That's cruel," said Rose, her eyes filling with tears when she saw River's pain.

"It was," agreed River. "It was so very cruel. I think he knew it too. But we were both afraid of breaking the illusion. I called myself his wife and he let me. I told him to tell me his name, and he did. But not once did he take my hand just because he wanted, or smile at me without that look of guilt in his eyes."

She looked at Rose with a sad smile that was more like a grimace. "Do you want to know how I knew your name?" Without waiting for Rose to respond, she continued. "He whispered it once. In his sleep." River looked down at her hands as she spoke. "It was the first time I had seen him sleep. He looked so quiet, so peaceful, the happiest I had ever seen him. When he started to mumble, I was eager to know what secrets he would let slip in his vulnerable moments. But all I heard was a name. Tied with his."

Rose's eyes went wide and she looked down at her wedding ring. The symbol her Doctor had inscribed inside the ring had sounded wonderful when he had told her what it was. He had murmured those words in her ear far more frequently than he had told her he loved her, which was saying something. He had confessed once when they had been looking at the Aurora Borealis that the sound of their names wrapped together as they were, was the most beautiful thing to him in any universe. Rose had begged him to teach her how to say it and it had taken her months to perfect and say without stumbling.

River saw her eyes go wide and smiled. "I was furious," she said. "It isn't something you want to hear the man you love say when he is asleep next to you. But then I got curious. I wanted to know who you were. This woman who was so special to him that he would gladly tie his name with hers and keep her a secret." River's smile turned sardonic. "I was expecting a goddess."

"And you got me instead," said Rose, tilting her head.

"Yes," said River. "It would have been easy if you had been a goddess, I think. Maybe I would have been able to convince myself that I could never have compared to a goddess. Instead, Rose Tyler was just an ordinary human being. Not a queen or a goddess or an empress, just a young woman from London. At least that's what I thought, until I learned about the Bad Wolf."

Rose looked a little startled. "He didn't ask me to come with him because of it," she said defensively.

"I know," said River sadly. "I think that made it worse. You weren't a curiosity to him. You just had to be Rose Tyler and he loved you."

"I can't...I won't apologise for that," said Rose.

"Don't expect you to," said River honestly. "I am not here to pick a fight. Least of all with you."

"Then why are you here?" asked Rose, not unkindly.

"I am not really sure myself," she admitted. "I have said my goodbyes to him and he has as well. I am ready to finally let go and move on. Guess, I thought I couldn't exactly do that before I met you."

"But why?" asked Rose insistently. "Why put yourself through this? All I can give you are apologies and something tells me you have had more than enough of those already. I could tell you about me but you have already found that out too. I could assure you that the Doctor loved you but you know that too. You do, don't you? That he loved you?"

"I know," nodded River.

Rose nodded back. "It took me a while to understand, but he loves his friends dearly, just as they love him. Sometimes he falls in love, sometimes they do and sometimes, very rarely, that love is reciprocated. It isn't easy, believe me, I know it isn't easy to be in love with him. He can be cruel, closed off and flighty one moment and loving, kind and wonderful the next. That doesn't change, no matter the incarnation." She took a deep breath.

"I know you think it was easier for me, but it wasn't," she said. "And I don't mean all the things I went through without him. That doesn't really matter. It's all the years we spent together, be it in the middle of the war or a different universe, or just being young lovers in this very room. None of it was ever easy. He might have put me on a pedestal but it is easy to love a ghost. You don't remember the fights and the pain; you only remember the good moments. No one can compete with a ghost but more importantly, no one should have to. And I am truly sorry that you had to."

River had tears in her eyes. "Thank you, Rose," she said finally.

Rose was still breathing heavily and it took her a moment to register River's words. "What for?" she asked curiously.

"For everything," she said with a bright smile that made her look years younger.

There was a knock at the door and Rose turned towards it abruptly. "Rose?" called Clara from the other side. "You in there?"

Rose glanced back towards River and saw that she was gone. In her place, was a diary with a blue TARDIS-like cover. Rose picked it up and opened up to the first page.

The Diary of -Melody Pond- -River Song- -Doctor River Song- Professor River Song

"Rose?" called Clara again and Rose set the diary aside as she went to the door and opened it.

"Hi," said Rose. "Sorry, I was just…" She trailed off, not knowing what she could possibly say she had been doing.

Clara decided not to push. "Can I come in?" she asked instead.

"Yeah, sure," said Rose, letting her inside.

"Thanks," said Clara. "The TARDIS had me running around corridors for ages until I found you."

"Yeah, I guess she knew I needed time," said Rose.

Clara grinned at her and looked at the room. Her eyes inevitably drifted to the collage of photographs on the wall next to the dresser. "May I?" she asked.

"Sure," nodded Rose and Clara approached the wall cautiously.

"Who are they?" she asked, pointing to a photo of Rose with Jack and Mickey on either side of her.

Rose smiled when she saw the photo she was indicating. "That's Captain Jack Harkness. He used to be a Time Agent from the 51st century. And that is Mickey. We grew up together. Even dated for a bit," she said.

"Seriously?" asked Clara, clearly surprised.

"Yeah," nodded Rose. "Why is that surprising?"

"Just thought that you and the Doctor…" she trailed off awkwardly.

"Me and the Doctor didn't exactly happen for a long time," said Rose with a smile.

"Right, sorry," said Clara, dropping the matter. "Anyway, I just came to say goodbye."

"You don't have to leave because of me," she said honestly.

"I know," said Clara, though she felt relieved that Rose had said it. "But I have a life that I really do want to go back to. Saving the universe is fun, but I'm not sure I would want it to be my life full time."

Rose smiled. "I understand," she said. "The Doctor said you are a teacher?"

"He's being nice, I've never actually been in a classroom yet," said Clara. "Don't know how it's going to go, really. Could be a complete disaster." She looked worried for a brief moment.

"You'll be fine," said Rose. "If you have faced down Daleks and god-knows what else, a classroom full of children will not be as scary."

Clara crossed her fingers. "Here's to hoping," she said. "Although, I'd rather deal with Cybermen again, I think."

Rose smiled but they both looked up when they heard the TARDIS starting to land. "Guess this is goodbye for now," said Rose.

"Yeah," said Clara. "Don't be a stranger though. I'd like us to be friends. If you want."

"I'd like that," said Rose honestly.

The TARDIS landed and the two women smiled at each other as they went out to the console room together. The Doctor was checking the monitor and looked up when they appeared. "Ah, there you two are," he said. "We are back, Clara. Just an hour after you left, as a matter of fact."

"Great," said Clara and grinned at Rose. "See you then."

Rose waved at her and Clara bounced over to the Doctor and hugged him tightly for a moment. With a bright grin, she opened the doors of the TARDIS and winked at them over her shoulder before leaving the TARDIS.

The Doctor sighed and sent the TARDIS back into the vortex in quick, absent motions. He realised that Rose had been very quiet and he turned to her, only to see her clutching the railing around the console, looking deathly pale.

"Rose?" he asked, concerned.

Rose opened and closed her mouth wordlessly, before she swayed precariously and started to fall. The Doctor ran to her and caught her before she collapsed to the ground. He could hear her heart racing and her skin had gone colder than even his. Alarmed, he lifted her up into his arms and ran to the medbay.

The TARDIS had moved the medbay closer and the Doctor laid Rose down onto an examination bed, his hearts thumping frantically in his chest. He ran a quick diagnostic over her, noting that her breathing had gone shallow. When the scanner beeped with the result, he had a brief moment of relief before he nearly smacked himself. He had been so stupid to forget this. Still berating himself, he found a temporary restorative bracelet which he fastened around Rose's wrist. She gasped loudly and her eyes sprang open.

"Hey, hey, hey, it's alright," he said, running a gentle hand over her forehead.

"What happened?" Rose tried to ask but the words came out all slurred like she was drunk.

The Doctor seemed to have understood it, though. "I should have realised sooner," he said, sounding genuinely regretful. "I am so sorry."

"Doctor," slurred Rose impatiently, wanting him to get to the point quickly.

"Your body is going through a crash," he explained. "When you were inside the Time Lock, the shields of Gallifrey and the stability of the Eye of Harmony were keeping your physiognomy stable. More than stable, actually."

Rose nodded, remembering how people didn't seem to age naturally on Gallifrey. Even Susan, despite her frail state, had stayed looking like she was middle-aged through the years. Slightly alarmed, Rose lifted her hand weakly to see if she had started to age spontaneously but her skin had remained unchanged.

The Doctor squeezed her hand briefly. "You're okay, Rose," he said. "Your body just needs time to recuperate. The bracelet I have on your hand will restore your strength temporarily so you can get cleaned up before I induce a healing coma."

Rose managed to nod and the Doctor helped her sit up. "Need help," she said, her words still heavy though she wasn't slurring them as badly.

The Doctor nodded and untied the charm from her hair and set it onto a medical tray, which had floated up to them helpfully. He unfastened the chain from around her neck with the TARDIS key and dropped it on top of the charm. Her wedding ring was next to go. Rose slipped out of her shoes and the remains of her tattered sweater until she was wearing only her ripped tights and white dress.

"Will you be alright with the rest?" asked the Doctor, oddly nervous.

Rose nodded and jumped down from the exam table with his help. The TARDIS had brought the bathroom just next door for which they were both grateful. "I'll call if I need help," she managed to say and the Doctor nodded as he let her hobble the last few steps into the bathroom on her own. She smiled reassuringly but he looked far from convinced and Rose was certain that he would be pacing outside the door the entire time she was inside.

Sure enough, as Rose got rid of the remainder of her clothes and stepped into the shower which had a small bench connected to the wall, she heard the Doctor's footsteps outside the door. Rose sank down on the bench gratefully and fumbled for the taps. The TARDIS seemed to take pity on her since the water came out just the right temperature instead of freezing cold or scalding hot.

Rose managed to relax under the thick spray of water, feeling the dust and grime that was coating every inch of her wash away slowly. She wanted to scrub her skin raw to get rid of the guilt she could feel but there was no way she had enough strength in her at that moment to consider the implications of the years spent in the war. She decided to focus on cleaning herself up in an almost mechanical manner. Her hair was lathered in shampoo, her body scrubbed by fragrant soap before it all washed away, leaving her sitting in the shower, as clean as she could get. Physically, at least.

"Rose?" came the Doctor's concerned voice and the door knob moved slightly as if he had placed his hand on it, ready to rush in at her slightest call.

"'M fine," she said. "Need a minute is all."

The TARDIS sent a blast of warm air, which dried her enough to slip into her towelled bathrobe, and she used another towel to wrap around her hair. She started to get up but the fatigue set in, making her almost fall. She cried out a little, more startled than anything, but it was enough for the Doctor to rush in. His eyes widened a little when he saw her, though he composed himself quickly enough to help her out of the bathroom.

"I've got you," he murmured and led her into an unfamiliar room, which was dominated by a massive bed that looked immensely inviting.

"Nice room," Rose managed as the Doctor helped her sit on the bed.

"It's mine," he said, unravelling the towel from her hair. "Though the bed is new. I had hammocks in here before."

"Hammocks?" asked Rose in amusement, closing her eyes when he began to dry her hair gently with the towel. He had done it for her countless times, even braided her hair at times.

"Hammocks are cool, Rose Tyler," he said, as if her implying otherwise was akin to blasphemy.

"If you say so," said Rose, her words starting to slur again.

The Doctor stiffened in alarm and checked her bracelet. "Alright, haven't got long," he said, tossing the towel away and picking up the pink fleece pyjamas that the TARDIS had left on the bed. He got the bottoms on Rose with help from her but she could barely stay upright as he untied her bathrobe and helped her put the top on. He buttoned it up carefully, his eyes never straying from hers.

Rose smiled drowsily at him and all but collapsed against the pillows. "Need sleep," she slurred.

The Doctor quickly reached for the box of thin, plastic-like neon orange squares that had been sitting on the nightstand. He plucked one out of it carefully and leaned over Rose. "Rose," he murmured. "Open your mouth, please."

She moaned in exhaustion, too far gone to register his words. He pressed his thumb against her lower lip and pulled her mouth open, enough for him to place the square onto her tongue. It fizzled and dissolved instantly and he sighed in relief. It wasn't a proper food substitute, but until she'd had time to heal, her body wouldn't be able to deal with traditional foods. The little squares, a medical innovation from beyond the 83rd century, would suffice as sources of food and hydration for the moment. The Time Lords had developed their own substitutes during the war, but he remembered him and Rose often using the 83rd century version instead, purely because it tended to taste better than the bland stuff the Time Lords had come up with.

Rose's breathing had evened out and it looked like she was asleep, but the Doctor knew better. It appeared that she hadn't needed him to induce the healing coma after all. She had managed to do it all on her own.

He snapped off the bracelet from her wrist and pulled the duvet over her carefully. The absurd cartoon figures of frogs on lily pads on Rose's pink pyjamas made him smile at the whimsical humour that his TARDIS seemed to have. The tray from the medbay which held all of Rose's jewellery floated into the room, pinging along melodically and settled itself onto the nightstand on Rose's side. The Doctor smiled again. His painstaking efforts to renovate the entire medbay with new equipment, while borne out of boredom, had seemed to pay out.

The Doctor rummaged through his pockets and found another bracelet, this one not quite a restorative as much as it was a monitoring bracelet which would relay Rose's stats to his sonic screwdriver directly. He fastened it around her wrist carefully and examined the results briefly. At the present rate, it appeared that she would be out of it for quite a while.

With a sigh, the Doctor found the book on quantum mechanics that he had been reading and went onto his side of the bed and sat up leaning against the headboard. Feeling like his hearts would burst with the pure joy coursing through them that Rose was by his side after all this time, he settled in to wait for Rose to wake up.

A/N Thanks for reading. Let me know what you thought.

For those waiting for 'Turn the Page', I am working on it, I promise. The next chapter for this one will be up next Saturday. See you then!