That Fateful Death Scene

Warning: character death, violence.

Rose watched as converse-clad feet walked out the door, and then she slipped down the wall into a crumpled heap on the rust-coloured rug on the floor. She couldn't actually believe he'd gone out there and fought, and left her here.

She knew, however, deep down inside that he wasn't going to leave her; but although that thought comforted her, she still couldn't shake this thought that was jumping around inside her head that something was going to happen. She shook her head softly – that negative thought wasn't going to help the Doctor in any way.

Crouching low to keep out of the Fellissa guard's sight, Rose peeked over the small windowsill to see a group of men rushing around, the Doctor with them. He was white as snow and all nine hundred years of his existence seemed to emanate from him. Rose had never seen him look so old, even in his previous regeneration, and that fact scared her a little. Okay, more than a little, a lot.

The first gunshot rang out and Rose bent down, hands over her ears.

She had never liked the sound of gunshots.

It went back to her childhood, back to the Estate – when she was about twelve or thirteen, a sixteen-year-old boy had been shot dead in the Estate. Rose had been part of the gang that the boy had hung around with. Luckily for her, however, her mother had grounded her that night and she wasn't at the scene. If she had been, she would have been witness to his murder – maybe even murdered herself. But she had heard the gunshots, in her flat with her mother beside her, and they had gone out into the street like everyone else to see what exactly had caused it. Little did they know it was the infamous Powell Estate Gang being done over by the gang from Fencewell Estate. Rose had almost collapsed when she heard the news that Jimmy Stone's best friend Iain had been shot dead.

Another gunshot was fired and it brought Rose back to the present.

She looked again, still trying to remain out of sight, but couldn't help the gasp that emitted from her mouth as she saw bodies already laid strewn across the wet street. From her restricted position she tried to see the Doctor, fearing he was one of the bodies, but eventually she saw him crouched behind a sheet of metal, metal that was obviously being used for concealment.

She looked to her left and saw what was obviously the Fellissas. They were like Japrax, bright blue skin with red eyelashes, but some of them had red hair as well. They looked nothing short of menacing and just by looking at them Rose felt fear grip her heart. She had no idea how these Felspoonians would do as rulers – they looked more like Dictators to her, and not good ones at that – and she felt, not for the first time in her short life, like she definitely, definitely involved in this war.

The Doctor's stomach clenched as another bullet whizzed past his ear. Japrax had been wrong and the Fellissas had come armed to the teeth with both laser guns and bullet guns, as well as the atomic bombs and grenades Japrax had said they would. The Fellissa had already bombed a couple of houses further up in the street and right now he'd never been more concerned for Rose. He could see her blonde head peeping over the windowsill every so often and he was itching to run to her, to hold her, to keep her safe from the bloody battle.

At Japrax's signal, he reached out from behind his metal sheet and fired two bullets: both of them missed their targets.

Japrax hit one of his targets and the look of elation on his face as his target fell made the Doctor's stomach sick.

He did not want to be here. He wanted to be in the TARDIS, with Rose, talking about anything and everything. Hell, he'd even rather be at Jackie's, being forced to watch Eastenders; the best thing about it being the conversations that were allowed afterwards, or during the advert breaks. No talking during Eastenders, or Coronation Street.

Here, he could barely hear himself think. The sound of gunshots, laser beams and screaming filled the air so much so that for a moment, for a very brief moment, the Doctor thought he was back in the Time War, against Daleks; pure hatred was apparent on his face until he opened his eyes, and the look vanished as he realised that he wasn't on Gallifrey, he was on Felspoon, and he wasn't fighting Daleks, he was fighting Fellissas.

Again, he glanced over at Japrax's home to see Rose up and looking at the scene in front of her, a look of disgust and horror on her face. He grimaced at the sight, and turned back to the event in hand; the more he looked at her, the stronger the urge was to thrown down his gun, grab Rose's hand and run as fast as they could to the TARDIS and fly away from here, and let events take their course. But he knew that the second he had landed he had become part of events, part of the timeline, and that he had to stay.

The Doctor shook his head, and looked forwards. Japrax hadn't given any signal yet. The Doctor thought back to before. He knew that he given that kiss in desperation and longing and hadn't meant to do that. Of course, he'd been feeling these feelings for a long time – since the Android had shot her on the Gamestation, way back in 200100, and way back in his Ninth body. But he knew that he couldn't take things further that it would only lead into heartbreak for both her and him. She wouldn't last forever. She had given him her forever, but her forever was very different from his forever. He had given her his forever, only she wouldn't be around to see it.

"Doctor! Doctor!"

Japrax was shouting on him, signalling. Taking a deep breath, the Doctor turned around and opened fire on the Fellissas.

Rose couldn't watch anymore.

She pressed her back against the wall, letting her body slide down it like liquid. Her hands cupped her mouth as violent sobs wracked her body, making her shake. Men – aliens out there were dying and the screams echoed off the walls, ringing in her ears.

She couldn't see out the window for the blood splattered on them.

She didn't know if the Doctor was one of those bodies lying out there, bullet wounds glowing with bright blood. They were lying across the street, chucked out the way once dead, of no use to the people still fighting.

They littered the street and were treated like litter.

The thought angered Rose. If the Doctor was dead – no, he couldn't be, please don't let him be – then no-one had the right to treat him like litter. The amount of times he's saved the universe now, saved everyone out there, and they would toss him away like he didn't matter anything in the universe. Well, he mattered the universe to her, and she would do her damn best to save him.

She had gotten to her feet, about to go out onto the street, when the force of the house next door exploding knocked her flying.

She hit the wall with a tremendous amount of force, her head flying back and hitting the windowsill. Her head pounded with the pain and Rose's head went to her head, returning with blood smeared on them.

The room was spinning widely and Rose became nauseous – she prayed the room would stop whirling in and out of focus so she could concentrate. She moaned with the pain, closing her eyes against the room which was doing a damn good impression of a Watlzer at the fairground.

She heard the door being kicked in and shut up. People entered the house. She crawled a few meters right to try and stay out of sight.

She could hear the guards muttered to each other, and they each trawled through rooms, looking for anything valuable. The one in the living room was pudgy, small and had red hair that was thinning on top. He was grabbing everything and anything of money, before coming over to where Rose was hiding. He grabbed a metal box above Rose's head, before spotting her.

"Hello, lady. Trying to stay out of sight, are you?"

He laughed evilly, and shouted on his mates, who came and took one look at Rose before laughing. They looked like they had just won a triple rollover on the lottery.

The room was still spinning and Rose had trouble focusing; she closed her eyes, fearful she would be sick if she kept them open any longer. She felt two arms grab her painfully under the armpits and haul her upwards, dragging her out of the house, not paying attention as Rose's body banging of doorframes and ornaments.

When they reached outside, Rose once again opened her eyes to see the Doctor straining to get to her, but being physically restrained by four Felspoonians. He was shouting at them loudly, but Rose couldn't hear over the screaming. The battle seemed to have stopped, and everyone was looking at the prisoners. The Fellissa soldiers threw her beside the other prisoners, who were standing upright against a metal sheet. A man and a woman bent down to help her up. She stood and waited for her fate to arrive.

The Doctor was fuming.

The Fellissa soldiers were looting and then blowing up Felspoonians' homes. The Doctor watched from his hiding place in anguish as they set of a grenade in the house next door to Japrax's. Luckily it didn't blow up Japrax's home, but four soldiers went into Japrax's house.

The Doctor had never felt more terror in his life.

Soon enough, they dragged Rose out of the house, who had her eyes closed and looked injured; there were smears of blood on her hands and head. They had hurt her.

A monster of rage reared its head inside him, and he wanted to rip the two soldiers who were with her apart, to take her back to the TARDIS and assess her injuries, to make her safe again. He desperately wanted to kill the people who had hurt her.

Before he knew what he was doing, he was on his feet to carry out these actions; but four Felspoonian soldiers held him back, saying he'd get killed.

"I don't care, I don't care, they hurt her, blood ... kill them, I want to kill them!" he shouted, straining against the soldiers who held him in place. They four were burly and muscular, and the Doctor's skinny-as-paper body had no chance against them. But it didn't stop him trying.

"They hurt Rose … I have to go, let me go, let me go, I don't care, I'll die, I don't care …"

The Doctor watched in horror as Rose was thrown beside the other five prisoners, and the woman and the man beside her helped her on her feet. She stood with a defiant look on her face.

Five Fellissas stood in front of them. "You are our prisoners and we shall do whatever we like with you!" One of them demanded, and the other Fellissas cheered this statement. "What shall we do?" He addressed the other Fellissas.

"Kill them! Kill them! Kill them!"

"Fine, we shall kill them!" The head Fellissa agreed. The Doctor and other Felspoonians screamed, pleading, but the Fellissas acted deaf. The Doctor was still be restrained from running to Rose. Rose looked over at him desperately, her mouth moving in the single word.

"Goodbye."

"NNNNOOOOOOO!" The Doctor screamed as five bullets were shot and five targets were hit. The four Felspoonians restraining the Doctor were pulled away as the Doctor ran to Rose, who was slumped on the ground, and single bullet wound in the middle of her chest. Bright, crimson blood was spreading like a fan over her body but the Doctor didn't care as he clutched her to him, pleading with her.

"R-Rose? Please don't be dead, we can go to the TARDIS, I can save y-you, p-please Rose just breathe, baby just breathe for me, please, you can't be dead, please!" The Doctor managed to croak out, lightly shaking her. He didn't react to the hand on his shoulder.

"I'm terribly sorry, Doctor, for your loss. Thank you for helping us. Go, grieve. You must not fight any longer," Japrax whispered.

The Doctor registered the words, and bend down to pick Rose up ever-so-gently, the blood still dripping form her wound. The fighting continued, raging behind him but the Doctor walked on, screams and shouts and gunshots stabbed the air around him but the Doctor ignored them, his eyes on the dead woman lying in his arms. His tears of despair fell thick and fast, landing on Rose's tee-shirt than was stained crimson with her own blood. The Doctor made his way back to the TARDIS, unable to comprehend a future without his Rose there to show him the way.