About this story: Chapter 3 is here! This one came a little more quickly than the others. We open where we left off: Rose, Jackie, and the Doctor have landed in London.

I welcome reviews and suggestions! This is just a story to fill the whole this sailing ship left in my fangirl heart. Hopefully you enjoy. I'll be adding new chapters sporadically, but often!

Disclaimer: I don't own these characters. They belong to BBC and Doctor Who.

Our zeppelin lands at the London airport and our party makes it off the aircraft, through the terminal, and out into the baggage claim. Mum has her arm wrapped around the Doctor's as she guides us forward through the airport. She's looking desperately for Dad and Tony, and when she spots them she leaves the Doctor and I in the dust and takes up in a run.

"Mummy!" I hear a tiny voice call, and watch as Mum scoops up the little boy with blonde hair and holds him tight. Dad wraps his arms around them both, squeezing Mum tightly to him.

I leave the Doctor's side to join in on the hugs. Dad opens his arms to envelope me, and I reach around Mum to squeeze Tony. We all stand there for a moment in each other's arms before we break apart. My eyes are a bit misty, but I blink the moisture away and turn to the Doctor just as Dad grabs him up into a bear hug.

"Doctor!" Dad pulls away to hold the Doctor at arm's length, "Doctor, thank you. Thank you so much. You brought them both back to me. Thank you," Dad smiles and forces another hug before he sets the Doctor free once more.

I catch the Doctor's eye, and he looks incredibly surprised, but he grins at me broadly.

"Alright everyone," Dad calls us to attention, "Let's all pile in the car and take this party back home, shall we?"

The drive isn't long as we pull into the Tyler Family Estates. The mansion comes into view and Dad parks in the driveway. Mum, Dad, and Tony rush out of the car and into the house, eager for Mum's regaling stories, and whatever Fredrick the Chief has prepared for our rather late lunch.

I stand outside the doors, half waiting for the Doctor, and half avoiding stepping through. The man I await comes up beside me and takes my hand.

"Are we going in, then?" He asks, his voice gentle, "Or is this as far as we go?"

"Just give me a mo' to just…breathe," I close my eyes and squeeze his hand. "I didn't think I'd be returning here when I left. I figured you'd…that he'd want me to…" I take a shaky breath, "just give me a mo.'"

The Doctor says nothing but the silence is reassuring. I gather my strength, open my eyes, and push through the doors. I hang my coat in the closet, and take the Doctor's suit top and hang it as well. When I close the closet I hear the pitter-patter of tiny trainers on tile floor, and prepare for the oncoming storm that is my little brother.

"Rose!" Tony rushes up to me. I scoop him up in my arms and hold him tight. His little face scrunches in determination, his light eyes full of accusation, "Rose, I missed you!"

"Oh, I missed you too, Tony," I kiss his cheek a few hundred times before he pushes out of my arms in disgust. "You don't want my kisses?"

"They make me all slimy," He complains as he heads out of the parlor and back into the dining room. I wave the Doctor to follow and we walk through the dining room into the kitchen. Everyone sits at the counter on bar stools.

Tony haphazardly climbs a stool between Mum and Dad. I sit on the other side of Dad, and pat the seat beside me for the Doctor. The Doctor's shoulder brushes against me as he slips onto the stool.

"So, what's for supper?" The Doctor asks the general collection.

"Yeah, I'm famished," I put in, sending a little wink in the Doctor's direction.

Frederick, our brilliant chief, slides two plates full of lasagna across the counter to us, "Here you are. Be careful, it's incredibly hot."

"Bless you, Freddy," I moan as I take my first piping hot bite, "This is perfection."

The Doctor begins shoveling bites into his open maw with barely a breath between bites. Frederick passes out a few glasses of water, and when the Doctor gets his hands on it he pauses eating to chug the entirety of the glass before he continues with his meal.

I'm staring at him in interest, when Dad says, "Oi, don't eat the plate now, eh, Doctor?"

The Doctor pauses mid-chew to see all of us watching him. "I, uh," He swallows loudly, "I'm really hungry."

Tony giggles and Mum scoffs into her food. Dad grins at the Doctor, and raises his eyebrows at me before he continues with his meal.

I turn back to the Doctor, who is scraping the sauce off his plate with his fork and licking it clean. "We could have eaten on our flight," I murmur, taking another heaping bite of lasagna.

"I wasn't hungry on the flight," He answers, licking his lips, "I wasn't hungry until I smelled it. This is absolutely delectable. I don't think I've ever had lasagna that has tasted so good. And that water! Did you fish it from the clearest spring water?"

Fredrick raises his brow, "That was water from the tap."

"We do have a decent filter," Mum ads, "you're must be happy to have time for a full meal, is all."

"Right you are, Jackie," The Doctor agrees, "It's been quite a long time since I could sit down and appreciate a real meal."

I finish my plate, stand, and gather mine and the Doctor's dishes. I walk around the counter and place them in the sink, but when I reach for the sponge Frederick all but slaps my hand.

"Alright, now. I know you like doing things, but really, Rose," Frederick raises his eyebrows at me, "Let me do my own job."

"Alright, alright," I surrender and step away from the sink, a smile playing on my lips, "Forgive the intrusion."

"Why don't we head to the living room?" Dad suggests, standing and placing a hand on the Doctor's shoulder, "I'd like to hear all about your adventure."

The Doctor retells the story of how we saved the planet and were dropped off here once more. He also describes to Dad again how he and the other Doctor are different, but the same. Dad seems to understand and take it better than I would have thought. He's been in enough impossible scenarios, especially with the Doctor, that maybe a half-human metacrisis isn't really too much to swallow.

I leave most of the talking to the Doctor. I'm still coming to grips with everything that happened myself and I don't know if I can recall any of it without crying, to be honest. I had jumped through the dimension cannon thinking I would never return. I saved the earth with the Doctor in the Tardis all the while thinking I was finally home.

As the Doctor's tale comes to its conclusion, with the three of us stranded in Norway, Dad sits quiet for a moment in thought. He seems to have a question, but he's holding back asking. I catch his eye and nod encouragement for him to go ahead, the floor was his.

"Okay, Doctor," Dad leans forward on the couch, "Now you're here with all of us in this universe. Will you be able to build another Tardis? Or was that ability lost with your peoples on Gallifrey?"

"Oh," The Doctor reaches into his trouser pocket, and pulls out the tiny Tardis choral, "This is the last gift the other Doctor was able to give me. A piece of Tardis choral. With this I'll be able to grow my own Tardis, one that will be entirely acclimated and accustomed to the turn of this universe and its timelines. Donna was able to work out how to accelerate its growth pattern, but it will still take a few years for it to mature," the choral finds its way back into the Doctor's pocket. He continues saying, "Until it's ready, I'll be living life as normally and domestically as I can."

Mum speaks up from beside Dad, "And we'll be here to help you. You are welcome in our home for as long as you like. You could look at getting a job at Torchwood, or some other mundane, turn of the mill work if you prefer. Whatever will make you happy, Doctor."

"Thank you, Jackie, Pete. I really appreciate that," The Doctor's smile is contagious, and soon we are all grinning widely at one another.

Dad stands and stretches before he says to me; "Rose. It might be time to show the Doctor to the spare room in the east wing. I'll go and fetch some extra clothes for him, after I go finish up some work I have in the den."

I slide off the couch and reach for the Doctor's hand. He smiles, takes my hand, and follows me out of the sitting room, up the stairs, and on towards the east wing.

"Jackie and Pete are great people," The Doctor observes, "I can't believe they'd let me impose on them. It's very sweet."

"You seem a tad more empathetic than you used to be," I observe. My voice is sharper than I intend, and the Doctor's eyebrows rise in worry. I don't say anything, but lead him further down the hall. When we reach the spare room, I pull us inside and shut the door securely behind us.

I drop his hand and wring my fingers together, feeling awkward again. The Doctor stands in the middle of the room, looking at what is to be his new home. The room is modest in size, but with its own private powder room. There is a desk and lamp, a bed under the window, and a simple wardrobe.

He turns to face me, and opens his mouth to speak, but I interrupt him rudely—"Let me get you some fresh sheets," I rush passed him and open the bottom drawer to the wardrobe, "It's been ages since they've been changed. You never know, you could be allergic to dust now," I force a chuckle, avoid his eye, and begin turning down the bed.

"You'll like it here," I say loudly, trying to keep us from the subject I'm sure he wants to talk about, "It's a really nice universe. I've done a bit of traveling, and the countries here are very similar to the ones back in the other universe. There are slight differences, though I'm sure you can imagine, of course," I toss the heap of dirty laundry to the floor, and begin fitting the new sheet as I speak, "We can travel around if you'd like. You'd probably like to see everything for yourself. Those zeppelins are a nice way to travel. You would love to see all of the different places you can get to via zeppelin that we couldn't on airplanes. They're a bit slower, but they don't need such extensive landing pads, so landing them atop mountains is no problem at all!" My voice is rising in pitch, but I ignore it. I fluff his pillows roughly, more accurately punching them viciously into place and then flopping them down on the bed. "I would love to show you all the new things this world has. It's really something, you know, a real treat"—

A light hand touches my elbow, and turns me slightly. I lift my face, surprised to feel tears rush out of my eyes. I try to blink them away, but more follow. I see the Doctor's face through the blur, and his expression is full of concern.

I reach for him as he reaches for me, and I can't hold it back any longer. I sob into his shirt, and pull him tightly to me in a hug full of emotion. He wraps his arms securely around my waist, and rests his head on my shoulder. My hands grip fistfuls of his shirt as I try to pull him closer. Close isn't close enough; I want him to fill the whole inside of my heart. I want to feel whole again, but I am afraid I never will.

"Rose," His voice murmurs against my shoulder, "Oh, my beautiful, wonderful Rose," I sob louder and close my eyes tight, desperate for his voice, needing to hear him speak, "You are the strongest woman I have ever met."

I shake my head against his chest in protest.

"Yes. You. Are." His voice is full of conviction, and he pulls me impossibly tighter to him, "You are, Rose. You are my everything. You have fought for so long, and I am so sorry…No. Sorry isn't a strong enough word, is it?" He lifts his head from my shoulder, and I feel his lips kiss the top of my head, "I want nothing more than to go back to that day when we were separated, and tell you all the things I could never say. I want to go back to the first time on that beach, and tell you the words I never did. Oh, Rose, I love you. I love you, and I'm so very sorry I wasn't here. You needed me, and I wasn't here," I pull away to look at him, and his eyes are full of moisture, "I'm a poor substitute, I know. But I do love you, Rose. I will try every day of my life to make it up to you. I will give you the life you deserve, and I will love you every second of it. If you'll have me."

"You couldn't help us being separated," I insist, my voice full of tears, "You needed me. That's why I tried so hard to get back to you. That's why I fought so hard in this universe. I knew you needed me. I could feel it in my heart," my hands grip at his collar, and I stare into his eyes, "I knew that he needed me. The other you. The…real you."

His face falls, and his arms drop, but I clutch his shirt and hold him in place, "He still does. He'll be alone again, I know it. Maybe Donna will work out for a while, but what if something goes wrong? Who will be with him, then?"

"Rose…"

"Wait." I take a breath and try to get out what has been going on in my head since the Tardis faded away, "I never in a million years thought you were a possibility. I never thought I could have both the Doctor, and a life partner. Someone to grow old with, someone to have a future with," my eyes start to cloud, but I push through, "I thought I'd be spending my life on the Tardis, watching the Doctor regenerate and change, while I stayed the same. Worse, yet, while I grew older and came closer to death. It was a sad future, I'll admit it. It wasn't something I had dreamed of for myself," I take a shaky breath. "Maybe…maybe you were created for me. I know that's a selfish way of thinking about it, but maybe you were what the fates intended. Now I have the Doctor, and a person who I can love and grow old with."

The Doctor's arms find their way to my hips, and his hands trail slowly around my waist and lace together.

I wipe my face with my hands and reach around his neck. "Now, I'm warning you. This isn't going to be easy for me. I'm going to have some low points, and some moments where you won't be what I need," I pull him closer, and he rests his forehead against mine, and my voice comes out as a whisper, "But there are going to a lot more times where you are going to be exactly what I need."

"Can I just say…that when he left you here…with me…he thought he was giving you what you wanted," His eyes are enormous, we are so close they are all I can see, "And he knew he was giving me what I wanted."

I stare into his eyes, my lips part in anticipation, and I hold my breath.

The Doctor's lips brush mine as he whispers, "He gave me you."

And then we're kissing. My lips tug his, and his hands pull me close, and a fire inside of me starts to burn. Our kiss lengthens and I fit my body against his. My hands find his hair, and I marvel at how soft it is. He smells like airports and hotels, and the Tardis, and home. Our kiss ends, we breathe together, and a new kiss begins.

My hands find his face, and I love the rough feel of stubble on his chin, and I love the way his mouth opens and closes as he kisses me. I run my thumbs along his cheekbones, and suck on his bottom lip, and picture this being just one of the many, many kisses to come.

**I hope you liked this one. Rose is just starting to work through some of her emotions, and I tried to make it as realistic as possible. I have a nice, long story arch planned for this story. Review if you can. I'd love to have some feedback on what you'd like to see in future chapters? I'm really excited about this. Onward we go!