Previously:
"We need a Time Lord"
"I have no idea what you're talking about" John said
"Grab them" Jenny hissed
The got hold of Rose and Martha.
"No not Rose, please not Rose" John pleaded
"If the human heart breaks will the Time Lord come out?"
"What will it be Doctor, your lover or your friend?"
"Well…?" the alien masking as Mr Clark said, John looked at the sheer terror on Rose's face to their calm yet scared look on Martha's. "We're waiting Mr Smith"
Martha slipped her hand into her pocket and pulled out one of the watches that lived there for the past two months, she tugged it open and rain and fire came, figuratively speaking. It was a terrifying feeling and everyone ducked and screamed. Martha took the opportunity to stamp on the son's foot and unarm him.
Rose, also took the advantage and did the exact same thing as Martha.
"Martha what do we do?" she shouted
"You run, take John with you and run, make sure everyone gets out"
"What about you?"
"Forget about me, just go"
"Martha…thank you so much"
"No…thank you Rose, now run"
But Rose wouldn't move, she was still staring at Martha, in amazement, in concern John dragged her away, but her eyes never left Martha.
"The human girl trying to stop us" the Son said in amusement
"Your attempts will be futile, just give us the Time Lords and we'll go away" the Father said
"I would rather die" Martha declared "I will never betray my friends"
"Mother of mine…kill her"
Martha ducked from the green light that came from the blaster and used her own to shoot at the ceiling distracting the family and giving her time to escape.
"Timothy, what are you doing here? It's too dangerous" she said pulling the young boy out with her.
"I couldn't leave you alone with those creatures Miss Martha" Timothy said
"You're a good boy" Martha said running along the path dragging him behind her. "Where did Rose and the Doctor go?"
"They went to the school"
"Damn them" Martha said "it's not safe there, they need to go to the TARDIS"
John was preparing the school for battle, Rose stood in the corner watching in fright.
"Come on, come on with have no time before they come after us" John said picking up some equipment. He turned to Rose "Rose…I want to go and hide, stay hidden whatever you do, do not follow us"
"I am not laving you" Rose cried out "god sake John I said I will never leave you"
John looked slightly confused…he knows Rose had never said that…yet he knows she did…but when? "Rose I won't be able to live if I know something bad will happen to you because of me"
"And what if you die?" Rose demanded "how would I live without you?"
"You will manage" John said
"No I won't…I would rather be dead than live a life without you"
"Oh Rose" he murmured "I am so sorry…so, so sorry" he put the equipment down and walked over to her, he cupped her face and kissed her gently. Then he's arm went behind her and….
….and opened the door to the cupboard and pushed her in. he then locked it.
"JOHN!" Rose screamed "LET ME OUT NOW!" she was banging on the door "I WON'T LET YOU DO THIS"
He gathered up the equipment and took one last look at the cupboard door before walking out.
"JOHN!" she kept screaming, tears were falling fast and she kept banging on the door. He was going into danger…he could die, she couldn't let him die.
"Mr Smith" Martha shouted "where's Rose, we need to get the pair of you out of here"
John grabbed Martha by the shoulders "listen here Martha, this is sheer nonsense, I will not let Rose be harmed. She is safe in the artillery room, go there and stay put. I will not have you doing something foolish"
Martha weighed her options, she couldn't get me to leave the battle, not yet. If she went to Rose and convinced her… "Yes sir" she said and she pulled away and ran to the artillery room, Timothy following her.
The artillery room was empty.
"Rose, Rose please be here" Martha called out.
There was banging at one of the cupboards.
"MARTHA, MARTHA LET ME OUT"
Martha sighed in relief and tugged at the door…it was locked. "Good thing the Doctor gave me this" she murmured pulling out the sonic screwdriver, she pressed the button and unlocked the door, she was immediately pulled into a hug.
"Oh when I get my hands on that man" Rose fumed "does he really think locking me in a cupboard will help? The moment we marry he will be sleeping on the couch…" Rose stopped, sleeping on the couch? Where on earth did she hear that phrase from?
Martha smiled "Rose…Rose you got to open this watch, we need you and the Doctor"
"Oh Martha" Rose sighed "it was all a lie wasn't it?"
"John's love isn't nor my friendship" Martha said quietly
"But my life was. My mother and father, the little village I grew up in those were all lies. And those dreams, those intense dreams…they were all real weren't they?"
"Yes"
"If I open this watch…will I lose John?"
"No, no, the Doctor loves you. He loves you more than life itself"
"But John…my fiancée…he would never open the watch...would he? Oh my head is so confused"
Martha pulled out the watch, the watch that felt like Rose, power…so much power but a loving warmth. She pressed the watch in Rose's hand "hold it, just hold it" she said
Rose held it tightly, her eyes fluttering "it's awake" she murmured "stirring, wants to be out there…" she thumb stroked the latch gently and then flipped it open….
The battle was tiring. John, the other teachers and the young boys fought. But those scarecrows….they kept coming and coming. The family had the blue box with them…that funny blue box that always appeared in the dreams. They were taunting….
"Doctor"
He turned and saw Rose…but she wasn't Rose, not the one he knew, her eyes were older, more knowledgeable and so, so terrifying.
"Rose? How did you get out? I hand the key" he said
She pulled out a silver fob watch "you need to open this, we need you" she said "I have opened mine"
"You're not my Rose" he murmured "you're…you're the…the….Bad Wolf"
"We need to open it" she hissed "I have opened mine, it is your turn"
"What about our lives Rose" he said "we were to be married. We could have had children…we could have grown old and died in each others arms. Isn't that what you want?"
She ducked her head "I want…I want to travel, I want to see other planets, I want to run, I want to hold your hand, drink tea with you, laugh, repair the TARDIS with you and then climb into bed with you"
"He doesn't do domestics…he wouldn't…we would never…"
"I love him and he loves me" Rose said passionately "my human self loves you as you love her. What is the difference? So we live a different lifestyle? We'll always have each other. The universe needs us, we cannot afford to be selfish"
Tears fell down Johns face.
"I am still Rose" she said "I never really changed. I was human before remember? Nothing will change between us"
"We could…we could still marry?"
"If you want"
"Can I…can I have one last kiss?"
"It won't your last, after all of this is over, we'll have many more" she promised
"But when I open this watch I will die" John said
"No you won't because you are part of the Doctor"
He didn't argue, he leaned down and kissed her passionately as he could before letting her go.
"I love you" he said "more than anything"
"And I love you" Rose said
He opened the watch.
The father was locked in many chains, the mother was thrown out into a vortex, the daughter was locked in every mirror and the son was made into a scarecrow. They were immortal…but not the way they wanted.
Rose sat there in the console room fiddling with the ring on her finger. She sighed, chances are she will have to take it off soon, after they had sorted the family out the Doctor parked somewhere and ran off before Rose could even say a word. It was obvious that he doesn't want her to be his wife.
If she was human and he was a Time Lord she could understand that. But she was a Time Lady now, he had no excuse other than he never wanted her.
What makes you think he doesn't want you? Came the sweet melody of the TARDIS
"Isn't it obvious girl? I was never that great" Rose murmured "just a shop girl"
I wouldn't have let you look into my heart if you weren't fantastic the TARDIS argued you are everything the Doctor needs.
"Thanks girl" Rose said "but there is no way he would want to marry me"
The TARDIS didn't say anything back just hummed the lullaby that had always haunted Rose's subconscious since the Doctor regenerated. Rose closed her eyes and hummed along when the door opened and was slammed shut.
Her eyes flew open to see the Doctor standing there staring at her.
There was a tense moment, neither of them said a word, they just stared at each other.
He moved to the console and began flicking switches and pressing buttons. Rose waited till she knew they were in the vortex before she said anything.
"If you don't want to marry me, you only have to say and I would give you the ring back" she said quietly
He looked up at her, his face glowing in the green light of the console…he looked haunted. "Why would you want to marry me?" he said
"Oh I dunno maybe because I love you" she said crossing her arms
"But you didn't say yes to me" the Doctor said "you said yes to the human" he looked hurt and angry "I could give you the universe but all you want is a domestic human. You want a simple little diamond and a small country wedding, you want 2.4 children and grandchildren and to die old and grey."
She stood up "never assume what I want" she hissed "if you remember correctly I said yes to you. I was a human you were a human. As a human in 1913 that would have been what I wanted. But I was a human in 2004 when you met me, all I wanted was to see everything. Do you know what I want now? I want you. That's all, if you don't want to marry just say so. If you do, find us the nearest church and I'll marry you now"
She looked childish, maybe it was the curly hair that was free and wild and her pink dress, maybe it was the way she had her arms crossed, maybe it was both. But it reminded him that she was young, oh so young. She had twelve incarnations left, he only had three.
"You're a child…" he murmured to himself.
She looked furious "you don't want to marry me because I am a child?" she snapped "pathetic excuse considering you already shagged me a thousand or more times"
"Rose, listen to me" he pleaded "you are young, barely left your childhood behind when I took you into the TARDIS. You have twelve incarnations left, I have three, and one day I will die before you"
"Three" she said "I don't have twelve I have three….the TARDIS said…that when I looked into her heart I asked to be with you till you die…so she has made sure that I will"
The Doctor laughed "good ol' TARDIS" he said happily then he went solemn "Rose…what made me upset was…John Smith…he was brave enough to go out and buy a ring and go on one knee…I wasn't. Oh how I looked at many shops in many planets, trying to find one that suited you, how I kept planning on how to ask…I never plucked the courage to do it."
Rose smiled and got up, she walked up to him and gave him the ring "ask me now" she said "as the Doctor, ask me now."
He stroked the cool metal of the ring "Rose Tyler" he said "you have saved me so many times, without you I probably would have done something stupid like skydiving in a clown suit" Rose giggled at the mental image "would you do me the honour Rose…to be my wife" he got down on one knee "marry me please"
"Well…" Rose said teasingly, the Doctor pouted and gave her the full on puppy-eyed look that made her laugh "yes, yes I will" she said
He slipped the ring back on her finger and swooped her up into a big bear hug.
"Doctor?"
"Yes"
"You gave Martha the sonic screwdriver"
"I lent it to her yes"
"So she could burrow it but I can't have my own one?"
"Sounds about right"
"That is not fair" she said, she pulled away and glared at him "I still haven't forgiven you for locking me in the cupboard. You're sleeping on the couch tonight" she then walked away.
"ROSE! ROSE PLEASE THAT'S NOT FAIR, ROOOOOOOOOOSE!"
Authors note: thank you tvnut89 for all your help and ideas. Dedicated to my best friend Aimee and RRA mate Cee