Notes: I finally reached the end of this little story arc. Season seven proper is coming up now and I'm really on a roll with writing this, so it'll probably be up soon.
Chapter Four: The Wolf, the Widow, and the Wardrobe – part four
"Madge is a pretty amazing mum, wouldn't you say?" Rose asked her husband.
They were back in the attic, cleaning up their things as they prepared to leave. Madge's incredible flying through the Time Vortex led her straight to her husband's plane and she guided him back to that very house on Christmas Day. He didn't die after all, just took a shortcut.
"She certainly is, my love. You did some pretty amazing piloting yourself through that forest," he replied.
"Well, we have taken a few flying lessons over the years and piloted some interesting space ships as well. I may have picked up a few things here and there," she said with a smirk.
They were startled out of their teasing by Madge herself coming up into the attic. Seeing the TARDIS, she obviously remembered encountering them before.
"Of course. It's you, isn't it? My spaceman angel, with his head on backwards," she sighed.
"How do I look the right way round?" he asked jokingly.
"Funnier," she replied and Rose giggled at his pout. "So you came back."
"Well, you were there for us when we had a bad day. Always like to return a favour. Got a bit glitchy in the middle there, but it sort of worked out in the end. Story of my life," the Doctor told her.
"We didn't know that we could save him, but we at least wanted the children to have a nice Christmas. I'm so glad that he's home," Rose said and hugged her tightly.
"Thank you, both of you," Madge said with a watery smile.
"You did the fancy flying all on your own," Rose assured her.
"Now, the last time I saw you, I went back the next day, but the police box had gone," she told them.
"Yeah. You want to see how it's done?" the Doctor enthused.
"No. I want you to stay for Christmas, please," Madge requested.
"Oh Madge, I wish we could," Rose answered.
"Of course. Yes. Family of your own," she realized.
"Quite. In-laws, and children, and friends," the Doctor said with a beaming smile. For so long, he had been the last of the Time Lords. Now he had his wife, a son, a daughter-in-law, her parents, his wife's parents, and all of their friends at Torchwood. And he couldn't be happier about it.
"You should definitely be with them for Christmas," she insisted.
"Give those kids a big snuggle for me, yeah?" Rose said as she stood in the doorway of their ship.
"Of course. Merry Christmas," she replied.
The Doctor joined his wife inside the TARDIS and they made their way to Amy and Rory's house, where everyone was meeting. They parked across the street so that they wouldn't take up any room inside the house. The expected crowd was already quite large. Grabbing the large bag of presents that they had brought for everyone, the couple made their way to knock on the bright blue door.
Amy, Jackie, and Donna were just putting the finishing touches on dinner as Jamie and River set the table. Rory took the bag of presents from the Doctor to place it under the tree with the others. Rose flitted around the house, hugging everyone, while the Doctor stood back to watch the thoroughly domestic scene with Jack and Pete.
"You know, Doc? The leather version of you would have run screaming from all this," Jack teased.
"No, actually, that was all for show. I thought I couldn't have this, so I tried to convince everyone that I didn't want it, especially myself. After losing my entire family in the War, I never thought I could have a family again. But that version of me craved it even more, and with the same pink and yellow human," the Doctor admitted.
Dinner was wonderful and filled with laughter. They all shared stories about what they had been up to. Jamie and River talked about their adventures since her rescue from The Library, Jack and Pete shared a few of the things going on In Cardiff, and Rory told them about work at the hospital. Rose noticed that Amy seemed a bit upset about something. Her smiles were a bit forced and she didn't talk about much.
After dinner, Rose pulled Amy aside. "What is it, sweetheart? Something is definitely bothering you," Rose asked privately.
"It's... Well, after all of the things they did to me at Demon's Run, I can't... I can't have any more children," Amy answered, tears welling in her eyes.
"Oh, Amy," Rose sighed and pulled her into a hug. "That's what your doctor here said, yeah?"
"Yeah. They did some damage internally," she replied quietly.
"Alright, now you just calm down. There are lots of things in the future that might be able to fix it. Let me do a quick scan on my sonic and a bit of research, ok?" Rose suggested reassuringly. At Amy's nod, she scanned her with her screwdriver and would check with the TARDIS and in the library to see if they could find a solution, but if nanogenes could bring a dead little boy back to life, they should be able to fix this.
"Thank you, Rose. Rory has always wanted kids. I know we have River, but I don't really feel like her mum, you know? She was my best friend as a child, I didn't really raise her. He wants a baby. To carry her around and sing her lullabies and stuff, and I can't give him that," Amy told her and clung to her tightly as Rose rubbed her back.
Of course Rose understood. She at least got the baby and child years with Jamie before he ran off with Jack, and then to university. She still didn't feel like she got the full mum experience herself. To go from not even knowing you're pregnant to learning what they did about River within a matter of days would be more than most people could take.
"Come on, you two, it's time for presents!" Jackie called to them and they moved to join the others in the sitting room.
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The Doctor and Rose had offered a trip to anyone that wanted to come as part of their presents. Donna demanded a spa somewhere and Jack thoroughly agreed to a trip as well. Jamie and River docked their TARDIS inside his parents' and came along for the trip as well. They were disappointed that Amy and Rory didn't join them, but Rory was very busy at work and Amy's heart wasn't in it at the moment.
They spent two weeks at a lovely spa where the masseuses had four arms and the sand on the beaches was lavender. Donna and Jack were back at Torchwood before Pete even made it back from Amy and Rory's house.
"It was lovely having you two here. Are you sure you don't want to come with us for a bit?" Rose asked Jamie and River Tyler as they walked back to their own TARDIS.
The couple exchanged a look, "Should we tell them?" River asked her husband silently.
Jamie nodded before telling his parents, "We were actually planning on slowing down for a bit. Because, well." He couldn't seem to find the right words and rubbed the back of his neck in a manner similar to his father's last incarnation.
"I'm expecting," River interjected.
"Oh River! That's wonderful!" Rose exclaimed and jumped to wrap her arms around her daughter in law. "A baby! I'm gonna be a gran!"
"Congratulations. Perfect reason to take it easy for a bit. Only safe trips for a while," the Doctor added.
"Yeah. We haven't told anyone else yet. It's still fairly early on, but we figured that you guys would be the first ones to find out anyway," Jamie informed them.
"It's fantastic news, sweetheart," Rose said as she turned to hug him as well.
"We'll tell my parents when I'm a little further along," River told them, her hand absentmindedly going to her belly.
"Where do you plan on settling in for now?" the Doctor wondered
"I thought we might start with Barcelona, but I'm sure neither of us will want to stay in one place for too long. Our TARDIS will help us keep to relatively safe spots for now, I think," Jamie replied.
"Absolutely. Call us if you need anything, and make sure that we see the two of you again before giving birth, yeah? I'd like to be there when my first grandchild is born," Rose insisted.
"Sure thing, mum. Love you. You too, dad," James said as they entered the door set into the trunk of the glittering coral tree that was their little TARDIS. Their chameleon circuit worked fairly well, but she usually changed into whatever she felt like, rather than whatever would blend in best.
As they listened to the sounds of the younger TARDIS dematerializing, Rose considered their empty nest and wondered if they might want to have another of their own. It had been centuries for her since she gave birth, so it might be nice. "Do you want another baby, Doctor?" she asked softly.
"Really?" he gasped and she could feel his overwhelming joy at the idea. Jamie was a bit of an accident, not that they were actively avoiding it at the time, but they certainly never expected to be separated then, either. "That would be wonderful. I missed Jamie's birth. Missed being with you while you were pregnant. I'd love it," he assured her.
"Well, let's let this round of birth control run out then, and we'll see, yeah?" Rose said with a warm smile.
"Yeah."
