Chapter 4

The Doctor was glad he did not have much hair; if he had, he would have likely pulled it out in great heaping handfuls by now. He had declared war with his TARDIS, and not only was he losing, he was having a real hard time remaining unaffected, though the Time Lord had certainly held out longer than any other male might have.

Pride in this knowledge was not sustaining him as his resolve started to crumble. He found himself wondering in unguarded moments what Rose tasted like, what her skin would feel like against his, what sounds she would make in the throes of passion. If he didn't get this resolved soon, he was going to crack. And the TARDIS was by no means fighting fair.

He had tried to take Rose to the intergalactic zoological park on Ockene. The TARDIS landed them in the Plavit beast habitat during mating season. He probably could have passed it off as something else, except for the fact that Plavit beasts had the loudest mating call in the known universe, not to mention the stink.

After that incident, he resolutely decided to always check the outside camera before allowing Rose to step foot out the door. The decision lasted roughly five minutes, until he tried to take her to the ancient Great Library of Alexandria. It was then he discovered that the TARDIS had shorted out the circuit for the external camera. When they exited the ship, they found themselves surrounded by shelves stacked to bursting with scrolls containing sex manuals from a wide range of ancient cultures; all of which the TARDIS happily translated.

In sheer desperation, the Doctor attempted to bypass the will of the TARDIS entirely and manually pilot the ship to their next destination. He didn't much care where the next destination was, so long as it had nothing to do with dancing.

In a flurry of motion, along with help from Rose and Jack, the Doctor managed to land the TARDIS…square in the middle of a brothel on some space station in the 51st century. The Doctor and Rose practically hog-tied Jack to get him back in the ship.

For now, all was quiet as they drifted along in the vortex. As far as the Doctor was concerned, they would stay in the vortex indefinitely until the TARDIS relented, or he regenerated from sheer frustration.

Jack and Rose had gone off to their respective quarters to sleep, and the TARDIS had considerately dimmed the lights. The time rotor glowed green, and in its murky light the Doctor could be seen, advancing cautiously on the console armed with a spanner, his face twisted with anger.

Before he reached the console, and was able to engage in some murderous tinkering, the Doctor heard the shuffle of socked feet. Turning, he saw Rose enter the room, one hand behind her back.

She was dressed in that ridiculous set of pajamas she had purchased shortly after starting their adventures. They were pink and covered with tiny green aliens and silvery flying saucers. For some odd reason, the Doctor found himself trying not to be offended.

Rose did not say anything at first; she was clearly building up the mettle to speak her mind. The Doctor felt sure he knew what she would say and both of his hearts quailed in fear. Positive she was about to tell him she wanted to go home, that she had no wish to travel with a dirty old Time Lord, he tried to brace himself for the hurtful words to come.

Rose bit her bottom lip, as if making a final decision. Though she was obviously nervous, the Doctor could tell immediately when she resigned herself to speak. She drew herself up, looked him square in the eye and said, "If you want to shag Jack, its fine with me."

The Doctor was so surprised he dropped his spanner. The noise it made as it clattered on the metal grating seemed inordinately loud. "Wha-?"

"I know you and the TARDIS share some sort of telepathy thing," she continued, waving her free hand at the time rotor, "and its clear you've got…well, you've got dancing on your mind. And it's alright. Really."

The Doctor found his voice lodged somewhere near his stomach. "Rose-"

"I know I'm just a daft ape, and I could never understand what you've been through, but you don't have to be alone." Her words lanced right through him. "The TARDIS knows that, and so do I." Rose unconsciously drew her shoulders back and stood defiant before him, daring him to challenge what she knew in her heart to be true. "And if Jack will make you happy, then please-"

"Rose!" the Doctor said, cutting her off. The word came out more sharply than he had intended, and she flinched.

"I just want you to be happy," she said. Her gaze fell to her feet, and she shuffled slightly.

"What makes you think I want to… to dance with Jack?" the Doctor asked incredulously. She really had got the wrong end of the stick.

Her head shot up with the question. "Oh, come on," she said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world, "the tension between you two is so thick you could cut it with a knife."

The Doctor could not stop the snort of derision that came from his mouth. "Not bloody likely. If I were to dance with anyone on the TARDIS, it'd be-," he caught himself, barely. "Well, it wouldn't be Jack," he finished lamely.

Suddenly deciding there were repairs to make on the TARDIS that had to be done right this second, the Doctor reached down and scooped up the tool he had dropped. Two quick steps had him next to the console, an entire time rotor strategically placed between him and Rose. On automatic pilot, his hands began working with the various controls, even as his mind raced.

What the hell was he going to do when she figured it out? If she hadn't wanted to leave before, she would certainly want to leave now. He was too old and too tainted to touch someone so innocent, and Rose knew it. She would never want him; he was a far cry from being a pretty boy. And even if she did, what would he do when she left? Or found someone else?

As his hands worked, his mind churned, his nerves sung, and his hearts beat a fast and furious rhythm. And still he kept track of Rose. Glances at her around the time rotor meant he knew the exact moment she figured out his meaning. 'Course Rose was a bright girl; it didn't take her very long.

The change in her both delighted and terrified him. Her tongue popped out between her teeth, and she moved with predatory grace towards him. In her eyes burned a golden fire he had only seen in the images the TARDIS had sent him, and he blinked to be sure it was truly there and not some flight of his imagination.

The gold in her eyes seemed to intensify, and the Doctor gulped as he realized that he was the prey. Rose extended her free hand and ran it lightly along the metal of the console, slowly inching closer to him. With each step she took, the Doctor felt his nerves stretching tighter and tighter.

"So," she said, the syllables rolling off her tongue, "not Jack."

The sound of her voice snapped the Doctor out of his stupor, and he turned his attention to what his hands were doing. "No." he replied, taking a few steps out of range, doing his best to hold on to his resolve as she advanced.

"Hmmm," she said, merriment dancing in her golden brown eyes. "Mickey?"

He snorted even as he took a few more steps out of range. "I have higher standards."

She advanced. "Adam?"

His responding chuckle was dry as he retreated. "I don't dance with morons."

"People who ask if you're their mummy?"

"Free from the Oedipus complex, me."

Rose gasped with mock horror. "Not… surely not, the Slitheen!"

"Too green."

"Cassandra?"

"Too flat."

Advance, retreat. Advance, retreat. The atmosphere in the TARDIS felt sticky and humid, and he doubted it had anything to do with the temperature controls. Beads of sweat formed at his temples and rolled down the side of his face, and still they moved in circles. Round and round, Rose reaching out, him moving back. He wasn't sure how long he could keep this up. Even Time Lords had limits, and with the TARDIS and now Rose pushing, and pushing, and pushing….

"Rose, do you mind? I'm trying to…"

"Resonate concrete?" she asked, one disbelieving eyebrow cocked.

He could end this, he knew. It would only take a few carefully planned words. It would make him a bastard, but he'd be a safe, albeit cowardly, bastard. Yet, the words piled up behind his tongue, unwilling to go any further. His head told him it was because he didn't want to hurt her; his hearts said something else entirely.

Suddenly, Rose gasped sharply and stared at him with wide-eyed horror. The change in her demeanor was so abrupt that the Doctor felt his throat begin to close with panic. Had he waited too long? What if she read his mind? Had he slipped? Did she see his true nature? Would she leave him now?

Instead, Rose said shrilly, "You want to dance with my Mum?!" Her tone clearly indicated that this was the most horrid thing in the universe she could imagine.

If it was horrid for her, it was a veritable nightmare for him. The teasing was too much for a Time Lord teetering on the edge, and his hand tightened painfully on the wrench. His nerves snapped, and lightning coursed along his limbs, traveling at light speed for his hearts and causing him to shudder. The Doctor felt something inside his chest shatter, like a wall of ice splintering from a heavy impact. The sharp shards swept through his body, cutting and nicking the already tattered and scarred pieces of soul. He looked down at himself, half expecting to see blood.

With concentrated effort he relaxed his grip on the spanner and let it go. Slowly he straightened, his blue eyes burning like a sun.

He turned to face Rose. Her golden hair was tousled from sleep, hands were hidden behind her back, laughter twinkled in her eyes, and her mouth was turned upwards into a Cheshire cat grin. She looked like someone who had just told a very funny joke and was waiting for someone else to get the punch line.

"Rose Tyler," he said his voice rough and deep, "you have a very dirty mouth."

He lurched forward, pulling her roughly into his embrace and sealing his mouth on hers. There was a loud thump of something solid striking the floor behind her, but he was much too busy to care.

Senses in overdrive, the taste of her exploded on his tongue, assaulting his taste buds with a flavor that was uniquely Rose. Her reaction to his embrace was by no means passive and he could feel the shape of her body beneath the fabric that separated them as she pressed close, and the fine texture of her hair felt like silk to his rough and callused hands. When her arms went round him, he swore he could literally feel her pushing back the darkness in his hearts with her two small hands. In that instant, the Doctor knew without a doubt that he was doomed.

When they parted, his choppy breathing echoed her own. Both of his hands rose to cradle her face, and he stared into her eyes. "Rose-" he started, not entirely certain what he wanted to say, but knowing he had to make her aware of the dangers along this path.

She beamed at him, and pulled back slightly. She rummaged through the pockets on her jimjams, and withdrew a closed hand. "Here," she said softly, holding her closed fist out to him.

Curious, he stuck out his hand, palm up. Rose placed something small and soft into his hand and then pulled her own away. He looked at Rose first, trying to discern what she might be up to, but all he found in her smiling face was reassurance and something bright and warm he was not yet ready to name.

Glancing down, he saw nestled within his palm two slightly wilted and squished flowers, one violet, and one blue.

"Rose," he gasped sharply, "do you know what this means? Do you know what you are saying?"

She nodded, her tousled hair flopping with the movement. "'Course I do. I know I wasn't supposed to pick them, but I couldn't resist."

"I-"

Rose interrupted him. "I know you can't promise me forever. You know, 900 years and all that. But I can promise you. And I do."

She moved back into his embrace and put her arms around him tightly. "Whatever kind of forever I have is yours for as long as you want it. I'll never willingly leave you, and if I'm taken, I'll do everything I can to return to your side."

She tilted her head upwards and looked deep into his eyes. "So long as there is breath in my body, you don't have to be alone."

The weight of the promise sucked the air from his lungs. It was, quite literally, everything she had to give, and the courage it took to make such a promise shamed his cowardly hearts. Doubts still plagued him, but as he looked into her eyes he realized they were inconsequential. She would stand by him, and in that moment he vowed that he would return the favor.

He dipped his head and captured her mouth with his own, sealing the pact with lips and tongue. The kiss started as a reverent worship of his most exceptional Rose, but soon turned heated with weeks of pent up frustration. No Galifreyan mind tricks were necessary for each to communicate to the other; body language was enough. Of one mind, they began to slowly shift towards the doorway that led deeper into the TARDIS, each refusing to let go of the other.

Rose suddenly tripped, gripping his arms tightly to steady herself. Looking down, she saw the book she had dropped earlier. "Oh yeah," she said distractedly, and reached down to pick it up. "I almost forgot."

Rose hefted the volume up and the Doctor could see his native language scripted on the cover. His brows lowered dangerously. "Where did you get that?"

"The TARDIS chucked it at me while I was sleeping," replied Rose. "She wouldn't translate it for me, but the pictures were…um, interesting." A blush competed with the heated flush that already pinked her cheeks.

The Doctor snatched the book from her using the only free hand he had left, and whirled around to glare at the time rotor. An angry flush competed with a heated blush on his already pinked ears.

With his back turned and his focus on the TARDIS, he missed Rose casting a wicked smile in the direction of the time rotor. He also missed the conspiratorial wink.

"Well," Rose said, shuffling toward the doorway, "when you're ready, come find me, yeah?"

The Doctor glanced at her and gave her a small smile. "Be there in a minute."

Her tongue popped out between her teeth. "Don't keep me waiting too long," she said saucily.

"Never," he replied.

She tossed him a grin and then ran towards her bedroom. As the sound of her feet faded, the Doctor looked at the objects he held. The book he gave no more than a glance before tossing it into the jump seat, where Jack would no doubt find it later. The flowers he carefully placed on the console with the intent to preserve them later, perhaps in the morning.

Turning his face upward, he stared at the green column. If he didn't know better, he'd say the rotor had a smug glow about it. "The war is over," he said softly, glancing toward the doorway through which Rose had just disappeared, "and I think that maybe we both won, for a time at least."

The TARDIS hummed agreeably and the Doctor felt a wash of warm, golden contentment flow through his mind. His eyes closed briefly, enjoying this moment of peace and amiable accord with the consciousness that had been his constant companion for so long. It had been weeks since he had felt it, and it had been sorely missed.

But there were other things to attend to, and he didn't remain still for long. His eyes popped open and he patted the console affectionately before following Rose, his steps urgent. The smile on his face was a leer more suited to Jack's face than his own; yet it brimmed with uncharacteristic happiness.

Quiet filled the control room; the only sounds the gentle whirring of the great time ship. The soft echo of the ship was gradually augmented by a different sound, that of a faint and ancient song. Tendrils of energy trickled out of the console and within a few seconds the two flowers were engulfed in a golden radiance.

When the energy faded and the song ceased, the petals had rehydrated and were now smooth and silky, returned to their newly bloomed beauty. The stems had grown long and intertwined one with the other. The symbol of a pact drawn between a human and Time Lord had become like all things touched by the TARDIS, timeless.