Chapter 6 - Alice in Wonderland
'Cause it feels like I have just woke up
In a world where down is up
And up is a long way from here
And the big wheels really keep on turning
They don't slow down they just keep on rolling
Well my name's not Alice but I know how she felt
When her world started turning into something else
- Lisa Mitchell, "Alice in Wonderland"
The planet they are on is beyond gorgeous. The best way Rose can even think of starting to describe what she is seeing is to use the word 'Seussical', if one even considers that a word, but something tells her the Doctor would.
There are trees and flowers of every shape and color imaginable. The TARDIS had landed in an expansive meadow of tall green and yellow grass, patched with bright, colorful flowers.
Rose takes a few steps forward and kneels down to one particular flower that catches her eye. It has many heart-shaped petals, each of which is teal on the outside and has a light pink tint in the middle. She leans forward to smell it. It's like nothing she has ever smelled before. A strange combination of floral and fruity. Almost like lilac and apples. Whatever it is, she likes it.
She stands up again and the Doctor is standing right next to her. He leans down, picks the flower she had been admiring, and tucks it in her hair behind her ear. "Beautiful," he says. She's sure he is talking about the flower, but feels herself blush anyway and looks away from him.
A dragonfly-like creature flies right in front of her. She puts out her hand and it lands on her finger. It has heart shaped wings with the same coloring as the flower, but more transparent. Its body is a luminescent gold with silver flecks. After a moment, the insect flies away.
"What is this place?" she inquires with the sound of awe in her voice.
He rubs his hands together and then gestures to the land surrounding them. "This! This is my favorite planet in all the universe, Rose Tyler!" Had he always been so fidgety?
He grabs her hand and practically drags her around the back of TARDIS and through a dense patch trees. The leaves on these trees are shaped similar to a maple leaf, but longer. Their coloring contains swirls of light blues and purples. The trees themselves are shaped in such a whimsical manner. The branches shape the leaves into three spheres, stacked to look like a three-leaf clover. But the spheres aren't just normal, solid spheres. They are spirals and twists that give the illusions of spheres. She wants to stop and look at everything, but the Doctor keeps pulling her along. He is acting like a little kid loose in a candy shop with an endless amount of money in his pockets. And his excitement is infectious.
When they make it through the trees to their next destination, Rose can't help but take another deep breath in at the sight she is seeing. In front of them is a huge, cascading waterfall. And although the water is pouring down, a little further away, it flows into a lake that is all but completely still. There, all the beautifully colored trees reflect off the bright blue, crystal clear water. All around them are more beautiful insects whose wings reflect the sun like diamonds might. Flying through the trees they see all different types of brightly colored birds, singing beautiful songs. Through the trees Rose sees a few rabbit-like animals and thinks she catches a glimpse of something that looks like a deer.
The Doctor, still holding onto her hand, runs over to the part of the lake that is still. When they stop again, she lets go of his hand and revolves slowly around the spot where she is standing, being careful not to miss anything. This is the first time she looks up at the sky. She's not sure what time of day it is supposed to be, but the sky looks like it is experiencing the most beautiful sunset imaginable. But there are also streaks of greens, blues, and purples, mimicking pictures Rose has seen of the Aurora Borealis.
The running they just did and the over stimulation from everything she is seeing overwhelms Rose and causes her to lose her balance. But of course, the Doctor is right there to catch her. He leads her to a large, translucent, green rock and they sit, looking towards the still lake. She links her arm around his and leans against his shoulder. Partly to make sure she remains sitting upright, but primarily to be close to him.
"The best English translation for this planet's name is 'Wonderland'." Rose finds that very appropriate. "We are here about 800 years before the first humanoids step foot on it. I'm not actually sure anyone knows it exists yet." He checks his watch. "Nope. Another 50 or so years until that one. Even I've never seen it this early. It's even more beautiful than the way I remember it."
They sit there for hours. Sometimes they talk about nothing of consequence. Sometimes they just sit in silence. But there is so much going on around her. So many new sights, sounds, and smells for her to take in. She doesn't once think about recent events.
At one point, Rose gets up, takes off her shoes and stands ankle deep in the water. The Doctor joins her. The water is refreshing, but not cold.
When it starts to get dark, they walk back to where the TARDIS is parked and lie in the meadow. It reminds Rose of their time on New New Earth where he had laid out his jacket for the two of them to rest on before venturing to the hospital. They gaze up at the stars. The sky is so clear that she can see more stars at one time than she ever has before. The Doctor points out some of favorite galaxies and constellations. She knows she is not going to remember any of what he is saying. But she still listens intently to the sound of his voice. It soothes her.
After a short while, Rose feels her eyelids become heavy. The next thing she knows, she can feel the Doctor picking her up. She wraps her arms around his neck and leans into him, not bothering to even attempt opening her eyes. He carries her into the TARDIS and places her on her bed, where she rolls over and falls asleep. The Doctor crawls in right next to her.
The Doctor lays next to Rose and watches her sleep, thinking about the day they just had, unable to wipe the smile off his face. It had been a great day. He keeps thinking about Rose's face when she first stepped off the TARDIS and when she saw the waterfall. It was the first time in a long time he can remember her looking truly happy, and not haunted by recent events. And she laughed. It's been so long since he has heard her laugh. That sound had been 1000 times more beautiful than any and all the birds singing on Wonderland.
He had thought about waiting longer before taking her out. Waiting until she was a bit stronger. He knew that the running they would inevitably end up doing would take almost all of her energy. But in that moment, he didn't care. He wanted to do something that would distract them both. Her from everything she had been through, and him from the knowledge that it is his fault. It wasn't as exhausting for her as he thought it might be. All she needed to do was sit down for a little while and recharge. He figured she would have started falling asleep long before they made it back to the TARDIS, but that was his Rose. Always stronger then he thinks. Stronger than anyone else would be in her situation. Even him.
He falls asleep lying next to her. In the middle of the night, while they are both asleep, Rose starts dreaming. The Doctors arm unconsciously tightens around her waist and causes the nightmare to subside.
The Doctor wakes up before Rose does. He sneaks out of her bed and into his chair. He pulls out the biography he has been reading. It's on the woman who will invent Faster Than Light travel. He has read this one before, but that's kind of the point. He just needs something to kill time while Rose is sleeping or doing something without him. He doesn't want something he will become invested in right now. He's still too worried about her.
About half an hour before he thinks she will wake up, he goes to the kitchen to start making breakfast. Just when he predicted she would, Rose walks into the kitchen, still wearing her pajamas, and sits at the table.
"So what's for breakfast today?" she asks.
"Pancakes. Blueberry," he responds, emphasizing the "oo" in "blueberry" as he puts a plate in front of her.
"My favorite."
Oh, he knows. He looks at her and winks before taking his usual seat across from her at the table. They eat their pancakes and talk and joke and laugh, almost as if nothing had ever happened. Almost.
They spend the next few days exploring every corner of Wonderland. It is definitely more beautiful than he remembers. But that might have to do more than with Rose's presence with him and how excited everything makes her than it has to do with the planet itself. Maybe they will never leave here. Sure, they will have to make trips to Earth occasionally to restock the groceries, which reminds him, they are almost out of milk, but other than that, why should they ever leave a place that makes her feel so happy?
But after a couple weeks, he starts to get antsy. He never has been good at staying in one place for a long time. And he knows she can tell.
One day, he gets a message on the psychic paper. He tries to close it before Rose sees. He wants to stay here longer for her sake. But he is unsuccessful.
She just smiles at him. "Let's go," she says.
"Are you sure?"
"I'm not the only one in all of time and space who needs you. And you've already done so much for me. It's someone else's turn now. Besides, I know you hate being in one place for too long. We've been here for what? Almost a month now? I'm sure. Let's go."
"Well, if you're sure… Allons-y!" And he presses some buttons on the TARDIS console. The TARDIS shakes as she takes them away from Wonderland back to Earth.