"The Six" AU
'Journeys Converge'
Chapter Eight
- About Last Night -
A/N: I don't own squat, except what I write.
Music: Barbatuques - Baianá Cut
Note: Double check to see if your comments are going through. Seeing double hits from folks and nothing showing up.
Also: Sorry this chapter is so short, but the plot is literally writing itself at this point - which is a good thing. Beware... innuendo is out in force here. =)
Surprising to some, but not Jack, the Doctor wasn't up at first light. In fact, by the time he and Rose arrived in the kitchen, the only others that were missing were his double and Donna. Sarah Jane had left the previous night to check on Luke and her other charges.
Coming into the kitchen in their pyjamas and dressing gowns, Rose and the Doctor saw that Martha and Jack were busy cooking breakfast. Rose grinned immediately. "Ohhh, I hope you're doing your flapjacks Jack."
"Thought you'd like that," Jack said over his shoulder. "And hey, I didn't realize the dress code was overnight wear. Where was the memo?" he complained.
The Doctor and Rose noted a rather sullen mood at the table, and were startled at the glower that Sarah was giving them. "You all right, darling?" the Doctor asked her.
"Boundaries!" Sarah shouted, startling everyone except Danielle, who tried not to laugh.
Rose turned her head to look at the Doctor in confusion, and found that he was equally as perplexed. "Swee'hear', what are you on about?" she asked her.
Tilting her head, Sarah glared at her parents and thought to both of them. 'I'm only alive when you're inside me? Really, mum? I know you missed him, but good God!'
A mortified squeak came out of Rose as she slammed her hands over her mouth, turning a deep scarlet. The Doctor on the other hand, began rubbing at the back of his neck with pursed lips. Martha and Jack both raised their eyebrows at the sight of the Doctor actually flushing as red as Rose did.
"What did you two… do?" Jack asked slowly with half a smirk on his face.
Danielle idly ran her finger around the rim of her glass of orange juice. "Some people weren't exactly… quiet… last night," she commented dryly.
"I didn't hear anything," Jack said, sounding disappointed.
Danielle shrugged. "I didn't either, but someone did." She turned her head to look at Sarah, then shook her head.
Martha simply put her hands on her hips and looked at the pair of them with a cocked head and brow, fighting her smile.
"I don't care if you have the TARDIS do it, or do it yourselves," Sarah said quietly, "but if either of you do that to me again, I'm going to repeat everything I hear. The only reason I'm not doing it now is because Jack's in the room. He'll hold that over your heads for years."
"Too late for that," Jack grinned.
"I wanna die now," Rose murmured, turning away from everyone.
The Doctor blinked like an owl. "Uhm. Exactly how much did you hear, shining star of my hearts?" The smile on his face was so fake, even K-9 would've noticed.
"You talk too much, dad. That's all I'm gonna say about it," Sarah replied with a shake of the head.
Downgraded from 'daddy' to 'dad', the Doctor pursed his lips. "We didn't intend…"
"I know that!" Sarah snapped at them.
Heading over to the table, Rose gave her daughter a top down hug. "I'm so sorry, baby. We'll try to keep it down to a dull roar. Grammie did the same to me, so I know just how you feel."
Sarah held her hand up to block the kiss to the cheek that Rose was about to give her. "Don't. I know where that's been."
Jack's loud laughter finally broke Danielle and Martha's hold on themselves, and they ended up laughing with him.
Mouth open in shock, Rose glared. "Should I tell everyone what I overheard two weeks ago?"
Eyes wide, Sarah glanced at Danielle, who looked just as surprised, then back up at her mum. "You promised!" she squeaked.
"Then dial back that cheek!" Rose reprimanded.
Knowing her mum had her over a barrel, Sarah turned her attention back to her glass. "Shutting up now. Sorry mum."
"That's better," Rose said, ruffling Sarah's hair with a smirk.
"Oi, Spaceman, I want a word with you!" Donna's voice pierced the room.
Face twisted into a grimace, the Doctor sighed as his head fell to the side. "Oh, hell," murmured. Turning, he saw Donna and his other self glaring at him from the door. "Sorry," he mumbled.
Eyeing everything in the room, Donna settled her stare back on the Doctor. "I take it I don't have to worry about dreaming about Rose any more, right?" Seeing his appalled, gobsmacked expression, she started chuckling. "Oh, the look on your face."
"Here now, none of that!" the double said loudly. "Solidarity! We agreed to rake him over the coals on this!"
"I can't help it, spaceboy," Donna said through her chuckles. "This is just too funny!"
Coming into the room, the double stopped in front of the original. "Take them out," he demanded.
"I beg your pardon?" the Doctor asked, completely confused.
"The memories," he elaborated. "I don't want them, and I doubt Rose wants me to have them either. I look at her like a sister, so having that memory plus that rather sopping wet dream I had last night? Take them back, before I get a complex," he demanded.
"Goes for me too, spaceman," Donna nodded. "Thought I was batting for the other team when I woke up. Don't need to tell you how disturbing that was."
Rose sat at the table and hid her head in her hands. "Oh, God," she mewled. Sarah took pity on her and rubbed her shoulders.
"There, there, mum," Sarah said quietly. "You had no idea you were on pay per view."
"Not helping," Rose hissed with a snap.
"I dunno," Donna mused. "Think I need to work out more. Didn't realize I wasn't as limber as I thought I was." She smirked when she saw Rose curl into her arms even tighter.
"Impressive, really," the double said casually. "Still though, I want them gone."
"Get rid of them, Doctor," Rose demanded in a muffle. "If you ever want that again…"
"Right then!" the Doctor said sharply as his fingers landed on his double's temples. After a moment, he let go and went over to Donna to do the same.
"Much better!" the double said, heading over to the pot of tea.
After the Doctor was done with Donna, he accepted the knuckle punch to his shoulder with a grimace. "Sorry about that."
"Just a bit too presumptuous," Donna chided. "Still, I'm glad you two are back together again. Just leave me out of that, thank you so much."
"Daddy?" Sarah said quietly. "Me too? I love you both, but there are some things that I simply don't want to know about."
He went over to the table. "I'm so sorry, my dear. First thing we all need to do is work on our telepathic barriers. Till we master them, I'll have the TARDIS lock down certain areas from the rest of the ship."
His brief contact with his daughter's mind, which was simply to nudge the source of her embarrassment out of there, had him immediately impressed. Her mind was so strong. Blinking, he pulled back and knelt next to her. "Better?"
"Much," she nodded, hugging him.
At the counter, Martha looked the double over with an appraising eye. "So, where'd you get the denim trousers?"
He looked down at himself from his tea prep. While he was still wearing the maroon tee from yesterday, the faded denim was completely unusual. "Found them in the cupboard where I woke up. Nice room, by the way. I'm claiming it." Looking up at Martha, he waved a hand down. "I dunno, what you think? Still a work in progress."
Martha grinned. "Oh, I like it," she murmured.
"I do too," Jack said. "Never saw him dress down and go casual, so that's a nice look."
"Probably need to hit the shops," the double commented. "I already know what's in the wardrobe, and I think I need to do something completely different."
"Shopping?" Martha asked with her brows up. "You?"
"Yeah!" he said with a wide smile. "Can always go for a good sale."
The Doctor grumbled as he went for the tea. "Donna was such a bad influence on you."
"Oi!" Donna complained.
"Oh lighten up," the double chastised. "Besides, I think you owe us after last night."
"I got rid of the offending imagery," the Doctor said primly while he dumped sugar into his tea.
Donna came over and cuffed him on the back of the head. "Oh, shush you. I know you hate dodging people who are after clothes, but how's that different from all the alien bazaars?"
"That's different," Rose said, coming up to hug the Doctor from behind. "He just doesn't like shopping for clothes."
"It's good to see you happy, Rosie," Jack said with a smile. "Still though, I agree. Shopping for clothes got a whole new meaning for me since the Gamestation." He shuddered at that thought.
"Got a decent gun out of that though," the double commented.
"True," Jack grinned. "All right, everyone to the table. Breakfast is ready." Carrying plates of food, he got Donna's attention with a grin. "Gorgeous, huh?"
"Oh, shut it pretty boy," Donna flushed. "You'll get a big head. Like you need any help with that."
"Something like that," he chuckled, waggling his eyebrows.
Martha whacked both of their shoulders, one after the other. "Terrible."