Chapter 5

The Doctor and Rose had just put Tony down for a nap when he turned to her and said, "I think I'm going to work for Torchwood."

"Really?" Rose asked, shocked. She'd been hoping that he'd work there, but she knew he had issues with the organization.

"You work there and if you say they've changed I believe you." The Doctor assured her. "Besides I'm going to need a job if I'm ever going to take you out on a proper date."

"You don't need to do that." Rose told him, blushing. She knew dating wasn't really the Doctor's style… She was just impressed by the fact that he'd allowed her to take him shopping and that he agreed to get a job, at Torchwood no less.

"I want to." He told her, looking straight at her. "I'm getting the life that I've always wanted to have with you and never thought possible. I want to do this right. I want to see being human as an adventure and I want to do things the human way."

"And live with a sonic screwdriver and a TARDIS eventually." Rose added, laughing.

"Well, I'm not fully human, so it's ok to have a sonic screwdriver and TARDIS. Besides, I want Tony to know about being a Time Lord. Speaking of being a Time Lord-"

"You are not giving him a sonic." Rose cut him off. "He's not even three."

"But-" the Doctor tried to argue.

"He can have one when he's older, but let's get him learning to read before we give him a potentially dangerous object."

"It's not dangerous!" the Doctor protested, although he knew he had no chance of winning this argument.

"I've seen it light candles." Rose said, pointedly.

"See, very useful. Not dangerous at all."

"For a toddler?" Rose asked.

"What about when the TARDIS is ready?" the Doctor asked.

"Maybe he can have a sonic then… with limited functions." Rose conceded.

"What about-?"

"He's not learning to pilot the TARDIS until he's old enough to drive a car."

The Doctor had a feeling he had no chance of winning this argument either.

"Alright, can I teach him Gallifreyan?" He asked. He was sure Rose wouldn't have a problem with that, but he didn't want to assume.

"Of course!" Rose told him shocked, she hoped she didn't give him the feeling that he couldn't parent his own son. "You never have to ask to teach him something about his culture… unless it's potentially dangerous."

"I just don't want to do anything if it's not alright with you. You've been with him since the beginning-"

"No." Rose interrupted. "You would've been here if I'd told you and it had been possible. You're his father no matter what. If you're unsure about something talk to me, but I trust you. You've been a father before." Rose was unsure about whether she should have brought the subject up, but they were raising a child together.

"Yes, but things were different in Gallifrey. Our children were taken from us at the age of eight; we were loomed instead of being carried in the womb. Parenting was different, we weren't as close to our children as humans are."

"You're a natural with Tony. I thought that was just because you've done it before."

"No, but things will be different this time." The Doctor promised. "I've always regretted how things were the first time. " He looked down at Rose, who had tears running down her face.

"Now I've got you crying." The Doctor lamented.

"It's ok." Rose told him. "It's not all from what you've been telling me. Well, it is but it's not all bad. It's just that Tony has you now and I can tell you love him like I do; it just makes me so happy. I mean, I knew you'd love him, but I just never thought we'd have this."

The Doctor enveloped her in a hug. When he hugged her, when he held her hand it felt as though they had never been separated.

The Doctor and Rose spent the next day with Tony and the following day, Monday, they made their way into Torchwood.

"We're much smaller now." Rose explained on the way. "There's only eight of us now, including you, me and Dad."

"What's the team like?" The Doctor asked.

"Well you know Jake from the last time you were here, we have this universe's Gwen Cooper she's an ex-Police Constable. There's Tosh, she's a computer whiz and we have Owen, he actually delivered Tony. Plus we have this world's Ianto, he makes great coffee."

"That's Jack's team in our universe." The Doctor told her. "I mean I know you saw Gwen and Ianto. I'm not sure what happened to Owen and Tosh."

"I wish we had Jack, too." Rose commented. "Don't look so jealous, there was never anything between Jack and I. It was always you."

"Rose Tyler," The Doctor began, indignant, though flustered. "I am not jealous. "

"Whatever you say." She laughed. "But I do think he would be a great asset to the team… and I miss him. He's one of my best friends. I know he won't be the same Jack but we can make him better, just like we did before. Speaking of Jack, you owe me an explanation about how he's alive."

The Doctor blanched. "Don't worry, it can wait until after work." Rose assured him. "Anyway, I was thinking. What if we try to hire Donna and Martha?"

"What?" the Doctor asked.

"Well, I didn't get to know either one particularly well, but I know that they were important to you. I also think that both of them could be beneficial to the team. Owen could use some help in the medical department and I'm sure we can get Donna here as a temp. At least she can be a temp until we convince her that she can do more."

"I think that's a brilliant idea." The Doctor smiled.

"We're here." Rose told him.

They got out of Rose's TARDIS blue car and they walked into the small, nondescript building.

Ianto, well alternate Ianto, stood behind the front desk. "Good morning, Rose." He greeted. "You must be the Doctor." He said as he walked over and shook the Doctor's hand.

"Ianto Jones!" The Doctor exclaimed, shocking the man with his familiarity.

"Y-you know me?" Ianto asked.

"Well sort of, I've met you. Well not you really, the other you, in the alternate universe."

"Right, well then, the others are waiting for you." Ianto told them, still shocked.

Rose and the Doctor followed Ianto into the backroom.

"Rose!" Gwen greeted, turning away from her conversation with Tosh.

"Hi Gwen, Tosh." Rose said, giving them each a hug. "How are you?"

"We're fine." Tosh told her. "We're more curious about how you are."

"I'm wonderful. I want to introduce you guys to the Doctor."

Each of the women introduced themselves, but the Doctor refrained from speaking about their counterparts in the other universe, he saw how it had made Ianto nervous.

"Where're Jake and Owen?" Rose asked.

"There've have been some reports about Weevils." Gwen told her. "They're taking care of it."

"Alright, then I'm gonna show the Doctor around. He's going to be helping in the archives and R and D." Rose told them. "Tosh, how is the deconstruction of the Dimension Cannon going?"

"Ianto and I finished it last night." Tosh reported.

"Great, thanks. I'm sorry I wasn't here to help."

"It was no problem, you needed to spend some time with Tony. We don't mind." Tosh told her.

"Thanks." Rose said, grateful. "Let me know when the guys get back."

They walked into an office, that the Doctor assumed was Rose's.

"You're the boss." The Doctor said, in shock.

"Not really." Rose told him. "I mean I guess I'm second in command after Dad, but ok, yeah I'm in charge most of the time because he needs to run Vitex, but he's the head of Torchwood. But like I said, I don't do fieldwork so I'm only in charge here. Mickey was in charge in the field, I guess that's Jake now. "

"Do you miss it?" the Doctor asked her. Curious about her, but about how he'd feel as well.

"Yeah, a bit. But, I don't want to do it because of Tony. I know what it's like to grow up without a parent. It's dangerous enough not going out into the field, I can't knowingly put Tony at a higher risk of growing up without me. I don't think Dad would let me even if I wanted to go in the field, Mum would throttle him." Rose told him. "I mean, just because it's like that for me, I don't want to tell you that you can't go out there if you want to."

"I agree with you though." He told her. "Tony's already gone two and a half years without me. I don't want him to be without his father. I mean, I'll have to go if I'm needed I suppose, but I think I'll be ok staying behind with you. Anyway, we'll have loads of adventures again once we have the TARDIS grown."

Rose smiled at him. "Lets go look at the archives to see if you can find what you need, the faster we get the TARDIS growing, the faster we can travel again."

"Brilliant idea, Rose Tyler. Allons-y!" He declared, before realizing that he had no idea where he was going.

Rose laughed before he could say anything else. "Come on, Doctor. It's this way." She told him, leading the way.