Return To Memory
Chapter 12: A Bad Wolf in Sheep's Clothing
Disclaimer: Seriously, you guys know this by now. I don't own Doctor Who.
Her walk to the Academy was surreal. As she passed people in the streets, they took notice of her. Her flowing robes and bright necklace made her feel out of place as she walked through the market where she had worked every day with her mum. She knew, however, that it wasn't her new clothing that was bringing all of the attention of those around her. She could hear whispers of her relationship with the Doctor in the air, and her social status was the topic of the morning.
She wasn't sure what to do with herself at the moment. More money than she and her mother made in a week was jingling in the pocket of her robes, "spending money" that the Doctor had given her for the day. She would spend it all on her way home from lunch, and a list was already growing in her mind of her poorest friends that could really use the business. She wasn't used to being the center of attention. It made her feel both important and strange at the same time. She hurried a bit, wanting to get to the Academy as soon as possible. The eyes following her, while friendly, were unnerving.
Soon she was out of the lower class area and had entered the upper class neighborhoods around the Academy. Large, gleaming gold houses rose up around her. The red grass was perfectly manicured, the trees all beautifully placed. It was quiet, but the market up ahead at the base of the Academy's large tower was bustling. She adjusted her beautiful magenta robe and tried to tamp down the feeling of displacement. The necklace hummed comfortably on her neck and she tried to focus on that feeling. These people didn't know her and her robes matched their wealth. They wouldn't ridicule her as they had the last time.
She entered the marketplace and all sound ceased. This was what she had feared. She glanced around her, trying to keep her head down. Rose prayed that it wasn't her they were whispering about. The women in the marketplace were all dressed extravagantly, some even less than Rose. How did they know who she was? She felt like a wolf in sheep's clothing.
A bad wolf.
Oh, hello weird thoughts.
She could her the whispers as she passed a clothing shop. She was almost to the door of the Academy's main tower. She was almost out of this gauntlet from hell. One particularly ghastly woman whispered to the young girl beside her and Rose's ears picked it up.
"That's the peasant girl the Doctor is playing with. Don't worry dear, he must be doing a bit of charity for her. He can't really be courting her with someone as perfect as you around. He'll drop her soon. She's not of the proper station for him to be serious."
Rose was immediately angered. How dare that horrid woman say such things! What she had with the Doctor was real. She hadn't seen him even look at another woman in the time he was with her. It was her that was sleeping in his home, her that he cried for in his kitchen, it was her that he gave his life for!
Well, maybe not that last one. Weird thoughts again.
She couldn't ignore this slander. Without truly thinking through her actions, Rose turned on her heel and faced the snooty and quite plump woman in the horrid lime green robes. (Which, by the way, were about three sizes too small.)
"Excuse me, I couldn't help but overhear-" she managed to get out before the awful woman cut her off.
"Oh, you couldn't, could you? That's all you peasant girls ever do, eavesdrop on the real people." The woman smirked.
Rose stood, astonished. She had been a peasant all her life, but nobody had ever spoken like that to her. "Actually, us "peasant girls" do quite a few other things. But that isn't what I wish to discuss with you."
The woman attempted to cut her off again, but Rose continued quickly.
"My name is Rose Tyler, thank you for asking. I will not answer to "peasant girl." The Doctor is courting me, not 'playing' with me. You hold him in high regards, but you would assault his honor by suggesting that he would do such a thing as pull a cruel joke like that." She glared at the woman, all sorts of awful words (some in languages she recognized, others she didn't) wanting to come out of her mouth. She wanted to prove a point while maintaining a bit of grace in this situation. Shouting uncivilized curses at her would not help her case.
"Well, Rose," the lady said with an awfully snooty air, "you are poorly mistaken. I feel sorry for you. You enjoy your time in our society while it lasts. I hope he lets you keep those robes. No other woman would want to wear them after you."
There would be no winning with this woman, and Rose just wanted to get out of the prying eyes of these horrid people. She still couldn't resist one last word as she opened the giant wooden door of the tower.
"Yes, well I feel sorry for you. Either you are poorly mistaken as to your dress size or you just stole a spare tire and two melons from some poor vendor."
The door slammed satisfyingly behind her, and Rose could no longer hear the horrified sputters of the woman nor the hushed laughter of the women around her. She leaned back against the cool wood and willed herself not to cry. She really hoped the Doctor never learned of that particular encounter.
A planet behind her. Earth. A countdown to destruction.
"Is that why you wanted a word? You could be flatter. You've got a bit of a chin thing poking out."
"I'd rather die than live like you, a bitchy trampoline."
The sun burns. The Earth dies.
The man in the leather jacket watches skin dry out and burst, his face passive and unforgiving.
"Help her"
He does not.
She shook herself from her most disturbing recent vision. A burst of fiery red and uproarious laughter came at her from the right and she was swept into an almost violent hug.
"Oh, that was bloody brilliant! I've been waitin' for someone to put that old Gretta in her place! A tire and two melons, ha! What's a tire? Anyway, you said your name was Rose, yeah?"
Rose blinked, surprised at this incredibly friendly woman and a bit overwhelmed with the speed of her speech. "Um, yeah. Rose Tyler. You are?"
The woman smiled widely, her face looking effortlessly pretty as she did so. "Donna. Donna Noble."
Rose smiled back at her. Perhaps she would have friends in this rich world, after all. "It's nice to meet you. How exactly did you hear the...well, I'm not sure what to call it."
Donna gestured to her right. "I work here. I'm the secretary for the Academy. My window was open right next to the whole thing. It's so good to see someone with actual spunk around here. Everybody's so "oh, I'm sorry did I breathe in the wrong direction? Well, that was hardly appropriate". It's so stuffy here."
"I take it you're from the lower class too, then?" Rose asked. "We are the only ones that know how to have fun, after all."
"Oh, yeah. Born and raised in the lower fourth quarter. I think I know you, though. You work at a shop with your mum, right?"
Rose couldn't help a small smile drifting to her face. "Yeah, until recently anyway. The Doctor and I met and, well...life is a bit different now."
Donna smiled even wider, if that was possible. "Oh, you're spaceman's courting partner? That is absolutely brilliant! He told me you were coming today! His classroom is right this way, follow me!"
Rose gladly followed Donna through the large hallways. She remembered the last time she was here. It had been an awful day of rejection and sadness. She had been silent to the judgmental whispers and stares last time. She was just a tiny bit glad she had spoken back to Gretta. Donna broke the silence quickly.
"So, tell me the story! All that bloody spaceman does is blush and talk about you. He won't tell me details, though!"
Rose blushed a bit at that. He talked about her? "Well, he came to the shop and that's how we met. He was so funny, too. I thought he was an idiot at first, because he was asking if we had chocolate and the whole time he was leaning on a big display of it! But then, he smiled and...well, he asked me to go to lunch and I said yes."
Donna sighed and put her arm around Rose's shoulders. "Oh, that's so sweet! He is an idiot, by the way. Especially when he's talking about you. Gets this twinkly look in his eyes and then he starts knocking stuff over and struggling for words. It's adorable and a little bit disgusting."
Rose laughed. "He's...wonderful."
Donna laughed. "Well, here's his room. I think his lecture should just be getting out right now. I've gotta get back to my office, but I hope I see you again soon. Come see me next time you come up here, yeah?"
Rose smiled, feeling like she had a good friend for the first time in a while. "Absolutely." Donna waved goodbye and disappeared down the hall. She stood awkwardly in the hallway for a moment before the doors began to open and students began to file out of the classrooms.
Before she could enter the Doctor's classroom, however, another man with short, blonde hair went in. He was dressed in the professor's robes that everyone but the Doctor seemed to wear.
"Oi, Doctor! Get your bloody annoying ship out of my classroom. It was funny this morning, but now it's just distracting. It keeps making noises during my lectures!"
Rose peeked in through the doorway to see the Doctor trying to conceal a smile at the man. He didn't seem to have noticed her yet.
"But Master, I do believe you said you were holding her hostage! Far be it for me to keep you from your ransom!"
The man, whom Rose assumed was called the Master, made a frustrated noise in the back of his throat. "Keep the good plan period! I don't care. Just get that bloody thing out of my classroom before I take my sonic axe to it!" He stormed out, bumping briefly into Rose as he stomped back into the next room. The Doctor saw her standing outside and his face lit up. She smiled back at him with the same goofy grin. Did he always look like a man in love around her? She dearly hoped so.
"Rose! How are you?" He said enthusiastically. He ran to her and reached his hand up next to her face. She nodded and he ran his fingers lovingly through her hair. She sighed at the feeling and realized that, even though they had only been apart for a few hours, she had missed him dearly.
"I'm good. I met Donna." She said as he gathered his large trench coat. She wondered where they were going to have lunch today.
He grinned at her. "Oh, Donna? She is lovely, isn't she? We'll have to take her in the TARDIS with us sometime, yeah?"
Rose nodded as they left the room and went into the room the Master had burst from earlier. "So, who exactly is the Master?"
The Doctor rolled his eyes. "He's another professor here. We grew up together, even came to the Academy together. He can be a bit of a prat sometimes."
Seeing the welcoming blue of the TARDIS, Rose searched her pocket for the key she used to keep around her neck. She loved the warmth it exuded when she neared the TARDIS. "So, where are we going to lunch today?"
The Doctor smiled as he took out his own TARDIS key and let them in. The familiarity of the welcoming console room and Rose's presence soothed him. He turned to the controls as rose sat on the chair. Where else had they been where they were unlikely to run into anyone? He looked at the controls and realized the TARDIS was low on energy. Hmm...it seemed he had no choice.
"Ever been to Cardiff, Rose?" he asked.
"No." She replied. He could hear the excitement for a new adventure in her voice. He entered the coordinates quickly and held on tightly as the ship began to spin through the vortex towards Cardiff.
As the ship stabilized and flew through the vortex, the Doctor walked to sit next to Rose in the chair. He gazed at her and she looked back, a cute blush coloring her cheeks. Oh, he longed to touch her face and kiss her properly. He remembered their single real kiss at the temple before her wish. He wanted more than anything to have that freedom again. He knew she would let him if he tried to kiss her now, but he wanted to do this right.
Happiness still floated in him as the ship landed, though. Regardless of her memory, Rose was by his side and she loved him. Things were finally looking up.
When he opened the doors, he knew he shouldn't have thought that.
Rose looked outside and saw a large metal room with computers. She peeked out and the Doctor rushed to follow her. She heard a screech and looked up to see a strange creature flying above. She hadn't seen it at the Earth zoo, so what was it?
They heard a series of clicks and Rose looked down once more to see a gun barrel to her face.
"We're really going to need to have a talk about your driving skills." she said to the Doctor.
He wasn't listening, though, because the last person they needed to see was walking through the doors of the Torchwood Hub and had just spotted them.
"Doctor? Rosie!" he shouted and began to run toward them.
This was not going to end well.
A/N: Hey everyone! Sorry it took me so ridiculously EPICALLY long to post this chapter! I'm back and I'm working on this fic and a few others again! I'm in grad school now and my life is insane, so I'll post as often as I can but it certainly won't be as often as I want to! Reviews do encourage me, though! Thank you so much for sticking with me and this story so long!
With love,
doctorrosetyler