Next week is finals week and then...SUMMER!
The Doctor's hearts nearly stopped when Rose burst into the medcentre with the young engineer (what was her name? Erina, that's it), both of them breathing like they'd run a marathon. Erina's pupils were dilated with fear and she quivered from the adrenaline racing through her veins. Rose's eyes were shining faintly, her face was twisted in grimace, and she let out a cry of pain, clutching at her head.
The Doctor dropped the scan results and was at her side immediately.
"Tell me what happened," he ordered. Rose whimpered and clutched at her head, unable to articulate a reply.
"K-Korwin!" Erina stuttered. "He…he's d-down there—I dunno if he followed us—but he started talkin' an'—an' she just started screaming!"
"It's trying to get in my head!" Rose gasped. "It burns!"
She opened her eyes and gazed up at him pleadingly, lowering her hands from her head. She saw his jaw tighten and he put his hands on her temples. She nodded once and closed her eyes. She felt his mind slip into hers, passing through the shields with ease, surprisingly cool compared to the fire circling the edges. He made a low growling noise as he assessed the damage and started to repair her existing shields and erect new ones. There was another presence, too, working alongside him: the TARDIS trying to protect her, even as she focused on protecting herself from the fiery parasite.
McDonnell, Scannell, and Erina looked on in confusion and with a hint of suspicion.
The burn had faded considerably by the time the Doctor withdrew from her mind. "That should do for now, but I don't know how long it'll last." His voice was dangerously flat. "Whatever infected Korwin is trying to take you as well. I tried, but its taken hold on the edge of your mind, just beyond the shields, and I can't remove it. We don't have that kind of time. When exactly did this start?"
"Just after we got here. When I was lookin' at the sun."
She could see the gears in his mind turning. All of this had something to do with the sun. They both knew it. But what? What could a sun do? Was the parasite using it for power?
"You've kept it out on your own until now, but your proximity to Korwin must've made it more powerful. Try to keep away from him and, just to be safe, don't look out the window anymore."
She nodded. "But, Doctor, my mind, it's really close to the TARDIS's. What happens if whatever this is…gets to her through me?"
The Doctor rounded on McDonnell. "Now we've really got problems. You're husband's gone, and trust me when I say we don't want Rose to go the same way. Is there anything you can think of that would've provoked this? Nobody's working on anything secret, 'cause it's vital that you tell me."
"I know every inch of this ship," Captain McDonnell replied tersely. "I know every detail of my crew's lives. There is nothing."
He glared at her. "Then why is this thing so interested in you?"
McDonnell shook her head. "I wish I knew."
He took a deep breath and backed away. "Erina, you don't feel anything, do you? Nothing burning?"
"No, I feel fine, but—oh my God, ABI!" she shrieked, noticing for the first time the shape scorched into the wall, and realized what her fate would've been if Rose hadn't pulled her away.
"Doctor, we're through to area 17." Martha called over the intercom. Rose sighed with relief when she heard her voice.
He pressed the All button and spoke into the microphone. "Good, keep going. You've got to get to area one and reboot those engines."
Martha rolled her eyes. Bloody alien. They were going as fast as they could and she was exhausted. The heat was getting worse with every passing second and her muscles were absolutely aching. She hefted the clamp up and headed for the door. Behind her, Riley groaned and smacked the computer. She raced back to his side to see what the matter was.
"Everything on this ship is so cheap!" he complained. Something banged back the way they came and they both turned. "Who's there?" he called nervously.
The banging continued so he headed for the door. She set the clamp down on the counter and followed him. A figure appeared in the smoke, tall, wearing work clothes, gloves, and a mask. "Is that Korwin?"
"No, wait a minute." Riley took a step closer. "Oh, Ashton. What are are you doing?"
"Burn with me."
Martha froze. Those words. It wasn't the exact same voice, but those were the words Korwin had said over the intercom. Whatever had taken Korwin must've got Ashton, too. She automatically glanced around, locating any possible escapes and trying to figure out which one was most likely to work, just like she'd been taught to do. But usually it was the Doctor who found the way out and they followed as quick as they could.
Riley tensed, but he kept moving forward. She reached out, seizing the back of his shirt. "Don't, you idiot!" she hissed. "He's been infected!"
"Burn with me! BURN WITH ME!"
Ashton lifted his hand to the visor. He was blocking the way back and the way forward was sealed with no chance of getting it open in time. There was only one thing to do. She slammed her hand against the biggest button on the wall next to her (it was always the biggest button) and a hatch slid open.
"MOVE!" she bellowed, yanking on his shirt again. They scrambled through the door and she flew across the room, smacking her hand against the button to close the door. She rested against the wall for a moment, loving and hating the familiar buzz of adrenaline, and tried to control her breathing. It was so damn hot.
Korwin appeared in the doorway and Riley scrambled to unlock the next door. He pressed a series of numbers on a keypad and the hatch slid open.
"What is that?" Martha demanded.
"Escape pod. In, quick!"
"But—"
"Go!" He shoved her towards the opening. She climbed through, moving aside so he could get in and he shut the door behind her.
"Now what, Einstein?" she demanded. "We're trapped!"
"No, don't worry," Riley tried to reassure her. "He shouldn't be able to—"
"Airlock sealed. Jettison escape pod."
She rounded on him. "I'm sorry, what was that? He shouldn't be able to do what? Because it sounds like he's about to SEND US FLYING INTO THE BLEEDIN' SUN!"
Riley lunged for the keypad and started typing frantically to halt the ejection sequence. She leaned over to the com unit next to the keypad and pressed the button labeled All.
"Doctor!" she shouted. "We're stuck in an escape pod in Area 17! Ashton's been infected, he's tryin' to jettison us! HELP!" She turned to Riley. "Can you stop it?"
"I'm trying, I'm trying…"
"We're coming, Martha!"Rose shouted through the com.
"Jettison: held." the computer reported.
Riley sighed, resting his head against the wall. "Thank you."
"Now get us out of here before—"
"Jettison: reactivated."
She pounded her hands against the glass, trying and failing to keep from panicking. It wouldn't help anyone but she was buzzing with adrenaline and the urge to move. Riley was good, he knew this ship and he knew computers. He was muttering to himself about sequences. Confident, like the Doctor was and that helped calm her a bit. He just had to hold Ashton off until they got here. He could do it.
"Jettison: held. Escape pod stabilized."
They both sighed in relief and she put a hand on his shoulder. "You're good. You're really good."
Almost immediately the attack from Ashton resumed. Riley groaned and sighed in the same breath and started typing again furiously. Martha kept an eye on Ashton. She wished she could see under the helmet. She'd always been more afraid of things in masks during their travels. She couldn't see them so it was easy for her brain to conjure up fears from the tiniest details. With Ashton, it was the visor. Black, flat, and she knew his eyes were staring at them from behind it. Then his head turned, looking at something off to the side. The Doctor. It had to be.
An alarm blared within the escape pod and the computer reported the restarting of the jettison sequence. Riley jerked away.
"He's crushed the circuit. I can't stop it." Then he seemed to realize what this would mean and he turned to Martha, panicked. "I can't stop it!"
"Try!" she ordered and moved back to the door. Maybe there was something she could do. A lever or a switch or a button to open the door. After all there had to be a way to escape the escape pod once it landed.
On the far side of the airlock, the thing that used to be Ashton stepped away from the ruined controls towards the two time travelers.
Rose waited behind him in the doorway, holding her head as the thing tried to bash its way into her mind again. The Doctor walked towards Ashton, his entire body radiating power and confidence.
"Come on," he goaded. "Let's see you."
Ashton approached him, breathing heavily like Darth Vader, until they stood nose to nose.
"I wanna know what you really are."
Ashton started to comply, lifting his hand to the visor the way Korwin had.
She moaned in pain. "Doctor…"
Where the fire pounded against her mind there was suddenly ice. She inhaled sharply, her back straightening at the same time Ashton suddenly shrieked in pain. He backed an doubled over, grunting and gurgling. Moments later he'd recovered. He stared at them for a moment then shoved past the Doctor like he didn't even see him there. Rose jumped out of the doorway, pressing herself into the wall as he passed. The pounding in her head didn't return, even when he was within touching distance, and she exhaled in relief.
Except now he was heading for the engine room and Korwin was down there somewhere, too.
"McDonnell!" the Doctor shouted into the com. "Ashton's heading in your direction and he is infected."
"Thank you, Doctor. …Korwin's dead."
Rose peered through the window out into the airlock. In the pod just a few feet away she could see Martha searching the door with her hands. Rose pounded her fist against the door. "Doctor—Doctor she's in there!"
"Airlock decompression completed," droned the computer. "Jettisoning pod."
"NO!" Rose shouted.
Martha looked up and for a moment their eyes met. She tapped on the window. Rose broke the contact, turning to the Doctor. "Do something," she demanded.
The Doctor examined the controls helplessly. "I can't. There's nothing I can do; they're completely wrecked."
Rose knew there was no way of keeping it off her face when she looked back through the glass and she saw the exact moment when Martha realized their fate. The Doctor joined Rose at the window and they stared at their friend as the pod disengaged and began to float away. They could see the tears starting to trickle down her cheeks. She reached up with one hand to wipe them away and placed her other one on the glass.
Rose pulled her mobile from her pocket and dialed Martha's number. Martha didn't look away as she pulled it out, opened it, and pressed it against her ear
"Sorry."
"There's nothing we can do."
"I know. …It's been great, really."
"Martha—"
"No," the Doctor growled suddenly. "There might be a way." He lunged towards the intercom and shouted for Scannell to bring him a spacesuit.
"Rose?"
She shook her head quickly. "Um—um, the Doctor's got an idea. Just hang on."
"Alright…. But—but just in case… will you…will you take my stuff home? Tell my family what happened. Show them the pictures so they knows you're not lying."
"It's not going to come to that."
"But just in case it does. Tell them I love them. And tell them I didn't regret travelling with you. I wouldn't have missed this for anything."
"I'll see you in a bit," she told Martha. "Just hang in there." She flipped the phone shut and held it into her hands.
"Rose." The Doctor gripped her arms tightly. "I need you to trust me."
"Always. What are you going to do? Ah!" she gasped, her hand flying to her head as she felt another burst of cold on the edge of her mind.
"What's wrong?"
"I think…I think Ashton's down." Rose said slowly, lifting her head.
Scannell and Erina jumped through the door with an orange spacesuit that looked too much like the ones from Krop Tor and a helmet. She recoiled at the sight of it. The Doctor let go of her arms and took the suit from him wordlessly. He pulled it on quickly and Rose helped him with the zippers and fastenings, just like she had last time. She knew what he was going to do now or at least she had a general idea. There was something out there on the hull that could bring them back and he was going to go for it. She knew he had to try just as she knew
"I can't let you do this." Scannell blurted.
"You're wasting your breath, Scannell. You're not gonna stop me."
"You wanna open an airlock in flight, on a ship spinning into the sun. No one can survive that!"
"Oh, just you watch."
"It's suicide! This close to the sun, the shields will barely protect you."
Rose's fingers froze and she lifted her eyes to his. He gazed down at her, reminding her of her trust in him and that there was no other option. If he didn't do this then Martha would die. Swallowing, she continued adjusting the straps and then her hands fell limply to her sides.
The Doctor spoke to Scannell as she worked. "If I can boost the magnetic lock on the ship's exterior, it should re-magnetize the pod. Now, while I'm out there, you have got to get the rest of those doors open. We need those auxiliary engines. Rose, go with him."
"No, I'm not leaving you." she argued. "Erina can go."
"It's too late!" Scannell cried.
The Doctor fixed him with a severe look. "I'm not just going to let her die."
He started to put his helmet on, but Rose seized his face, yanking it down to hers, and mashed their lips together. She pulled back quickly (far too quickly, in his opinion, but time was of the essence) and tapped him firmly on the chest. "I want that spacesuit back in one piece, you got that?"
He smiled and slid the helmet into place. "Yes, sir."
Rose watched as the door slid open and he stepped into the airlock. She moved up to the window and focused on his back instead of the burning sun as best she could. His shoulders were rising and falling faster than normal. Was he afraid? Realizing he was actually afraid for himself didn't help her at all. She wished he would turn around so she could see his face, if only for a second.
"Impact in 11:15. Heat shield failing. At ten percent."
When the Doctor opened the airlock and the sun streamed in at full force, she had to look away. No looking at the sun he'd said and she was inclined to agree. She ducked away from the window and looked up at Erina and Scannell. They were just standing there wasting precious seconds. She snapped at them.
"Well, don't just stand there! Go! Get the doors open!" she ordered.
The two of them jumped into action. Erina picked up the clamp and attached it to the door while Scannell got to work typing. McDonnell leaped over the threshold and told them Ashton had been dealt with. She looked around then demanded to know where the Doctor had gone. Rose jerked her head towards the airlock. McDonnell's eyes widened.
"The pod jettisoned. The crazy bastard's trying to pull them back," Scannell explained. "Ugh! Captain, what's your favorite dessert?"
"Næmarian Chízkí," she answered without looking, hands on her hips. "You let him go?" she demanded.
"He had to try. She's family." Rose closed her eyes and pressed her hands to her temples, trying to ignore the tapping she was beginning to feel against her shields. It wasn't strong enough to be a proper knock yet, but that thing was trying to get into her head again. With Korwin and Ashton down, she was the only other one onboard it had any hold on and it wanted her.
After Scannell called on the com for another answer, McDonnell went to help him and Erina with the questions. Rose turned to the intercom unit and pressed the button that linked to the suit coms. "You alright, Doctor?"
"I can't!" he screamed after a moment and her heart nearly stopped. "I can't reach. I don't know how much longer I can last."
"Doctor, you've got to. She needs you! I believe in you," she added. She waited a moment to see if he'd say something. When he didn't, she let go of the button and sighed, rubbing her forehead.
"Escape pod: recalled. Impact in 9:30. Heat shields failing. At eight percent."
Rose exhaled in relief, pressing her hands to her face. "Oh, thank God." she whispered.
Fear flared in the back of her mind where she was linked to TARDIS, so intense and powerful that her knees buckled. She cried out as she fell to her knees, throwing her hands out to catch herself. She saw the Doctor's face, the sun, and an angry voice roared, "He shall burn with me."
"Doctor, close the airlock now!" Scannell's voice echoed painfully around her.
The TARDIS cried out again and Rose opened her mouth and screamed.
"Rose! Rose, are you alright?" Scannell shouted.
She knelt there gasping for a few seconds, then pushed herself to her feet and pressed the talk button. "'m fine, but I think somethin's wrong."
"McDonnell's on her way."
The airlock door slid open and Rose turned. Seconds passed and the Doctor did not emerge. She called his name but he didn't respond. She was afraid of what she'd see if she looked around the corner, but she was bracing herself to do so when he fell out of the airlock. He hit the floor almost immediately and struggled away from the opening. Martha emerged from the escape pod, calling his name as Rose dropped down beside him.
She reached out to roll him over and he turned sharply, his face twisted into a grimace. He opened his eyes and a bright light like the sun filled the socket. She recoiled as he rasped, "Stay away from me!"
She landed on her bum and skittered back. Whatever it was started to pound against her head again, more intense than before. She tried to grab her head, but Martha and Riley yanked her up by her arms as Captain McDonnell ran up behind them.
"No!" the Doctor shouted. Martha and Riley glanced at each other in confusion. "Leave her alone—argh! She's done nothing!"
The Doctor pressed himself against the wall, trying to get away from them even as they moved closer. "It's your fault, Captain McDonnell!"
The three of them looked at her. McDonnell's breathing increased and she glanced at them then pointed further down the junctions. "Riley, get down there and help Scannell and Erina with the answers. GO!"
Riley ran.
"You mined that sun!" the Doctor screamed at her. "Stripped its surface for cheap fuel." He panted through clenched teeth, gripping the wall with one hand. All the while, his eyes remained firmly shut. "You should have scanned for life!"
"I don't understand."
But Rose did. Before, when she'd been looking at the sun, she'd noticed the way it moved and seemed to be glaring at them. Just after that was when the pounding in her head had begun and the heat. The sun. Trying to get into her mind. She'd only looked at it for a few seconds and it hadn't been able to get a good hold on her before she'd broke contact. That must've been how Korwin got infected. He'd looked into the sun for too long and he didn't have the same defenses she did. It must have crawled right on in.
The Doctor had been out there, mere miles from it, exposed to the heat, and looking at it for who knows how long? It had smashed all his mental barriers, burned right through them like flash paper.
"That sun is alive! A living organism!" He paused, panting, then went on. "You scooped out its heart, used it for fuel, and now it's screaming!"
"What do you mean?!" McDonnell demanded. "How can a sun be alive?! Why's he saying that?"
"Because it's living in me."
McDonnell gasped, realizing finally what she'd done. Korwin, Ashton, and Abi's had died, the ship was about to burn up and they were all about to die, and it was all her fault. "Oh my God…"
"Humans!" the Doctor shouted, writhing in pain. "You grab whatever's nearest and bleed it dry. Aaaarh! You should have scanned!"
"It takes too long! We'd be caught! Fusion scoops are illegal!"
"And look at what you've done!" Rose snarled at her, the pounding at her head worsening. McDonnell took one look at her and backed away.
Rose thought she might have said, "Oh my God!" but she couldn't hear her over the Doctor's scream of agony.
"You've got to freeze me!" he gasped, trying to push himself up.
"What?" Martha demanded. She stepped closer and grabbed onto his arm. Ignoring the fire trying to seep into her head, Rose grabbed his other arm and together they hauled him up.
"Stasis chamber! You gotta keep me…below minus two-hundred. Freeze it out of me!" He screamed again and gasped for air. Now instead of anger, he looked afraid, like he'd just realized something. "It'll use me to kill you if you don't! The closer we get to the sun, the stronger it—aaaaaaggggh!" He doubled over in pain. "Quickly! Quickly!"
Rose moved his arm around her shoulders and rubbed the back of his head, trying to sooth him. "Come on, I've got you." she told him and his face turned towards hers. He looked so scared.
The four of them moved quickly through the areas and tried to keep from dropping him. The Doctor did his best to keep himself upright but he couldn't help the pained whimpering, grunting, and screaming. Every time he went down, McDonnell would turn around and help them get him back on his feet, but other than that she just let the girls carry him. They struggled when they got to the stairs since they were only wide enough for one person, maybe two. They had to turn and step sideways, Rose pulling and Martha and McDonnell doing their best to push him up. By the time they got to the medcentre, they were all exhausted and the Doctor was incapable of keeping himself upright for much longer.
Rose briefly noticed Ashton's dead body in the corner and realized what must've happened to him.
McDonnell grabbed his legs and the three of them lifted him onto the bed of the stasis chamber. Martha immediately snatched up the instruction manual, set it down on the stand beside the chamber, and flipped through the pages. Rose backed away from the Doctor, holding her head. She could feel the sun shoving its way through, bit by bit, smashing through the walls, strengthened by their proximity.
Martha and McDonnell were yelling at each other, but she barely heard them.
You will all burn. Don't try to fight it. Burn with me, you wretched thing.
I said get out of my head!
"Rose? Where are you? Rose!" the Doctor yelled and she realized he'd been calling for her for the past few seconds. She looked up and saw the terror in his face, thinking she'd left him.
"I'm here," she said, stumbling forward. She grasped his hand with both her own and his fingers locked around her. "It's okay. I'm right here."
"Ten seconds, Martha. That's all I'll be able to take!"
He screamed again, gripping Rose's hand so tightly that it hurt. "Get rid of it or I could kill you," he growled darkly. "I could kill you all."
The Doctor cried out and Rose ducked her head, kissing his hot cheek. "Shhh," she soothed. Freeing one hand, she used it to brush the hair away from his face.
"I'm scared," he whimpered. "I'm so scared."
She kissed his cheek again. "I know. I'm scared too. It's gonna be alright."
"It's bloody killing me! You know what that means!"
"It's not gonna happen. You can do this, just hold on for a few more seconds. Martha—" she looked up at her "—please tell me you know how to work that."
"I think so," Martha said.
"R-Rose…" He shrieked, his back arching. "I don't… I don't want to…"
Putting her hands on either side of his face she kissed his burning lips, flinching when the pain in her head spiked. "I won't leave you," she told him. "No matter what."
Then she stepped back and nodded to Martha, who was gripping a lever with both hands. The medical student took a deep, shaky breath and pushed the lever forward. The bed slid back into the stasis chamber, clicking into place. Martha punched in the numbers and started the process.
The screams that followed were worse than almost any sound she'd ever heard him make. The cold was hurting the piece of the sun in her mind and while it was a relief to her it was agonizing to the Doctor. Tears rolled down her cheeks and she sobbed as he shrieked. She wanted to reach out and hold him through it the way Martha was holding her. Instead she clamped her hands over her ears so she wouldn't have to hear him. She couldn't bear it.
When the machine abruptly powered down she knew before he screamed that it was too soon. Martha frantically pushed the power button, to no avail.
"No!" the Doctor roared. "You can't stop it! Not yet!"
Martha spun around and demanded, "What happened?!"
"Power's been cut in engineering." McDonnell realized.
"But who's down there?"
McDonnell swallowed. "Leave it to me." She departed without another word.
The girls watched her go then looked at each other for a second. Martha tried to get the machine working again and Rose put her hand on the only part of the Doctor that wasn't in the chamber: his ankle. She wasn't even sure if he could feel it through the suit and boot but she hoped. He was screaming again and she watched the ice crystals covering his body begin to melt. His temperature was rising so quickly that the water evaporated before even properly turned to steam. Within mere seconds he was nearly back to where he'd been before.
"Do somethin'!" she shouted.
"I'm trying!" Martha snapped. "But it's not working!"
The Doctor grunted through his teeth. "Listen, both of you! I've only got a moment You gotta go!"
"No way!"
"We're not leaving you."
"Get to the front! Vent the engines!" he ordered. "Sun particles in the fuel, get rid of them."
"You go," Rose told Martha. "I'm staying."
"No!" the Doctor yelled. "You have to go, Rose! It wants you next! Please, I don't—AAARGH! I—I don't want to kill you!"
Rose inhaled shakily and backed away from the chamber.
"We'll be back for you," the medical student promised. Martha grabbed her hand and Rose let her pull her out the door.
They thudded down the stairs and raced through the corridors. Ducking under piping and leaping over the thresholds, and twisting to avoid hitting the machinery. When Rose stumbled, the fire almost through to the last layer of protection in her mind, Martha seized her arm and hauled her onwards. They were nearly in the sun now, the computer indicating less than five minutes until they were swallowed up by it.
You will all burn with me!
"GET OUT OF ME!" Rose screamed.
Her legs stopped responding and she went down. It like someone had suddenly blocked the connection between her brain and her legs cutting off all control and most of the sensation. Martha grunted, struggling to keep them both from falling, and only just managed to ease Rose to the ground. "No! Just go!" she told Martha. "Give it back!"
Martha squeezed her arm once and left without a word. Rose sighed and used her arms to pull herself over to the wall. Dimly she registered that what should be an unbearably hot surface was only borderline uncomfortable. She clutched at her head, pressing her hands to her ears to block out the sounds of the ship and the computer counting down the seconds to their deaths.
The sun had broken into her mind and now the heat slowly spreading through her body as its mind tried to reach her soul.
Please stop, she begged.
You will all burn for this.
But we didn't do anything! We only came to help.
You came to help those who would use me for their own gain. You are no better.
Rose growled at it. She could see it clearly in her mind. There was only one layer separating her from the fire. As soon as it got through it would take her over as surely as it was taking over the Doctor.
But then something occurred to her. She should've realized ages ago.
I'm just a human. You should've burned through me a while ago. Why haven't you? …You can't, can you?
The fire was circling, attacking, but it didn't even make a dent in this last wall. Something was protecting her. Something stronger than any defense the Doctor had given her. Something neither Korwin nor Ashton had. She tried to move again and found that her legs were still impossibly heavy and almost numb. It had enough of a hold now to keep her in place, to make it feel like flames were licking at her skin, but it couldn't completely take her.
You can't kill me.
No. But he can.
"R-Rose…?"
She heard his voice calling her name even through her hands. She opened her eyes and saw the Doctor on the floor at the entrance to the area. "Doctor?"
His head snapped around and she saw horror flit across his face as he realized how close she was. "No! You have to…have to go!" he grunted, crawling towards her. "Run!"
"I can't."
"Rose, please!"
"I can't," she repeated, struggling to move. She shoved against the invading force and willed her body to cooperate. She managed to scoot a few inches to the right before her limbs locked up again, heat coursing through.
The Doctor grunted, struggling against every movement towards her. "I can't fight it…" He screeched wordlessly, face contorting in pain.
"You've got to for just a bit longer."
The Doctor was just a few feet from her now, struggling with the last of his energy to halt his progress. Their puppet master would use him to kill her in a few moments. …And that was okay. She'd rather he kill her now than let the sun use her to slow down or even kill the others.
That didn't stop tears from dripping down her cheeks.
At least her Mum wouldn't be left to wait in an empty flat. She was happy, safe, and loved.
He screamed again wordlessly and when he stopped she seized this one last chance to tell him what she should have a long time ago. "I love you, Doctor, no matter what happens."
His entire body was shaking with the effort to hold still. "I…Rose…" he gasped, arching his back, face twisting. Then his eyes opened, shining with the power and fury of the sun. She flinched away from him. "Burn with me. Burn with me, Rose!"
"No! Give him back!"
Burn with us, it thought as the Doctor screamed.
"Give him back!"
The ship lurched suddenly and, unable to control her limbs, Rose went flying. She collided with the Doctor and they both went rolling across the room. He cried out in pain and over that she heard the computer saying something about a fuel dump.
THERE, TAKE IT! She thought viciously and the TARDIS's angry hum echoed her words. She could feel the Doctor trembling next to her, gasping for air and choking on his screams. AND LET HIM GO.
For the first time, the voice was missing its pained edge. Now there was only anger with more than a hint of a challenge. It still had control, after all. Why should I?
Because if you do not return him to Us, We will rip your mind from this star, and place you in another that's being sucked into a black hole while your body is left behind to sustain the people here.
You cannot do such a thing.
The Doctor shrieked again.
Try Us.
The sun did not respond verbally, but Rose felt the burning presence receding from her mind. Behind her, the Doctor's scream slowly died away into panting. The ship lurched again and Rose found she could move of her own accord. She heard a thud as the Doctor hit the wall and a second later she crashed into him. Lightning fast, he wrapped his arms around her and held her close as the ship lurched again, violently.
Next time there will be no mercy… the sun whispered before it faded completely from her mind.
As the ship's flight evened out, Rose rolled over in his grasp and stared into his normal brown eyes. She laughed in relief, reaching up to touch a wrinkle just below his eye. "She did it."
His answering smile was as bright as the—oh, maybe not the best expression to use at the moment. The Doctor pulled her even more tightly to him and she felt his laughter resonate through her. They were sticky with sweat and would be covered in bruises soon but neither cared. She held his head in her hands while he pressed kisses along the side of her face and the top of her head. She laughed once more, the tears leaking from her eyes now ones of joy, then pulled his mouth to hers.
:3 oop.
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