Whoops. Forgot to post this yesterday. My baaaad. ^^;
Rose rummaged through her closet to find something to go with the hot pink shirt she'd found in the 1980's section of the wardrobe. She was thinking of asking the Doctor to take them there later once he and Martha got back.
The pair of them had gone to hear a speaker at a convention who supposedly was on his way to developing the cure for cancer. The Doctor had decided this was a good opportunity for him to give the scientist a nudge in the right direction. An effective cure wouldn't be found for another century but there was nothing that said he couldn't help them along or hinder him if he had to. The announcement of the cure for cancer was a fixed event.
But the mere mention of a scientific convention had caused Rose's nose to wrinkle in distaste and she'd told them to go have fun together. If the Doctor were going with any other woman in the universe she would've tagged along to be sure they understood he was off-limits. They were at the point where she felt she had the right to give off those kinds of signals. Martha had been pushing them together ever since she came onboard. She wouldn't have done that if she'd been secretly waiting to put the moves on him herself.
The three of them fit together. It reminded Rose of their days with Jack. They'd made a great team, the three of them. They'd functioned together as a group and also when it was just two of them and the other was somewhere else. She wasn't quite sure what Jack and the Doctor talked about when she wasn't around, just that they'd gotten along once the Doctor had gotten over his unfortunate (or not so unfortunate, depending how you looked at it) case of Captain Envy.
Whenever the Doctor was busy, or they'd stopped on a planet toxic to humans, or was in one of his broods, she and Jack had often sought each other out for entertainment. Those were the times when he'd tell her the stories he knew the Doctor wouldn't approve of, give her honest fashion advice, or teach her things the Doctor had never considered. Like how to defend herself with only her body as a weapon, how to get free of someone's grip, and stuff like that. Another time he taught her how to create an aphrodisiac for beings with binary vascular systems, like the Doctor. He'd followed that lesson up with 'what to expect during sex with telepaths.'
Jack had become like a brother. A brother that…gave her alien sex advice and would bed her in a heartbeat. Okay maybe not a brother. But she had loved him like a brother. And he had loved her like—
Actually, there hadn't been a singular label she could assign to it. Sometimes it seemed fatherly, sometimes it seemed brotherly, and sometimes it was obvious he wanted in her pants (this was when the Doctor would get tetchy and send one of them off somewhere) and if it were anyone else she would have been disturbed.
Rose made a small sound of triumph when she found her favorite denim skirt and pulled it off the hanger.
With Martha, it was like she suddenly had a sister. They came from entirely different backgrounds and in ways they were total opposites, but they got along, they had fun together, and they made a formidable team whenever they wanted to go somewhere the Doctor didn't. And it was nice to have someone her age and, well, species around that she could talk to. She loved the Doctor and he was her best mate but there were some things she'd never talk to him about.
There didn't seem to be anything special like that between Martha and the Doctor. They were simply friends. They loved debating and watching old sitcoms. She could kick his butt in rummy and refused to attempt chess with him. She was able to follow along with some of the science and math that usually left Rose's head spinning. The expressions he made that would normally make Rose give into whatever he was asking would hardly faze Martha most of the time and he'd started working on expressions that would work on her.
Not for the first time she realized that this was her family now. She was okay with that.
Rose was shimmying into a pair of shin-length black leggings when ship shuddered violently. The TARDIS shrieked in pain in her mind and her side stung like something had burned it. She gasped, squeezing her eyes shut until the sting faded, and then she was running. Her bare feet pounded against the floor and she winced when the carpet gave way to cold metal grating.
She heard the Doctor shouting from several hallways away but she couldn't make out what he was saying until she was closer.
"BUT DID THEY SEE YOU!?"
Martha's reply was too quick and quiet for her to understand.
She burst into the console room, colliding with the back of the jump seat in her momentum, and nearly falling flat on her arse. "You went to a convention!" she shrieked at them. "How did you get in this much trouble going to a bloody convention?!"
The Doctor ran around the console, ignoring her question, and flipped the lever to send them directly into the vortex. The console emitted a warning beep and he glanced down at the screen. He growled in frustration as he grabbed it. "They're following us!"
"Who's following us?"
"How can they do that?" Martha demanded. "We're in a time machine."
The Doctor scanned the screen then started flipping switches and typing in coordinates. "Stolen technology, they've got a Time Agent's vortex manipulator. They can follow us wherever we go, right across the universe. They're never going to stop." He ran his hand through his hair and looked between is two companions and swallowed.
"Doctor, tell me what's going on." she ordered. "What's after us?"
"These creatures, they're…" he glanced at the screen again, "they're telepathic parasites. When they're in a familial unit of four like the group after us, they're called a 'Family of Blood.' They require a host body to live for an extended period of time; otherwise they'll die. Usually in about twelve weeks."
"So why are they chasing us?"
"They want me. If they absorb a Time Lord they could live forever, wreak havoc across the universe. It happened once a long time ago, before the War. A Family managed to kill a Time Lady and it took an alliance between the Time Lords and Arcadians to defeat them. And since I'm the last Time Lord, if they take me, well..." he made a face. "All powerful beings with access to time travel? I'm sure you can guess."
"So what do we do?" Martha asked.
"Well, now, ah… At this point, we have three options. All involving running away."
"We can't just kill them?"
From the look on the Doctor's face you'd have thought she'd just suggested they help Hitler with the Holocaust.
She rolled her eyes. "Fine, then. What did you have in mind?"
He sniffed once, relaxing. "Well, we can either stay in the vortex for three months or however long it takes. We can try to shake them off. Or—and, really, this would be the safest way, because they don't know what I look like but they know what I smell like and they're great hunters. They can follow my scent anywhere in the universe. But! But if I don't smell like a Time Lord then they can't track me."
"How do you stop smelling like a Time Lord?" Rose asked.
"The most certain way—" he glanced at her nervously "—is to stop being a Time Lord."
Rose blinked in surprise.
"And become human," he finished.
Rose opened her mouth. Shut it. Opened it again. Shut it again. Finally she managed, "I'm sorry…what?"
"I can become human."
"Okay. Stop." She held up her hand then pointed at him. "You're a Time Lord. A Time Lord is a special type of Gallifreyan. Right? How can you just stop being a Gallifreyan?"
"By rewriting my biology."
"Oh, if that's all." Martha grumbled.
Rose stared at him. He could become human? And he made it sound so simple. The implications and possibilities raced through her mind. "Have you always been able to do that?"
"Yes. The TARDIS has a feature called the Chameleon Arch that can completely rewrite my DNA changing me from one species to another."
"So…so what was all that about things you could never give or do with me?" she demanded. "The 'watching me wither and die' thing when you could've changed so your lifespan matched mine? And what about your people? Why didn't any of them do it to survive the war?"
"Because it's not that simple." He put his hands on her shoulders. "Don't think for a moment that I haven't considered becoming human for you. Let the universe learn to keep going without me because I don't ever want to have to learn to keep going without you.
"But, Rose, humans are not like Time Lords. A human mind could maybe handle a Gallifreyan mind—a young or underdeveloped one—but not a Time Lord's mind. They'd burn. If I changed to human and kept my mind, I'd die. In order for me to become human, I'd have to change completely, mind and body. I wouldn't remember you, my people, the TARDIS, any of it."
Rose swallowed, nodding. "I see. But you would never do that for me, even if you could."
"If you asked, I would."
She stared at him in surprise. She decided to set aside for later and return to the more pressing issue. "S-so, if you became human to hide from these things, you wouldn't be the Doctor anymore. B-but you change…change back, right?"
"Yes," he assured her. "This I could change back from."
"And you'd look the same?"
"I should. Humans look Time Lord enough so there won't be any big differences, well, aside from the biological stuff, but that's all on the inside."
"So instead of seeing you in a new body, I'd have to see another man in your body."
"I…" He didn't finish but he didn't have to. The expression on his face was enough.
"So how is this any better than when Cassandra possessed you? Or that sun?" Rose shook her head furiously. "No. No! We'll run, we'll hide, but you're stayin' you! I've gone along with a lot of mad or just plain ridiculous plans you've come up with, but this is where I draw the line. I'm not going to watch someone else parading about in your body. I can't."
He nodded. "Alright. So we'll run."
The Doctor released her shoulders and turned back to the console and begin flipping and pressing controls rapidly.
"But if they can smell you, how will you be able to hide?" Martha asked.
"I won't leave the TARDIS. They shouldn't be able to track me in here and if I put the TARDIS on emergency power then they won't be able to detect her either. But first I think we should try to shake them off our trail. It will be difficult but if I can scramble the TARDIS's artron signature, temporarily mask the huon, and give us extra shielding…" he ran his hands through his hair furiously, teeth bared.
"Right!" He ducked down and hefted the Extrapolator off the floor, setting it on the console and flipped a switch. It started to hum. "Rose, man the helmic regulator—the one that looks like a bicycle pump. Martha, hold onto the—the—" he gestured furiously "—red and yellow swirly doohickey over there and when I say so, push down."
They scrambled around the console to their assigned places and Doctor brushed passed them, flipping a variety of switches, pulling a few levers, turned the big green ball, and hefted the fire extinguisher off the floor and set it down where he'd be doing the most work.
"Rose, keep that pumping up and down starting now. Martha, in three…two…NOW!"
Martha grunted and pushed the red and yellow knob down along its squiggly track. The TARDIS shuddered wildly and she nearly bashed her nose against the controls. She felt the familiar thump as the TARDIS touched down. The Doctor ordered her to keep the knob down as he flipped the lever for them to dematerialize then told her to push it back up. She did, wondering what the hell this little knob did but knowing better than to ask.
They repeated this process at least ten times. Rose had to switch arms twice and several times her face twisted in discomfort. The Doctor mostly stayed over by his little area of the console, entering new coordinates, flipping the main lever, whacking the extrapolator with the mallet, and growling obscenities in a dozen different languages at the screen.
"Yes!" he hissed. "Martha, one more time. Now!"
She pulled the knob down one final time and they landed, lingering, then he flipped the lever and she pushed the knob back up.
"Good! Well done!" he crowed and stepped away from the console.
Martha huffed in relief and flexed her fingers.
Rose massaged bicep gingerly. "What did we just do?" she asked.
"We just bounced to twelve different planets, in nine different parts of the universe, in twelve different time zones. Including Raxicoricofallapatorious."
"Did it work?"
"We lost them on Clom. Right bit of luck, that." He sniffed proudly. "Two parasite species together should be an interesting mix. And by interesting I mean extremely volatile."
"So now where are we?" Martha asked.
"We're in the vortex around two point five trillion years after the point we exited Clom—a bit drastic but necessary. I need to do a quick diagnostic check on the TARDIS and find out what that just cost us. We might have to make a stop for parts so if you want something to eat you better get it now."
"What about the Family?"
"I've set the TARDIS to give us a proximity alert but, really, assuming they make it out of Clom intact, I think the chances of them finding us again are slim. We should be fine."
"Well that was easy," Rose said. She folded her arms. "Why did you even consider changing yourself?"
"Wasn't sure the old girl could pull it off, to be honest."
The TARDIS's hum deepened, the lights dimmed, and Rose felt offense prickling the back of her mind.
"Er, sorry?" he tried. The lights returned to normal and the TARDIS made a peculiar sound that reminded Rose oddly of a huff.
Martha looked between the Doctor and Rose for a moment. Rose caught her eye and inclined her head towards the door. Martha nodded and silently removed herself from the room. Rose waited until she was out of sight, trusting the TARDIS to give them a few minutes privacy. She straightened out her shirt and slowly followed his path around the console. He didn't even glance at her. She stopped after they'd made a full circuit and sat down in the jump seat.
"Doctor. Did you mean it?"
"Mean what?" he asked.
"You know what I'm talking about." She took a deep breath and exhaled softly. "Would you become human for me?"
The Doctor closed his eyes, swallowed. "I've fought armies and would-be admirers, stopped weddings, thwarted madmen, dethroned kings, broken in and out of prisons for you, and sat through tea with Jackie Tyler on many occasions. I burnt up a sun for you. I died for you, Rose. I would tear apart worlds for you if I had to." He opened his eyes and turned to face her. "But it the idea that I'd become human for you is what surprises you?"
"Yeah. I guess it's…. You're more than a human, Doctor, and you're the last. Why would I ever think you'd give that up for me? I didn't even know it was possible for you to change at all. I suppose it doesn't matter since you wouldn't even be you," she added as an afterthought.
"Let's assume for the moment that I could change my body and keep my mind, then. If you wanted to stop travelling and live a human life with me, I'd do it."
"And when I'm growing old and dying?"
"I'd grow old and die, too."
Rose had difficulty swallowing past the lump in her throat. She heard him step closer. His hands came up to cradle her face and he brushed a bit of hair away from her face with his thumb. "Why?" she asked.
"You don't know?"
"But you're the last. When you die it all dies with you. I can't possibly be worth all that. Why would you give up decades—centuries even—and let the last of your people go for me?"
The Doctor smiled down at her and his hands slipped to her shoulders. "Ask me again sometime." He kissed her forehead then gave her a gentle push towards the door. "Go get shoes on. Love the 80s, look, by the way."
She couldn't help but smile back at him and decided to wait. The way he'd said it made her believe he had a reason for wanting to wait and wasn't trying to just get out of the conversation. Although she wouldn't put the latter past him.
"Will it do?" she asked.
"Yeah, it should."
She returned to her room to find some shoes to go with her retro look and laughed when she saw an unfamiliar pair of pink knee-length converse waiting in front of her bed.
"Seriously?" she asked the TARDIS and received a cheerful hum in reply.
Rose laughed and got a pair of socks from her dresser. As expected, the shoes fit her perfectly and she wondered not for the first time how the TARDIS managed to have a never ending supply of clothes that fit her. She couldn't imagine the Doctor flitting around the universe bringing back girls' clothing. Had a former companion of his brought these shoes onboard and left them behind when she departed? Did the TARDIS randomly snatch items whenever they landed in different times? Did she grow clothes the same way she grew new rooms?
She considered asking the Doctor. Would he tell her? More likely he'd dismiss her question and claim that some things were better enjoyed when they weren't understood.
Of course thinking of the Doctor brought their conversation to the forefront of her mind. She could understand why he'd never mentioned the Chameleon Arch before. Besides the fact that there was no need to, that wasn't the kind of thing you just brought up. "Yeah, by the way, I've got a machine that can make me the same species as you but it also erases my memory so I wouldn't even know who you were." She didn't know how she would've reacted to that.
But there had been a moment there before he'd explained the ramifications where she'd considered what a human life would be like with the Doctor. All the things they could and couldn't have. A house. Ordinary—but not too ordinary—jobs. A pet. Children. She had no real desire to be a mother, at least not yet, but he'd been a father once. Would he like to be a father again?
Never mind as a human. What would it be like if they had a child together as they were now? A new baby Gallifreyan that he could pass on his legacy to, perhaps train to be a Time Lord. She didn't know what effect human genetics would have on the baby, but still. The chance for him to have someone else who would understand things she never could.
Of course, before they had a baby they'd actually have to be having sex and that particular ship didn't seem to be sailing any time soon.
Rose shook her head. These were not things she should be dwelling on.
She finished tying the laces and stood up, smoothing out her skirt. She walked over to her mirror and gave herself a quick onceover. Hot pink off-shoulder shirt, denim skirt, black leggings, and a pair of pink knee-length converse. Good enough. She slipped her TARDIS key around her neck and put in her favorite hoop earrings. She decided that was good enough and left the room.
She encountered the Doctor halfway back to the console room with a credit chip in his hand.
Rose arched her eyebrow. "So you actually plan on paying this time?"
He grinned sheepishly.
Rose shifted closer to him as they walked and the Doctor slid his arm around her waist like it was the most natural thing in the world. And it was now. She smiled and leaned her head against his shoulder. Martha was waiting for them when they arrived and she smiled at the sight of them. She hopped down from the jump seat and leaned against the console.
The Doctor looked her up and down once. "That what you're wearing?"
She looked down at herself. Nothing unusual for her: leather jacket, jeans, and a black top. "Should I change?" she asked quickly.
"No, you're fine. Just checking. I'm not sure when we're landing. Her universal chronometer is a bit fried so there's no way to tell." He studied the display for a moment then started setting the controls. "But she'll hopefully be able to use her other systems to ensure we land in the right era. If not, we might have to make a few jumps."
The journey was bumpier than normal. Martha and Rose clung to the console while the Doctor tried to pilot them with one of the primary navigational systems offline. When they touched down he told them to stay put and went to check where they'd landed. He looked outside for a moment and Rose saw a flash of green before he shut the door.
"Nope!" he declared and ran back up the ramp.
Two more unsuccessful landings later, the Doctor looked out again and crowed in triumph. Taking that as a sign they were in the right time the two women followed him outside.
The TARDIS had landed on a corner of a city that belonged in a futuristic sci-fi film. The sky was blue and clouds floated lazily overhead. Vehicles whizzed through the air following invisible roads in between tall, iridescent or dark buildings, and in the space below the sky roads, people zipped around on flying bicycles and hover boards. The humming of the vehicles and the buzz of conversation filled the air. The air smelled way too fresh to be a big city and the scent of warm cinnamon tickled Rose's nose and made her mouth water and she spotted a bakery across the street with its doors open.
The crowds passing them were a mix of humans, aliens, and some that looked like half-breeds. They were dressed in a myriad of different styles, a result of the blend of cultures on Earth now. There didn't seem to be any distinct pattern on who wore what, just that no one was really mixing colors. Oh, the three of them would stick out like sore thumbs, Rose realized glumly. That meant lots of staring.
"Arthapolis," the Doctor introduced with a flourish. "Come on, hurry up. Best not to linger too long."
"Why?" Martha asked as they followed him away from the TARDIS. Sure enough, the moment they stepped out of the reach of the TARDIS's perception filter people began to notice them. Heads turned, eyebrows shot towards hairlines, and fingers were pointed. She saw a blue-skinned girl hold up something that resembled a camera and a tiny red light on the front blipped once.
"Arthapolis is a hotspot for time travellers, particularly Time Agents. And not just Jack's Agency," he added before Rose could ask. "There will be similar foundations throughout history founded by aliens and humans alike. Arthapolis is where a lot of them come if they want to experience the Second Golden Age of Earth. That's the 230th through the 233rd centuries, by the way, so we're somewhere in there."
Suddenly the inquisitive looks they were getting took on a whole new light. "They know we're time travelers."
"Oh, yes."
Martha smiled at someone then leaned closer to the Doctor. "Can we talk to them?" she muttered.
"I don't see why not. I expect someone will stop you and ask for your name, planet and city of origin, and year of birth. If you're from the past they can search the databanks and learn about you. If you turned out to be famous or important and they can add you to do the database as a known time traveler." At her surprised look, he laughed once. "This is their culture, Martha. They were raised to expect visitors from other times. They might question you about your time and what time travelling is like but they won't ask to come along because it's rude. It'd be like you approaching a celebrity for their autograph, maybe asking them a few questions. But you wouldn't very well ask if you could follow them home."
"Makes sense."
"So what are we looking for?" Rose asked.
"A Traveller's Depot. They've got lots of useful things. Clothing from different eras, parts, language helpers—everything your visiting time traveller might need. There are three of them in the city, hidden underneath three completely unrelated businesses. Very low key, very high security. Can't have just anyone gaining access to all that technology. They only sell to with people who have traces of atron energy in them in case one of the citizens finds the Depot."
"But how do we find them if they're hidden?"
"You can't," he said. "Only time-sensitive beings can track them down or those equipped with time-sensitive technology. Jack's vortex manipulator, for example, could lead him to a Depot. Any other time travellers who come through here, if they need a depot, use their own technology. I, on the other hand, can find them on my own. No need, though. I've been here before and I know where one is. We're close. Just a few blocks over."
When he said the Depot was hidden, he meant hidden. The building they walked into was not a Depot of any sort. It was a coffee shop.
"Twenty thousand years and they still have coffee shops." Martha remarked.
"Well, they don't sell coffee, but other than that, yeah."
The Doctor approached the counter and smiled pleasantly at the middle-aged woman with cinnamon skin and pink hair working it. "Hello."
She looked him up and down once then over his shoulder at Rose and Martha. "Welcome. What can I get you?"
"Can we use your restroom?"
She nodded and pointed at the back corner of the shop. "Third door on your left."
"Thank you very much." He motioned for his companions to follow him. They walked down the hallway she'd indicated, pausing to let a startled patron pass. He looked around carefully to make sure no one was watching and then he placed his hand on a scanner on the door.
The scanner chirped softly and the door hissed quietly before sliding open, revealing a single staircase. He ushered them in quickly and the door slid shut behind them, hissing again as it sealed shut. They headed down the stairs to another blank door with a scanner identical to the one above. The Doctor placed his hand on it once more. A few chirps and hisses later they were standing in a large underground warehouse. Five rows of shelves and containers stretched out before them for the span of a city block containing everything from currency, to clothes, to various bits of technology and parts.
A cheerful melody of electric humming, whistling, and clicking filled the air accompanied by wordless background music.
"Are we alone?" Rose whispered.
"Not likely," the Doctor whispered back then raised his voice. "HELLO!"
His bellow echoed through the Depot, rebounding off of every surface and magnifying until it reached ever corner of the room.
"That should do," he decided.
"Sorrit's sake, son!" a deep called. A man emerged from the fourth isle, similar to the woman from upstairs, with cinnamon skin that wasn't quite human and pink hair. He wore a deep green tunic, shorts, and what looked like a pair of 21st century yellow flip-flops. "There's no need for shouting. I heard you come in. The name's Cantor. I'm gonna need your names, your years, and planets of origin."
"Years?" Martha asked.
"What year do you come from?"
"We're from the early 2000s, Earth. I'm Martha."
"Rose." She gave a little wave.
Cantor raised his eyebrows. "Early 2000s—the Emergence Era? I wasn't aware you had time travel technology."
"They don't. They travel with me." the Doctor stuffed his hands in his pocket. He seemed to be waiting for something. Cantor squinted at him.
"That you, Doctor?"
The Doctor beamed. "I was wondering how long it'd take you this time. You got older."
"You got younger," he snorted. "That's really not fair. What number are you on?"
"This is my tenth."
Cantor frowned and Rose was surprised by how much the man seemed to know about Time Lords. But, then again, this was a hub for time travellers. "I hope that means it's been centuries for you, Doctor."
"Not…exactly…"
"You're burning through them fast."
"Yes, well, you'll be happy to know that I have no plans to regenerate again for a while. I have it on good authority that this is a very nice body."
Martha snorted quietly.
Cantor glanced at her. "So, what happened to the girl you were travelling with last time? A—um, wait, don't tell me. Acer."
"Ace," the Doctor corrected. "She's back home in her time. Runs a charity now."
Ace, Rose thought and filed the name away for later like she always did on the rare occasions she was able to garner information about the Doctor's life before her, before the War. Sarah Jane. Ian and Barbara. Peri. Jamie. Dodo. Adric. The Brigadier.
"I was close. Good for her. So, I'm assuming you're here for parts again?"
"Correct. We had to make a quick escape and a few things got fried."
"Well, hopefully I've got what you need."
"Wait a minute." Martha interrupted. "Correct me if I'm wrong, but it seems that you've got a place you can visit any old time you need TARDIS parts. So how come you landed on that planet a few weeks ago and got yourself arrested for stealing?"
Cantor barked a laugh.
"Because the parts I needed then weren't the kind that turn up here. Besides, I knew it was likely I'd have to steal or use psychic paper, and Cantor's an old friend. I'm not going to try and knick stuff."
"Glad to hear." Cantor paused, licked his lips once, and lowered his voice. "Doctor, I'm glad you turned up. There's something… I—I've been listening to stories, you know, like I always do. Travellers come through and some talk about a war. A war throughout time itself. This one young woman said…she said that Gallifrey…"
The Doctor's expression was dangerously flat. He said nothing. Rose lightly stroked the back of the Doctor's hand with her fingers.
Cantor's eyes flicked between them with interest, noting the way they stood, and the way he relaxed at her touch. He did his best not to smile. Who would've thought? Certainly not him, for sure. The older than dirt Time Lord had managed to fall for a young human girl. Now that was a story he wanted to hear sometime.
"They're gone," he said. "Gallifrey, the Time Lords, the Daleks, and thousands of other species and worlds. All gone."
"But you're still here."
"I'm the very last. I was the one that ended it all."
"Sorrit," the man whispered, horrified.
The four of them were silent for a moment as they each processed the information and tried to comprehend the magnitude of something incomprehensible and the Doctor let them. Then he swallowed, sniffed once, and the cheerful mask was back in place. "So. Parts?"
BRING ON THE REVIEWS. I'm gonna enjoy this. Oh yeah. (less than 30 away from 700 :D)