Well I've probably got a broken foot and they have me on vicodin. I'm almost entirely invalid and I'm exhausted. But here's the new chapter, as promised :)

The first thing Rose did upon entering the hospital was locate a place to change far from the desk where she worked. She managed to find a single person restroom without a security camera nearby and slipped inside to change into the scrubs. She tucked her clothes and jacket into her bag then headed up to the locker room that Martha used. She hid the sonic screwdriver into her bra and tucked her phone and the psychic paper, sans the carrying case, into her pocket. She turned on the scanner and switched to the mode that would alert her when in proximity to a source of artron.

She stashed the rest of her stuff into Martha's locker then headed back out onto the floor. Unfortunately, they hadn't managed to find a mode that could give her precise directions towards any artron sources, so the only thing she could do was walk up and down the hallways and hope she got close enough to the watch for it to register. She felt like she was running a serious risk having the scanner out in the open but it wouldn't fit in her pocket. The visitors and patients would write it off as just another medical device, it certainly looked like one, but it was the staff she was really worried about.

She rode up to the tenth floor and started methodically making her way across it, one hall after the other. She made a point of not looking at it for too long and keeping it at about waist level as she moved up and down the halls. This way it appeared like it was important but she wasn't drawing attention to it. It took about ten minutes to cover the top floor, she realized as she jogged down to the one below. This could take time. More than she had.

Mid way through the eight, she started hearing people complaining about the mobile service in the hospital. A few minutes after she realized there weren't any phones ringing, at all. Not even a chime. By the time she was done with that floor the scanner still hadn't done more than chirp faintly once—which, she suspected, indicated she was standing about where it was on a different floor—and there was an announcement over the PA that the landlines were down.

Rose frowned.

Mid way through the seventh floor, she suddenly felt a strong rush of emotions from her link to the TARDIS, fear and anger at the forefront, along with an image of Martha, followed by one of the Doctor, then Natalie, and finally Marc. The ship's song flittered around her mind, slow and quiet, but glinting with rage. She ducked into the nearest bathroom to collect herself and caught her reflection in the mirror. Her eyes were golden.

That cinched it. John was in trouble. Major, life-threatening trouble, and it was because of the Family.

Great. Now people were definitely going to stare at her. She'd have to keep her head down.

When she was almost finished with the sixth floor—the scanner having beeped again in the exact same area but like the other floors, not loud enough for her to be on the right one—a woman came on the PA and paged several doctors and nurses down to the ER. Then she said that she'd been asked to inform everyone that phone service appeared to be down across the entire city.

Rose quickened her pace. The entire city being robbed of it's primary medium of communication when the Family were making their move on John was no coincidence. They must know enough about this time period to know the best way to keep them out of contact and confused was to remove the phones.

It was on the fifth floor that the beeping really kicked up. It got louder and more insistent the closer she got to the wards where the long-term pediatric patents slept. So one of the children had lied to her. She should've known.

Finally, the scanner gave one last, sharp ping, and fell silent.

Rose blinked at it in surprise then looked around but appeared to be alone in the hallway. She turned around and found herself looking down at a little boy. He was wearing a pair of blue pyjamas decorated with racecars, a pair of hospital socks, and a pale green bandana. He clutched a sketchpad to his chest and stared up at her in awe.

It took her a second to place him. Really, it was the sketchpad that did it. This was the kid that had turned in her purse and given her the drawing of the wolf. Elliot.

"You?" she asked incredulously.

He licked his lips but, of course, said nothing.

"You took it?"

He nodded and held out his arm. He angled it just so and the fob watch slid out of his sleeve into his palm and he offered it up to her. With a gasp, she kneeled in front of him, setting the scanner aside, and accepted the watch. She felt the familiar grooves in the cover and the warmth from both the presence within and being kept in Elliot's sleeve. Rose… she heard it whisper.

Elliot smiled.

"But why? And why didn't you return it?"

He made a face and gestured to the watch then made the universal talking motion with his hand. She raised her eyebrows and then her eyes widened in realization. Of course, he must be the psychic. They'd been right; the Doctor had told him from within the watch to conceal him. But why from her? Why had he not wanted to be with her? Hadn't he told her he felt better knowing she'd be guarding him?

Rose swallowed, picked up the scanner, and straightened. "Do you know who I am?" she asked the boy.

He nodded.

"Was that wolf supposed to be me?"

Bad Wolf, he mouthed clearly.

Rose shook her head the tiniest bit. Time was short but she had to know. "What else have you drawn?"

He started to open his sketchbook and she glanced around nervously, suddenly realizing how exposed they were, and motioned him out of the main hallway. He followed her obediently and when they were out of sight, he held out his sketchbook for her. She tucked the watch into her pocket and gave him the scanner to hold while she flipped through his work. Her amazement grew with every new page she saw.

The sonic screwdriver, the TARDIS interior and exterior, Daleks, Cybermen, the gasmask zombies, Hervoken, Sycorax, Judoon, and other aliens, some she didn't recognize; herself (frequently) Martha, Captain Jack, Sarah Jane, other people she didn't recognized but assumed were companions; stars and planets, a nebula, and a collection of scenes. For him to have picked these images out of John's mind and the watch, he was definitely psychic.

There was one in particular that stood out to her. Ten separate faces on the same page, from young to elderly, some with pale hair and some with dark. They were each numbered. She recognized the two near the bottom labeled 9 and 10 and realized that these were the Doctor's lives.

"These are amazing," she breathed in wonder. Elliot beamed with pride. She went back to the one of her as the Bad Wolf and her fingers brushed across her face on the paper. "I suppose I look a bit like that right now."

He nodded.

Swallowing once, she returned the sketchbook to him. "Thank you for giving the watch back and letting me see your drawings, but I have to go now. He's in danger."

Elliot nodded and pointed at her pocket where the watch was.

"Yes, I've got to open it."

He shook his head and pointed again insistently.

She thought about one of the other things in the pocket with her watch and pulled out the psychic paper. "Here, this paper is slightly psychic so it should work very well for you. It shows people what you want them to see and picks up on thoughts. Just think what you want to say and it'll appear."

He took the paper from her, frowning in concentration. Almost immediately the words wrote themselves out on the paper. Monkey butts

Rose rolled her eyes. Typical little boy.

Whoa cool

Pie

Tanks

Yo yo

Scooby Doo

Macy

Jumping Jacks.

YEEHAAAAWWW LOOK AT MEEEE

"I'm kind of in a hurry," she reminded him.

Sorry

Can you hear it? He keeps saying your name over and over

"No, I can't. I heard him say it once when I first held it but that's it."

Yes that's when it started

The watch knows where to go, it told me to find you and when you'd be here

It knows where Dr. Smith is

"And so do I. Martha's with them at the convention center."

No, the words appeared after a moment. He's not there

They're moving

Going somewhere new

I can take you

Rose balked at the suggestion. "B-but you're a patient! I can't just take you out of here!"

You look like a nurse it won't be weird if I'm with you

"Yeah, it will."

Then we'll have to be careful

You can't find him without me

She licked her lips and looked him up and down. He didn't seem to require any supports to be up and moving about, he had no oxygen tank or IV pole. He was very scrawny and pale so whatever was wrong with him was definitely taking its toll. He was bald, that meant some form of radiation. "Why are you in the hospital?"

Leukemia

Rose nodded. She didn't know much about leukemia, unfortunately, and without Martha to provide knowledge, she had no way of knowing of Elliot would be able to handle the excursion.

He seemed to sense her doubts. I'm gonna die anyway

Please

I've always been useless

But I'm the only one who can help you

It was that last one that sealed the deal. He was right. Even if there was another psychic around she didn't have time to recruit him or her and without the phones she had no way of finding Martha on her own. She groaned softly. "I can't believe I'm doing this."

She told him to hang onto the psychic paper but keep the front against his sketchpad so no one saw words appearing. He followed her down to the locker rooms and hid in the nearby bathroom while she grabbed her bag. She changed out of her scrub pants back into her jeans but left the t-shirt off so he could wear it when they got outside. She tucked her scrub shirt into her jeans and zipped her jacket over it. Now she could pass for his mother or maybe an older sister.

She tucked the scanner and his sketchpad into it, slung it over her back, and headed to the bathroom. Glancing around to make sure no one was looking, she knocked on the bathroom door.

He emerged and held up the psychic paper. I hear the watch best when I'm holding it

So she gave it to him. He stood there for a moment, listening to it, then held up the paper. It's telling me how to get out of here

"Lead the way."

She remained tense the entire way through the hospital. They went in the opposite direction of the ER since that was where a stream of doctors and nurses were headed. They lingered near a side entrance, waiting for a chance to slip out, and Elliot listened intently to the watch. When he suddenly tugged on her arm she knew it was their chance and they all but ran from the hospital.

She waited until they were out of the parking lot before wondering aloud, "Is it kidnapping if you left willingly with me?"

He shrugged and then shivered.

When they were out of sight of the hospital, she stopped and pulled out her shirt. He put it on and it fell clear to his knees. He handed her back the psychic paper but kept the watch in his hand. Next she gave him the backpack to put on so she could carry him piggyback style. He wasn't very heavy.

From her back, Elliot directed her by pointing his arm in the direction they had to go. In the distance she could hear sirens wailing and people screaming. All the vehicles that weren't emergency services seemed to be moving in the opposite direction of the commotion. She wondered what was happening over there. Nothing good, obviously, and she'd bet her life it was the Family's doing, but it didn't sound like they were blowing anything up like they'd done in Cardiff.

When they passed the alleyway where the TARDIS was, she couldn't resist the urge to see what had happened. Peeking cautiously around the side, she glimpsed five figures covered from head to toe in black before quickly retreating. Those must be the Family's minions. She had no idea what they were capable of, she was outnumbered, and she had Elliot to consider. There would be no reaching the ship for help.

Ten minutes of walking later, she realized they were nearing John's flat. She wondered if they'd gone there after running from the Family. But when Elliot directed her past the street his building was on, she realized that it would've been stupid for them to come here. If the Family had his scent, which they surely did by now, they'd probably posted guards the same way they had around the TARDIS.

Had Martha led him to their flat, then? That seemed like the safest place right now.

"Are we almost there?" she asked.

She felt him nod.

"I think we're going to my flat," she said. "It'd make sense for Martha to bring him there." She adjusted her grip so she could slip the psychic paper from her pocket and hand it to him. He took it readily in his free hand. "How are you doing?"

I'm cold

"I know, I'm sorry. But it's really not much farther now. Hang on, Elliot."

I am

Thank you, Rose

"No, thank you. I would've headed to the convention center and got caught up in…whatever's happening. I don't think I'd have ever gotten here in time." If at all, she added silently.

There was definitely some sort of fight going on back that way. Sirens were wailing, people were screaming, something had already exploded, and she could hear the gunfire from here. It sounded like a warzone.

She saw the psychic paper change out of the corner of her eye and glanced down at it again.

Does that mean I saved you?

"Yeah, I think so."

And the Doctor?

"By extent."

Does that mean I saved the world?

She paused in front of a shop window so he could see her smile at his reflection. Briefly she noted that her eyes had returned to normal. "Yeah. Yeah, Elliot. You saved the world."

His answering grin was so full of joy that she felt her hardened heart soften and she smiled back at him.

When they reached her apartment building, she set him down and took her backpack, the watch, and the psychic paper from him. She knelt down and readjusted her shirt so it was covering as much of him as possible. They headed down the hall together, her hand curled firmly around his, and they stopped at the same time outside the door to her flat.

He pointed at the door and nodded.

She hadn't thought to bring her house key since they hadn't planned on coming back without the Doctor. So she pulled out the sonic screwdriver and switched it to the right setting to unlock doors. The moment her hand was free he grabbed hold if it. She got it unlocked and he tried to open it but was almost immediately met with resistance. The chain must be on.

"Martha, you there?" she called through the opening. "Let us in, quick!"

Footsteps rushed towards the door and pushed it shut. "Oh you scared me to death!" The chain was unhooked and the door swung open, revealing Martha. "I thought you were—"

Then her eyes found Elliot and her voice died in her throat. She gawked at him for a long minute. "B-but what's he doing here?" she sputtered.

"He's how I found you. He's the psychic," she explained in a rush. "He had the watch this whole time. He's also got leukemia and no shoes and he's freezing so move out of the way."

That seemed to snap her into gear. She ushered them both inside quickly and shut the door.

"Is he here?" Rose asked.

"Yes, in the living room," she responded quietly, leading them down the hall. "Violet's here, too."

Rose rolled her eyes. She should've guessed his girlfriend would be with him. This was going to be awkward as hell. Elliot's cool fingers tightened around hers but he'd stopped shivering. Rose hung back while Martha moved into the doorway.

"Who's out there?" Rose heard him ask.

"Yeah, um. There's…something I…" Martha sighed and looked up at Rose. "You know, I'm tired of explaining things. Just get in here," she ordered before walking into the living room.

Rose looked down at Elliot who nodded encouragingly and gave her a nudge. She took a deep breath and forced herself to take the final steps that would bring herself face to face properly for the first time with John Smith. He was sitting on the couch wearing a suit. Violet Lewis sat next to him in what looked like one of Martha's shirts and a pair of jeans. They both stared at her, Violet with rueful understanding and John with complete and utter shock.

"Rose?" he croaked. "Y-you're—you're Rose?"

Rose nodded. "That's me. Dame Rose of the Powell Estate."

His expression twisted into disgust. "You abandoned him."

She blinked. That certainly hadn't been what she was expecting. "Huh?"

"The Doctor. You abandoned him."

"I never!" she growled. "It's not my fault the watch got knicked. If anything, it's your fault since I only dropped my purse because of you!"

"That's not what I meant! He sent you away, I know he did, but you didn't come back. Why didn't you come back? He was waiting for you! He was all alone!"

Martha, seemingly unbothered by the conversation, was pulling a hoodie and a pair of socks out of Rose's bag for Elliot.

"I never left him! You don't know what you're talking about!" She took a step towards him. She could already tell this wasn't going to go well. It seemed John had already come to terms with things but he was also frightened and angry and desperate. She should calm down and discuss this rationally with him but she was exhausted in every sense of the word and her temper had flared. "I came back the moment I—"

"Oh my God!" Violet screeched causing them all to jump in alarm. She sprang from the couch, pointing at Martha who had knelt down next to Rose with the clothes. "Is that a patient?!"

"Yep."

John blinked in surprise when he noticed the boy that emerged from behind Rose. "Who is that?" he demanded, squinting.

She glanced down and realized he probably couldn't make out the boy's face in the dim light but the bandanna covering a small head was clearly visible. Martha helped him into the hoodie.

"This is Elliot," Rose responded. "I believe you know each other."

Violet looked ready to strangle her. "Are you insane? You've kidnapped a cancer patient! "

"I did no such thing!"

"He's a minor and in the care of the hospital. You had no right or permission to take him off the premises. He's weak enough as it is."

"Do you think I just wandered up to pediatrics and decided to snatch him?" Rose snapped. "He asked to come. We'd have never even gotten out if it weren't for him."

"Of course he wanted to come. He hasn't left the hospital for months! He's just a child, he didn't know this could very well be the death of him."

"He knew what was at stake just as well as I did. Just because he's a kid don't mean he's stupid." she retaliated. "And just because I haven't got a degree don't mean I'm an idiot. I kept him as warm as I could and I carried him most of the way. I did the best I could and we made it."

"But you still took him from the hospital!"

"Okay, so maybe I did. What are you gonna do? Call the police? I don't know if you noticed, Violet, but all the phones are down and there's a bloody war goin' on in the streets." Rose took a step forward. "And let's not forget that I don't even belong in this time. Hard to jail someone who don't exist."

Violet huffed loudly but didn't argue further.

"Elliot, come here," John instructed and rose from the couch. "You should sit down."

Elliot shook his head and retreated behind Rose. She stood there awkwardly between the two of them for a moment before she shucked her backpack and set it on the floor then knelt down in front of him.

"Hey, what's wrong?"

Elliot held out his hand and, digging it out of her pocket, she handed the psychic paper to him.

He scares me

"Why?" she asked.

The Doctor scares me

"He's not the Doctor yet," she reminded him. "And even when he is I won't let him hurt you. Not that he'd try. The Doctor likes you. That's why he reached out to you."

"Elliot…you believe all this?" John asked.

I believed before you did

Rose saw appear on the psychic paper but he didn't hold it up for John to see.

"Of course he does. Elliot was the one who took the watch from my bag," she explained. "It's been talking to him for days now. It told him how to find me tonight and it told him how to find you."

Give it to him

Rose withdrew the watch from her pocket and walked over to John, holding it out. "Take it," she instructed.

He shook his head. "No."

"Take it," she repeated, sitting on the coffee table. The moonlight hit her face, illuminating it partially. Enough that he would be able to see her sincerity. "You have to."

His eyes roamed her face, taking her in, but he made no move to take the watch from her. "I saw you," he said quietly. "There were so many faces and things but you were there the most. He loves you so much—I could feel it every time you were in the dreams. Every smile, every laugh, is for you. But when I look at you now I don't feel any of that. I don't want to make you smile. I don't even want you near me. So how can I be him?"

"You're a stranger whose been walking about in the body of the man I love for the last three months." Rose informed him coolly. "Why do you think you never saw me? I had to watch him become a new man once. I didn't want to see a new man be him."

John's mouth twisted grimly. "Touché."

Elliot suddenly let out a rasping wail of terror that had them all whirling around had even ended. A second later the world around them shook and an explosion erupted in the distance. Swearing, Martha made a run for the window and Rose had barely taken a step before Elliot's arms were around her legs. She dropped the watch onto the table with a clatter and picked up the trembling child. As she carried him over to the window, another shock rippled through. Then another. "What's going on?"

Balls of fire were raining down on the city, one after the other striking in different points, seemingly at random. The emergency alert sirens began to wail and people screamed loudly from all around. They heard the thudding of footsteps from above them and the sounds of things falling or being pushed.

The Family were getting desperate.

"They're—they're destroying the city," Violet said quietly.

John whirled, lunging for the coffee table. "The watch!" he hissed, scooping it up. "That's what they want!"

"Don't you dare!" Rose snarled, nearly dropping Elliot.

"John…don't," Violet pleaded.

John's steps slowed and he focused on the watch cradled in his hands. Elliot straightened in Rose's arms and stared at the two of them. She wondered what he was hearing. Without taking his gaze off them, he held the psychic paper up for Rose. Can he hear it?

"Can you hear it?" Rose asked for him.

John nodded ever so slightly. "He's asleep…waiting to awaken."

My mojo shows me things about people all the time but I never heard any voices

How come I could hear him?

"If he's asleep then how comes Elliot could hear him?"

"Ooh, mid-level telepathic field. He was born with it." John's mouth was moving but that was the Doctor's voice coming through. The confidence, the swagger, the lazy way he rolled his vowels that John didn't. Rose's face lit up and she gasped excitedly. "That's how he picked up on all the images from the dreams. It's not too uncommon to find a human with low-level psychic talents but he is rather extraordinary for someone so—"

John inhaled sharply and looked down at the watch in horror, then at the four people staring at him with varying degrees of delight and shock. His eyes were beginning to fill with tears, now confronted with absolute proof this was all true. "Is that how he talks?"

"That's him!" Martha said excitedly. "All you have to do is open the watch and he's back!"

Another explosion shook the flat, the hardest one so far, and the lamp on the table crashed to the floor. Rose set Elliot down on the ground so she didn't accidentally drop him. John's lower lip trembled and he looked between all of them with helplessness and anger, like he was looking for someone to blame. His glare settled on Martha.

"You knew this all along but you watched us—you helped us! Why?"

"I didn't know how to stop you!" she all but wailed. "The Doctor gave us a list of things to watch out for but that wasn't one of them."

"Falling in love, that didn't even occur to him?"

She shook her head. "Of course not."

"He probably expected you to fall in love with me," Rose explained. "Don't look at me like that. I didn't know what was going on until I saw you two together the other day and by then it was too late."

"I would've stopped you if I could've," Martha defended. "But I couldn't think of any way to do it that wouldn't backfire. I couldn't have you hating me."

"No, you needed me to trust you so I'd come with you willingly when it was time to go. What were you planning to do? Lure me away and then make me him again?"

Rose sighed and answered for her. "We…planned to do it in the early hours of the morning or something. You would've gone to bed as John and woken up as the Doctor. No mess, no fuss."

John opened his mouth to say something cutting judging from the look on his face, but before he could, Elliot screamed in terror and they were all knocked to the floor from the force of an explosion that couldn't have been more than two blocks away. The TARDIS sang in her head once more and Rose moved fast as a whip, catching Elliot before his head could crack against the table. The tiny psychic was panting and trembling and she could feel fear radiating from him waves.

"Elliot? Look at me, sweetheart," Rose ordered as she pushed herself to her knees. "How do your powers work? Can you see the future?"

He held up the psychic paper and she saw a jumble of half completed words and shapes and colors as he struggled to organize his thoughts into something understandable. Sometimes I see things that are about to happen

"Are we in trouble?"

I don't know I don't—

no no no no no it hurts no no no no no he's still alive no no make it STOP MAKE IT STOP

Tears rolled down his cheeks and he let go of the psychic paper, clutching at his head, as a sob bubbled up. She held him tightly to her chest, rocking back and forth, shushing him. She had a good idea what was wrong with him and she wished she had the power to make it better. The only one that could, however, was still confined inside a fob watch.

"What's the matter with him?" Violet demanded.

"It's his telepathic abilities," the Doctor's voice answered once more. "Many humans have latent telepathic abilities and they'll often manifest in times of extreme duress. Right now all the minds with the potential for telepathy are broadcasting and Elliot's a receiver—NO!"

John sucked in a sharp breath through his teeth and glared at the watch that was still gripped tightly in his hand. "No," he growled at it. "You stay quiet. I'm me. This is my body and my voice is the only one speaking through it!"

Martha's eyes widened, Rose stiffened, and Elliot flinched at the sudden harshness in the human man's voice. Even Violet shied away.

He jumped to his feet looked at the four of them, eyes wild. "They want the Doctor? Well they can have him!"

He started to go but before he could even get past the table, Rose sprang up from the floor and landed between him in the door. Eyes golden and blazing, fists curled, her entire body tense and ready to physically restrain him. She may not have had much of a prayer against the strength of the Time Lord but the human she could handle, of that she was sure.

"Don't. Even. Think. About. It." she said quietly.

"Rose, get out—"

"NO! Look at me, John Smith. You see this?" she growled and pointed to her eyes. "You know what the Bad Wolf is?"

"Yes." He paused, his brow furrowing in confusion. "But he saved you from that."

"He did a shoddy job of it. The Bad Wolf's still inside me and she's awake."

John's widened and she thought she heard Elliot gasp. Out of everyone in the room, she thought that little boy might be the only one who could really understand what that meant, especially if his powers were picking up anything from her.

Another explosion.

"Do you know why I became the Bad Wolf, John?" she asked.

"To—to save the Doctor from the Daleks."

"The Bad Wolf exists to protect the Doctor and that's what I'm going to do. Daleks, Cybermen, a sentient sun, the Family of Blood—no matter what it is, I'll always fight for him, even if it kills me. And now here you are, John Smith. Threatening him." Rose paused, letting the implications of that sink in. She didn't look away from John but she could sense the new air of unease in the room.

"You're frightened," she went on softly, but not unkindly, "and scared. You don't want to give up this life or Violet and you're desperate. I understand. But I won't let you kill the Doctor."

"But you'll kill me instead," John replied harshly.

That brought her up short. John wouldn't die physically but he would cease to exist as he did now. To him that was as good as death. She didn't want to kill him. She wanted to let John Smith stay with the woman he'd fallen in love with and be happy. If there were a way for it to be possible and still have the Doctor return then she'd do it for them. But she didn't know of a way nor was there time to find one. She could just go and rip the watch from him and open it herself but she didn't want to do that. She didn't want it to end that way. She had to make him understand. If he was to go into this willingly, knowing exactly what his sacrifice was for, then he could die knowing his existence hadn't been entirely in vain.

Rose relaxed from her defensive position, uncurling her fists and letting her arms hang loosely at her sides. "Fine. I'll let you go so long as you let me speak. Afterwards, if you still want to hand over the watch, I won't stop you. But I'm gonna speak first, no interruptions. Is that fair?"

John swallowed heavily and nodded.

"Let me tell you what will happen if you give them the watch. They will absorb his essence, giving them his lives and his power. This body alone has centuries left in it. With this and all his remaining lives, they could live for a very long time. During this time they will breed and multiply, spreading across the galaxy. Their offspring may share their power or they may not but it won't matter since they will have the energy to reproduce almost endlessly. They will conquer entire solar systems. Countless innocents will die. Lovers will be separated. Children will suffer. All the other Elliots of the world will feel what he is now. Entire telepathic species will cry out in collective agony, unable to separate their own pain from the rest. By the time the Family themselves die they will have left behind a terrible legacy of blood and carnage and an army of offspring to continue it."

There was another explosion, not quite as close as the big one before, but enough that Elliot whimpered and clutched at his head. Martha knelt beside him and put her arms around him.

"Unless…of course…" she murmured, "I became the Bad Wolf fully once more. I could save the universe from them. But then I would die and the TARDIS would be left behind damaged beyond repair without the Doctor to heal her. You would have doomed the last Time Lord, the last TARDIS, and me. You would have committed genocide not once, but twice over. Three times if you count me because I'm unique in the universe. And what's more, there will be countless lives lost in the past and future, worlds destroyed, and untold suffering that could've been prevented if the Doctor had carried on traveling. Plus, and it may not seem like much compared to all that, but Martha will be stranded here in a time and place where she does not exist, separated from all she loves."

John's shoulders were shaking and he'd started to cry openly. She could see she almost had him. "That's the choice you have to make here, John. Which is more important? Your life…or billions of others?"

He sobbed loudly, squeezing his eyes shut, and Violet went him and enveloped him in a hug. He clung to her desperately, burying his face in her neck to muffle his sobs. She looked over his shoulder at Martha. "Will you three give us a minute, please?"

Martha glanced at Rose for a second before nodding. "Of course."

"We'll be outside," Rose added, grabbing her backpack from the floor and plucked the blanket from the arm of the couch. "Elliot, come on. Why don't we show Martha some of those drawings of yours?"

Elliot nodded and followed Martha out. Rose stared at John and Violet for a long moment then left the room without a word.

Violet waited until she heard the door shut before she squeezed him as tightly as she could. He allowed her to guide him back over to the couch and they sank onto it. He continued to cry for a few minutes and she did as well. It was unfair. Completely and utterly unfair but there was no way around it. She did not regret their time together, she never would, but it had to end.

"If I could do this for you, I would," she whispered.

"I don't want you to," he replied, looking her in the eyes. "You didn't deserve to get caught up in this."

"What does that mean? Does that include meeting you? Because I don't regret it, not one bit. It was doomed from the start but I wouldn't give up a single moment I spent with you. You've made me so, so happy, John Smith."

"He won't love you."

"I don't expect him to. You told me about him and Rose…and I saw a bit of that tonight. No, he won't love me. …And if he's not you then I don't want him to."

He cupped her cheek with his free hand and she leaned into his touch, knowing it would be one of the last times she would do so. "You know I never had much luck with dating," she murmured. "You were the first person I ever really…"

"And that was real," he promised. "I may not be, but everything I felt was, and everything you felt."

"I know. I'll always remember it, too. I may fall in love again but a part of me will always love you. No matter what becomes of you, John, remember that. For me?"

"I will."

Violet smiled, blinking away tears. "Thank you."

Another explosion caused a shudder to ripple though the building. She stared into his sad brown eyes for a long minute and then she exhaled shakily. "The longer we sit here the more people will get hurt. We can't let that happen. We're doctors, after all. It's our job to make people better. Go on, John, you do what needs to be done and I'll go back to the hospital and help everyone they put in front of me. Together we'll save the world. John and Violet, just two humans, no one special."

John laughed despite the situation and he leaned forward to kiss her one last time. "Go into the other room, please. I don't know what's going to happen and I don't…I don't want you to…."

"Sending me away, John?" she asked. He didn't answer although she hadn't really expected him to. She stood from the couch and headed for the bathroom, the only other room in this place she felt comfortable entering.

"Goodbye, Violet Lewis," she heard him murmur. She didn't look back.

Hee hee :3 Now how long have you all been waiting for that? Don't forget to drop a review on your way out. And apologies in advance to my guest reviewers because that idiot nonny still seems to be missing common courtesy and a brain. I'll probably be closing guest reviews soon. You can always open an account if you want to leave reviews or drop me a message on tumblr (anonymous or otherwise :3)