Chapter 2
One Broken Heart
By: Izzy
"Crimson!" her father shouted as he ran up to a very young Crimson, only the age of three.
"Herosa!" Crimson shouted back. The little girl ran straight into her father's arms. He held on to her like she was the most precious being in the universe. (Herosa means dad)
"How's my little Rose?" he asked.
"I fine Herosa," she said. "How you Herosa?"
"Better now that I have seen my little Rose," he said as he tickled her. She giggled.
"You big flirt!" she said as she giggled and slapped him lightly on his arm. He laughed. He picked her up and put her on his shoulders.
"I wanted to take you to Gallifrey," he said. Her eyes lit up with delight.
"I go nasaroca of Time Lords," she squealed happily. He carried her into his Type 40. He put her down and set a course for Gallifrey. She ran around the seemingly endless halls of the Type 40. She loved to open random doors just to see what was inside. The Type 40 hummed lightly in her mind. She loved how it felt. Her father had told her it was because she had a natural connection to his Type 40. She wondered if it was all Type 40s or only his. Even though she was only 3 and couldn't speak proper English, or speak her mother's language, she was clever. She already knew all about the history of both of the species she was born from. ( Nasaroca means home or place of orgin)
She even understood her role in both societies. She was the daughter of one of the Queens of the Kiwaka and the daughter of a renegade Time Lord. That meant that she wasn't well liked on Gallifrey but loved and respected on Domus. Her father had promised that after things calmed down a bit on Gallifrey, that he would take her there. And he was keeping his promise. She bounced around excitedly.
"Rose!" he called from the console room. He had always called her Rose because he told her that she was beautiful just like a rose. She knew what a rose looked like because when she was born he went to Earth and planted a rose bush in the courtyard of the castle.
"Comin' Herosa!" she said as she ran back to the console room with some help from the Type 40, she was there in no time. "We here?"
"Yes," he said. "We're on Gallifrey." He scooped her up and carried her outside of the Type 40. She was blown away by how beautiful Gallifrey was. And the suns rose just as they stepped out so the leaves caught the sunshine just right, making the forest look like it's on fire. She watched in amazement. He smiled at her. The suns were past the point that made the forest look like it was on fire, so she looked around a bit more.
"Red grass," she said with a giggle.
"Well," he said. "Imagine how I felt when I first saw your white grass."
"Herosa?" she asked.
"Yes?" he responded.
"Where you live?" she asked.
"I don't have a nasaroca," he said. "I'm a renegade Time Lord remember?"
"No," she said. "When you my age!"
"Oh," he said. "There." He pointed to the Citadel that was in cased in a glass dome.
` "So pretty," she said. "Why I no visit grands?"
"Sadly your grandparents don't want anything to do with us," he said sadly.
"They lose!" she said proudly. "My Herosa brilliant!" He hugged her tightly then carried her back inside the Type 40. He sat her down again and let her run amok in the ship. He smiled at her as she ran off.
Two years later: "Your Majesty!" a solider said as he burst into the throne room. He ran up to the queen and bowed. "I have grave news to report." Crimson sat on the steps of the throne room playing with a time rotor her father had given her to fix.
"Stand and continue," the queen commanded. He stood and tried not to look the queen in the eyes.
"Ma'am," he said. "Atrios was invaded."
"What?!" she yelled. "By who?"
"Daleks ma'am," he said. "The Time Lord known as Drax was found in the ruins of one of the cities." She fell to her knees, her body shook with sadness. Crimson was in shock. She couldn't believe it. Her father was dead. Why? Why him? A hatred for the Daleks formed that day. She vowed that she would destroy the Daleks, even if it took the rest of her life. She would bring about their destruction not just for her father but for the sake of the universe.
"Crimson," the queen said. "Do not hate, them for killing your father." She got up and scooped up the five year old into her arms then sat down on the throne. "Daleks hate. Never hate."
"Dacka Milua!" Crimson said. Her English had gotten much better, but since the Kiwaka usually spoke their native language she was used to talking to everyone in their native tongue. Although the queen and Drax insisted that Crimson speak to them in English. "Mecka raceue."(Dacka means but/although)
"English," the queen reminded her. Crimson sighed.
"We must get revenge!" she declared.
"My Hamuka," the queen said with sorrow heavy in her voice. "Revenge only breeds hatred. It's an endless cycle." She held on to Crimson tightly. "Please Crimson don't seek out the Daleks." The young girl remained quiet. "Promise me!" (Hamuka means precious, delicate, or fragile, but in this statement it is precious.)
"Jesuecka, Milua," she said. The queen gave Crimson a pointed look. "I swear, Milua. I will never seek them out." She got out of her mother's lap and went to her room. She closed the door and cursed the Daleks with every dirty word she could think of in both languages she knew.
Rose woke up slowly, she remembered the dream this time clearly. And it was strange that she had two dreams in two days. She thought maybe it had something to do with her sleeping on the TARDIS. Time Lords. The Doctor was a Time Lord. Maybe he could answer some of the questions she had. But what if he thought she was crazy for asking questions. Or what if he threw her out for not telling him once he found out? She sighed in frustration. She looked at the clock the TARDIS had provided her. It was only eleven PM. She sighed again, she had only slept three hours. She put a robe on and walked out of her room into the kitchen. Maybe a cup of tea would help. She was busy fixing a cup of tea, when the Doctor entered the room behind her.
"You didn't sleep long," he said.
"Couldn't sleep," she said. "I had a dream." She continued to make her tea. She heard his leather jacket shift, she knew he was uncomfortable. "I don't need to talk about it." She turned with her made tea and sat at the table.
"If you need me to take you home, I can," he said.
"No," she said with a smile. "I didn't have a dream about the world blowing up or anything like that." She sipped her tea and he sat down.
"But you seem rattled by it," he said as an observation. She sighed, she knew if she spent any amount of time with him she would have to tell him about her dreams but she just wasn't ready yet.
"It confused me is all," she said dismissively. "I'm gonna try and get some more sleep, night Doctor." She got up and let the room before he could say anymore. She got to her room and leaned against it and sighed again. She was going to need to be more careful from now on unless she really wants him to know about her dreams. She went back to bed and then to sleep fairly quickly.
Crimson was eight now. She had to do what all young Time Lords and Ladies did. Even though she wasn't full Time Lady she still showed more promise then most full Time Lords and Ladies at her age. She approached the eye and looked into it. She saw into eternity. Every moment of every day. She was inspired and empowered by it. The Time Lord council were so impressed that they wanted her to attend the Academy.
She wanted to know more about being a Time Lady so she attended the Academy with her mother's blessing. She was at the top of her class, in everything. Temporal Physics, Mechanical Engineering, Universal Theories, and History of the Universe. She took every class she could and aced them all. She graduated top of her class at the age of 20. Which for a Time Lord was a big feet because it usually took 50 years to graduate. She was offered many jobs by the Time Lord council. A seat on the council, Chief engineer, a teaching spot at the Academy, and finally Presidency. She turned them all down, because she wanted to go back to Domus. Back to her mother.
She went back to Domus, and started to train to be a warrior with her uncle, Shadow. He was a tough teacher but he was always fair. He taught her everything he knew about fighting. She finished his training at the age of 30. Everyone was impressed by her rate of learning and by her abilities. She hadn't chosen a Time Lady name. Because that name was like a promise you make to yourself. And while she had a lot of goals in mind she didn't want to share any of them with the rest of the universe. She wanted to avenge her father's death, protect the universe, and she also wanted with all her heart to find her imprint. After she completed her training she took her place as the Princess of the Kiwaka.
Imprinting is the the act of finding your soul mate, you can feel it when you find them. It happens in an instant, just one touch and the Kiwaka knows without a shred of doubt, that they are their imprint. But imprints were not just lovers, sometimes they became great friends or family. Though one thing is the same the imprinted couples were closer than anyone else. Though sadly only one in ten Kiwaka find their imprint. Her mother and father were an imprinted couple, so was her Uncle Shadow and Aunt Ash, but the third queen of the Queens of the Kiwaka, didn't have a husband or an imprint.
Crimson hoped with all her heart that her imprint would be a husband or wife, not a friend or family. The Gods knew she had too much of both. She wanted someone to love her for her not for her abilities or her birthright. But she also knew she had to fill a void in her mind. Bonding, it was the Time Lord's form of marriage, but unlike the human's marriage, bonding was permanent. Bonding with an imprint would be an intense experience. She couldn't wait.
Rose woke up again. She sighed she could remember all of this dream too, even though it was like watching a show that fast forwards a lot. But she still remembered it all. She found a notebook sitting on the end table beside her with a note that said; 'Rose, It might help to write your dreams down in this notebook. Doctor.' She smiled at the notebook. She wrote down the last to dreams and also the clues she could always remember. The scythe, the dog, the pepper shaker and the blue box. Wait blue box! It was the Doctor's TARDIS. But what does the Doctor have to do with her dreams. She stood up and resolved to talk to the Doctor about it as soon as possible. She walked to the console room where he was bouncing around.
"Good that you're here," he said. "Hold that down." That talk that was going to have to wait. She sighed and did as she was told.
After their adventure, with the Gelth and Charles Dickens, she wasn't tired so she reviewed the notebook. She wished she wasn't such a coward, and just asked the Doctor about her dreams. She wrote down the words of the Kiwaka people she had heard. But as she wrote more came to her mind as if she knew these things all her life; Herosa – informal form of father like 'Da' or 'Dad', Nasaroca – home or place of origin, Dacka – but/although, Mecka – we must, Raceue – get revenge, Hamuka – precious, delicate, or fragile, Jesuecka – I swear or I promise, Mahara – hello, Milua – formal form of mother, Reluca – informal form of mother like saying 'mom' or 'mum', Mebciua – queen, Drecua – king, Narici – unwelcome outsider or outcast, Dirauca – child born with unwed parents, Heuca – doctor or nurse, Daleca - calling someone love or darling, Pusica – addressed from or to, Everoca – dreams, Mahaku – diary or journal. Where all the words that came to mind. So the Doctor in Crimson's native tongue would be Heuca. So on the front of the note book she wrote 'Everoca mahaku pusica Heuca', which meant 'Dream diary from the Doctor'. She wanted to see if he knew the language. She walked into the console room where he was.
"Mahara Heuca," she said. He looked at her confused.
"What language was that?" he asked as he got back to work on the repairs. So he didn't know it. She shallowed hard, she needed a cover, because while she did want to know if he knew about the Kiwaka people, something inside her didn't want her to tell him just yet.
"It's a language a friend made up," she said as a cover.
"What'd you say?" he asked as he worked.
"Hello, Doctor," she said.
"Ah, so mahara is hello and Heuca is doctor?" he asked.
"Yes," she said. "But I didn't learn all of the words she came up with only a few."
"Like?" he asked.
"Well Jesuecka is I swear or I promise," she started trying to think of words that she knew that he would like or use. "Hamuka is precious, delicate, or fragile." They sat in the console room talking about the language for hours. He seemed interested in it. But she was starting to get the feeling that he would be interested in anything she talked about. Maybe it was time for a trip home, to see Jackie and Mickey. "Heuca."
"Yes," he responded.
"I want to go nasaroca," she said. She watched him stiffen. "Just for a visit." He relaxed a bit was still a little stiff.
"All right," he said as he got up and flipped switches sending them to the Powell Estate. They landed fairly quickly as if the TARDIS was used to the trip. She found it strange on two accounts, one, because he had only been to her place once, and two how could she know that, that was the reason they landed so smoothly? She shook her had lightly and went out the doors. He followed her out.
"How long have I been gone?" she said as she turned around to face him.
"About twelve hours," he said confidently.
"Oh. Right," she said. "I won't be long. I just want to see my mum." She felt something was off but couldn't put her finger on it, but something wasn't right. She tried her best to shove the feeling aside.
"What're you going to tell her?" he asked. Oh, she couldn't pass up this opportunity.
"I don't know," she said trying to sound serious. "I've been to the year 5 billion and only been gone, what, twelve hours?" She guessed that she was successful, because of the look on his face. "No, I'll just tell her I spent the night at Shareen's. See you later." She turned and started to walk away but stopped and turned back to look at him. She pointed at him. "Oh, don't you disappear." He nodded, so she turned back and started to walk to the apartment. She got inside, she dropped her keys on the table in the hallway. "I'm back! I was with Shareen. She was all upset again. Are you in?" She walked to the living room still seeing no sign of Jackie. "So, what's been going on?" Jackie walked in with wide eyes and looking like she'd been through hell. "How've you been? What? What's that face for? It's not the first time I've stayed out all night." She dropped her mug.
"It's you," she said as tears began to roll down her face.
"Of course it's me," Rose said.
"Oh, my God," Jackie said. "It's you. Oh my God." She hugged Rose and that's when Rose saw the missing posters.
"It's not twelve hours, it's twelve months," the Doctor said as he ran into the apartment. "You've been gone a whole year. Sorry." Jackie called the cops and then looked Rose in the eyes.
"Where have you been?!" Jackie asked.
"Traveling," Rose responded simply.
"Traveling?!" Jackie asked. "With him?"
"Yeah," Rose said.
"Tell me the truth, Rose!" Jackie angrily exclaimed.
"I am!" Rose exclaimed. There was a knock at the door. Jackie left to answer it. Rose plopped down in a huff on the sofa. The Doctor stood behind her almost protectively. The cop sat in the sofa across from Rose and Jackie paced.
"The hours I've sat here, days and weeks and months, all on my own!" Jackie exclaimed. "I thought you were dead! And where were you?! Traveling! What the hell does that mean, traveling?! That's no sort of answer! You ask her." She commanded the cop. "She won't tell me. That's all she says. Traveling." she rolled her eyes.
"That's what I was doing," Rose defended.
"When your passport's still in the drawer?!" Jackie asked getting in Rose's face. "It's just one lie after another!" Jackie stood back up and huffed. Rose knew Jackie was angry but Rose was getting angry at Jackie. But Rose couldn't yell at Jackie without it turning into one of their fights. And they always ended with Rose telling Jackie that she is not even Rose's real mother. Rose hadn't told the Doctor that she was adopted yet and she didn't want him finding out that way.
"I meant to phone. I really did. I just I forgot." Rose said trying her best not to sound angry, but after the words left her lips they sounded whinier than she had intended.
"What, for a year?!" Jackie asked. "You forgot for a year?!" She dragged out the last year, trying to illustrate how ridiculous that sounded. "And I am left sitting here. I just don't believe you! Why won't you tell me where you've been?"
"Actually, it's my fault," the Doctor finally spoke up. "I sort of er, employed Rose as my companion."
"When you say companion, is this a sexual relationship?" the cop asked. Part of Rose wanted to laugh, while the other part of her wanted to scream at the cop for assuming that she was 'easy'.
"No," the Doctor and Rose answered. Rose sounding offended, and the Doctor simply answering.
"Then what is it?" Jackie asked sounding angry. "Because you, you waltz in here all charm and smiles, and the next thing I know, she vanishes off the face of the Earth! How old are you then? Forty? Forty five? What, did you find her on the Internet? Did you go online and pretend you're a doctor?" She stepped closer to him as she spoke.
"I am a Doctor," he said with a large charming smile.
"Prove it," she said firmly as she got really close to him. "Stitch this, mate!" She slapped him so hard the force of it made him lean down. She left and went to the kitchen, Rose decided to follow her.
"Did you think about me at all?" Jackie asked.
"I did," Rose said. "All the time, but-" She stopped as tears flowed freely from Jackie's eyes.
"One phone call," she said. "Just to know that you were alive."
"I'm sorry," Rose said honestly. "I really am."
"Do you know, what terrifies me is that you still can't say," Jackie said as she started to fully cry. "What happened to you, Rose? What can be so bad that you can't tell me, sweetheart? Where were you?" Rose pulled Jackie into a hug.
"Ma'am," the cop said as he entered the kitchen. "I need your formal statement." Rose let Jackie go and so Jackie could follow him back into the living room. Rose slipped out of the apartment, and up to the roof. She sat on the top of the structure housing the air conditioner. She sat there thinking about her dreams. They were getting more frequent, and that worried her. What could they mean? She sighed as the Doctor walked up to her. He stood by her, but didn't say anything.
"I can't tell her," she said. "I can't even begin. She's never going to forgive me. And I missed a year. Was it good?"
"Middling," he said.
"You're so useless," she laughed.
"Well, if it's this much trouble, are you going to stay here now?" he asked with a slightly worried tone.
"No, but I can't do that to her again," she said.
"Well, she's not coming with us," he said firmly.
"No chance," she said.
"I don't do families," he said firmly.
"She slapped you!" she exclaimed with a laugh.
"Nine hundred years of time and space, and I've never been slapped by someone's mother," he said as she laughed.
"Your face," she said as she laughed.
"It hurt!" he exclaimed.
"You're so gay," she laughed. Then she stopped laughing abruptly. "She's not my real mum."
"What?" he asked as he turned to look at her.
"I was adopted," she said. Silence fell between them. "When you say nine hundred years?"
"That's my age," he said simply.
"You're nine hundred years old?" she asked.
"Yeah," he said.
"Mum was right," she said. "That is one hell of an age gap." She got up, walked to the edge of the apartment building. "Every conversation with you just goes mental." She turned around and looked at him again. "There's no one else I can talk to. I've seen all that stuff up there, the size of it, and I can't say a word. Aliens and spaceships and things, and I'm the only person on planet Earth who knows they exist." A large spaceship flew overhead with smoke bellowing out the back of it, flew over their head. It crashed into Big Ben and then finally crashed into the Themes. "Oh, that's just not fair." She looked back at him and he grinned. He grabbed her hand and they ran down the stairs, and down the street until they came to a road block. A soldier stopped them from processing.
"Get back," he said as he motioned for them to move. "Get back."
"It's blocked off," the Doctor said as he tried to get a look from where they were.
"We're miles from the center," she said. "The city must be grid locked. The whole of London must be closing down."
"I know," he said sounding excitedly. "I can't believe, I'm here to see this. This is fantastic!" He was beaming like a child, that just got everything they asked for on their birthday or Christmas.
"Did you know this was going to happen?" she asked.
"Nope!" he said happily.
"Do you recognize the ship?" she asked.
"Nope!" he said happily.
"Do you know why it crashed?" she asked.
"Nope!" he said happily.
"Oh, I'm so glad I've got you," she said sarcastically.
"I bet you are," he said with a big grin and she gave him a dirty look. "This is what I travel for, Rose. To see history happening right in front of us."
"Well, let's go and see it," she said. "Never mind the traffic, we've got the TARDIS."
"Hmm, better not," he said. "They've already got one spaceship in the middle of London. I don't want to shove another one on top."
"Yeah, but yours looks like a big blue box," she said. "No one's going to notice."
"You'd be surprised," he said. "Emergency like this, there'll be all kinds of people watching. Trust me. The TARDIS stays where it is."
"So history's happening and we're stuck here," she said a bit put out.
"Yes, we are," he said as he tried to get a good look again but failed.
"We could always do what everybody else does," she said with a shrug. He looked at her confused. "We could watch it on the TV." They walked back to Jackie's apartment, where he turned on the TV and Rose sat on the sofa on the other side of the room. Rose wasn't paying any attention to the TV. She was listening to Jackie and Rue, talking about the Doctor and Rose's dissapearance.
"You've broken your mother's heart," Rue scolded Rose as Jackie brought in three cups of tea. She gave one to Rue, then one to Rose, and kept the last one for herself.
"I'm not going to make him welcome," Jackie said bitterly. Rose rolled her eyes.
"I cradled her like a child!" Rue exclaimed still trying to berate Rose for not calling. Rose felt that she didn't need this from Rue, who was only Jackie's best friend.
"Oi, I'm trying to listen!" he said harshly as if the girls were being rude. They sat there a little longer, the Doctor watching the TV, Rue and Jackie talking about top up cards and the different men that they had been with of late, and Rose just sat there deep in thought. She wanted to tell Jackie about the dreams but at the same time Rose knew that Jackie would most likely react the same way she had when Rose was little. She sighed. She had to try.
"Come out with me, Mum," she said.
"I'm not going anywhere and neither are you!" Jackie exclaimed.
"Please, Mum," Rose stressed the urgency of her need to talk to her mother. Jackie nodded and the two woman walked up to the roof where the Doctor and Rose had talked before.
"Well, out with it!" Jackie exclaimed. Rose sighed again.
"Mum, I never stopped having the dreams," she started and watched as Jackie's eyes widened. "But, I can remember them now." She just let Rose continue. "The Doctor has been helping me with the dreams."
"How is it that he can help you but no other doctor could?!" Jackie nearly yelled the question.
"Because he doesn't try to blame it on the fact I was adopted!" Rose shouted back, it was a lie but she couldn't even begin to tell her the truth. "He just listens to me!"
"I listened to you," Jackie said calmly.
"No," Rose said sounding slightly angry. "You heard what I was saying but you never really listened."
"Well what was I to do?!" Jackie asked loudly.
"Be there for me!" Rose shouted as she started to cry. "You were never there when I had these dreams!"
"You told me you were dreaming about war," Jackie said. "You were only four when you started to have the dreams." She sighed. "A four year old shouldn't even know what war is."
"You could have just held me," Rose said. "Told me it would be OK. But instead what did you do?" She paused waiting for Jackie to answer, but she didn't. "You shipped me off to doctors one after the other! They tried to tell me to block it out. They told me that I was sick!"
"Oh, Rose," Jackie said. "I didn't, I didn't know."
"I think that's why I couldn't remember them," Rose said as the tears flowed like twin rivers down her face. "They blamed you, they blamed dad. I just wanted the dreams to go away." Jackie was crying now too. "But now I want to understand them. I think they are a link to my birth parents."
"If you want to know your birth parents then here," Jackie said as she took a locket out of her pocket and handed it to Rose. "This was found on you when they found you at the orphanage."
"My birth parents left me this?" Rose asked. "It's beautiful." It was a simple gold locket, with strange symbols on the cover. She stared at the locket. Jackie noticed that it was almost like Rose couldn't really see the locket.
As she looked at it she heard in her mind, Don't open this locket. It repeated over and over.
"Rose?" Jackie said snapping Rose out of the daze.
"What?" she said.
"You looked like you were in a daze," Jackie said worriedly.
"I'm fine," Rose said as she put the necklace on and tucked it under her shirt. "Let's go back in I think the kids were giving the Doctor a rough time of it." They walked down the stairs and back to the apartment. Jackie walked in first and before Rose got back in the Doctor came out. "And where do you think you're going?" She gave him a knowing smile as he passed her.
"Nowhere," he said. "It's just a bit human in there for me. History just happened and they're talking about where you can buy dodgy top-up cards for half price. I'm off on a wander, that's all."
"Right," she said. "There's a spaceship on the Thames and you're just wandering."
"Nothing to do with me," he said. "It's not an invasion. That was a genuine crash landing. Angle of descent, color of smoke, everything. It's perfect."
"So?" she asked.
"So maybe this is it," he said with a large goofy grin. "First contact. The day mankind officially comes into contact with an alien race. I'm not interfering because you've got to handle this on your own." She gives him a look that says she don't really believe him. "That's when the human race finally grows up. Just this morning you were all tiny and small and made of clay." He waved his hands about and they laughed. "Now you can expand. You don't need me. Go and celebrate history. Spend some time with your mum."
"Promise you won't disappear?" she asked.
"Jesuecka," he said. She smiled at him for using the language she taught him. "Tell you what. TARDIS key. It's about time you had one. See you later."
"See you, Hecua," she said and he smiled at her then walked away and she walked back inside.
"Here's to the Martians!" Jackie shouted as Rose got inside.
"The Martians!" everyone shouted except Rose.
"Crisis, with no head of state," the new reports as Mickey walked in. "Since the Royal Family have been evacuated-" Rose spotted Mickey.
"I was going to come and see you," she said.
"Someone owes Mickey an apology," Rue said.
"I'm sorry," Rose said sheepishly.
"Not you," Rue said as she looked from Rose to Jackie.
"Well, it's not my fault," Jackie said and Rue gave her the 'really?' look. "Be fair. What was I supposed to think?" Jackie walked back into the kitchen. He and Rose followed Jackie into the kitchens.
"You disappear, who do they turn to?" he scolded. "Your best friend. Five times I was taken in for questioning. Five times." He paced the kitchen throwing his hands about. "No evidence. Course, there couldn't be, could there? And then I get her, your mother, whispering around the estate, pointing the finger. Stuff through my letterbox, and all 'cos of you."
"I didn't think I'd be gone so long," Rose said honestly.
"And I waited for you, Rose," he said. "Twelve months, waiting for you and the Doctor to come back."
"Hold on," Jackie said. "You knew about the Doctor? Why didn't you tell me?"
"Yeah, yeah," he said as he hurriedly shut the serving hatch and the kitchen door. "Why not, Rose? Huh? How could I tell her where you went?"
"Tell me now," Jackie demanded.
"I might as well, 'cos you're stuck here," he said. "The Doctor's gone. Just now. That box thing just faded away."
"What do you mean?" Rose asked worriedly.
"He's left you!" he exclaimed. "Some boyfriend he turned out to be." She ran out of the apartment and down to where the TARDIS used to be, with him trailing after.
"He wouldn't just go, he promised me," she said not realizing that she sounded a bit whiny.
"Oh, he's dumped you, Rose," he said slightly happier than he intended. "Sailed off into space. How does it feel, huh? Now you are left behind with the rest of us Earthlings. Get used to it."
"He would have said," she said.
"What're you two chimps going on about?" Jackie asked as she came out of the apartment building. "What's going on? What's this Doctor done now?"
"Ho, ho, ho. He's vamoosed," he laughed.
"He's not, because he gave me this," Rose said as she pulled out the TARDIS key the Doctor had given her. "He's not my boyfriend, Mickey. He's better than that. He's much more important than that." The key began to glow and grew warm to the touch. Suddenly the sound of the TARDIS landing rang out through the air. "I said so." She realized that Jackie was still standing there. "Mum! Mum, go inside." Rose waved her arm trying to shoo Jackie away. "Mum, don't stand there, just go inside." But she just stood there looking on in horror. "Just, Mum, go. Oh, blimey." The TARDIS rematerialized.
"Huh?" Mickey said.
"How'd you do that, then?" Jackie asked as Rose ran into the TARDIS with Mickey in tow.
"All right, so I lied," the Doctor said as she got to the console. "I went and had a look. But the whole crash landing's a fake. I thought so. Just too perfect. I mean, hitting Big Ben. Come on, so I thought let's go and have a look."
"My mum's here," she said as Jackie walked in.
"Oh, that's just what I need," he said as he turned around and saw her. He turned back around and looked at the screen. "Don't you dare make this place domestic."
"You ruined my life, Doctor," Mickey said pointedly. "They thought she was dead. I was a murder suspect because of you."
"You see what I mean?" the Doctor asked. "Domestic."
"I bet you don't even remember my name," Mickey said.
"Ricky," the Doctor said.
"It's Mickey," Mickey said.
"No, it's Ricky," the Doctor said.
"I think I know my own name," Mickey said gruffly.
"You think you know your own name?" the Doctor said looking a Mickey with discuss. "How stupid are you?"
"Mum, don't!" Rose shouted as Jackie ran out of the TARDIS. "Don't go anywhere. Don't start a fight!" Rose ran after Jackie. "Mum, it's not like that. He's not. I'll be up in a minute. Hold on!" Rose ran back into the TARDIS. "That was a real spaceship." She walked back to the console.
"Yep," the Doctor said quickly.
"So it's all a pack of lies?" she asked. "What is it, then? Are they invading?"
"Funny way to invade, putting the world on red alert," Mickey said.
"Good point!" the Doctor exclaimed. "So, what're they up to?" He got under the grating and started to work on the TARDIS. Mickey walked over and bent down to get a good look at what the Doctor was doing.
"So, what're you doing down there?" Mickey asked.
"Ricky," the Doctor said with his Sonic still in his mouth.
"Mickey," Mickey corrected.
"Ricky," the Doctor said after he took the Sonic out of his mouth. "If I was to tell you what I was doing to the controls of my frankly magnificent time ship, would you even begin to understand?" Rose giggled a bit.
"I suppose not," Mickey said.
"Well, shut it, then," the Doctor said as he put the Sonic back in his mouth then continued to work. Mickey walked back to Rose.
"Some friend you've got," he said.
"He's winding you up," she said dismissively. Then her expression turned serious. "I am sorry."
"Okay," he said sadly
"I am, though," she said.
"Every day, I looked," he said sadly. "On every street corner, wherever I went, looking for a blue box for a whole year."
"It's only been a few days for me," she said. "I don't know. It's, it's hard to tell inside this thing but I swear it's just a few days since I left you."
"Not enough time to miss me, then?" he asked.
"I did miss you," she said. She grabbed his hand and offered him a comforting smile. "I'll always miss my best friend."
"I missed you," he said honestly.
"So got a girlfriend yet?" she teased.
"No," he said sadly
"Sorry," she said, she felt bad for teasing him.
"Mainly because everyone thinks I murdered you," he said. "People intend to stay away from murderers."
"Right," she said. "Sorry."
"So, now that you've come back, are you going to stay?" he asked.
"I can remember some of my dreams," she whispered. "Being here helps, I think." Mickey opened his mouth to say something but was cut off by the Doctor.
"Got it!" he exclaimed happily as he jumped out and over to the console again. "Ha, ha! Patched in the radar, looped it back twelve hours so we can follow the flight of that spaceship. Here we go. Hold on. Come on." He looked at the monitor. "That's the spaceship on its way to Earth, see? Except. Hold on. See? The spaceship did a sling shot round the Earth before it landed."
"What does that mean?" she asked.
"It means it came from Earth in the first place," he said. "It went up and came back down. Whoever those aliens are, they haven't just arrived, they've been here for a while. The question is, what have they been doing?" They turn the channel on the monitor.
"How many channels do you get?" Mickey asked.
"All the basic packages," the Doctor said.
"You get sports channels?" Mickey asked hopefully.
"Yes, I get the football," the Doctor said as he looked from Mickey back to the monitor. "Hold on, I know that lot." The Doctor turned up the volume on the monitor.
"It is looking likely that the Government's bringing in alien specialists - those people who have devoted their lives to studying outer space," the reporter said.
"UNIT," he said. "United Nations Intelligence Task-force. Good people."
"How do you know them?" she asked.
"'Cos he's worked for them," Mickey said before the Doctor could answer her. "Oh yeah, don't think I sat on my backside for twelve months, Doctor. I read up on you. You look deep enough on the Internet or in the history books, and there's his name, followed by a list of the dead.
"That's nice," the Doctor said with a fake smile. "Good boy, Ricky."
"If you know them, why don't you go and help?" she asked.
"They wouldn't recognize me," he said. "I've changed a lot since the old days. Besides, the world's on a knife-edge. There's aliens out there and fake aliens. We want to keep this alien out of the mix. I'm going undercover. And er, I'd better keep the TARDIS out of sight. Ricky, you've got a car. You can do some driving." He moved to the door.
"Where to?" Mickey asked.
"The roads are clearing," the Doctor said. "Let's go and have a look at that spaceship." They all walked out and suddenly there were all manner of law enforcement officers surrounding them. They shouted at the three of them. Rose raised her hands, so did the Doctor but Mickey ran away. "Take me to your leader." The Doctor chuckled at his own joke, while Rose rolled her eyes. The two of them were escorted to a limo, then pushed in.
"This is a bit posh," she said as she looked over the limo. "If I knew it was going to be like this, being arrested, I would have done it years ago."
"We're not being arrested, we're being escorted," he said with a smile.
"Where to?" she asked.
"Where'd you think?" he said but she kept giving him the confused look. "Downing Street."
"You're kidding," she said sounding surprised.
"I'm not," he said with a grin.
"10 Downing Street?" she asked.
"That's the one," he said.
"Oh, my God," she squealed excitedly, but something inside her tried to warn her of danger, but of course she dismissed it. "I'm going to 10 Downing Street? How come?"
"I hate to say it, but Mickey was right," he said. "Over the years I've visited this planet a lot of times, and I've been, er, noticed."
"Now they need you?" she asked, as the feeling grew stronger.
"Like it said on the news," he said. "They're gathering experts in alien knowledge. And who's the biggest expert of the lot?"
"Patrick Moore?" she asked with a teasing smile. But the feeling grew so strong, she started to shake with a mixture of fear and anticipation.
"Apart from him," he said. She was happy that he didn't look over at her because the shaking had become noticeable.
"Oh, don't you just love it," she said teasingly.
"I'm telling you," he said. "Lloyd George, he used to drink me under the table. Who's the Prime Minister now?" He finally looked at her.
"How should I know?" she asked. "I missed a year."
"You're shaking," he said with great concern. "Are you cold?"
"Just excited," she said, which wasn't a lie but not the full truth either. They got out of the limo, and the reporters started to take dozens of pictures. She had to shield her eyes from the flashes. As the flashes flashed glimpses of the dreams flashed through her mind. The Doctor seemed to notice this and grabbed her hand and pulled her inside of 10 Downing Street's building.
"Are you alright?" he asked.
"I'm fine," she said and he gave her a look that said he didn't believe her. "I'm fine, the flashing was just a bit much." He nodded and she let out a breath she didn't know she was holding. He took her hand and walked with her to where everyone else was.
"Ladies and gentlemen, can we convene?" a man said as they walked into the area. "Quick as we can, please. It's this way on the right, and can I remind you ID cards are to be worn at all times." He handed the Doctor an ID badge. "Here's your ID card. I'm sorry, your companion doesn't have clearance."
"I don't go anywhere without her," he protested.
"You're the code nine, not her," the man said. "I'm sorry, Doctor. It is the Doctor, isn't it? She'll have to stay outside."
"She's staying with me," the Doctor said firmly, sounding threatening.
"Look, even I don't have clearance to go in there," the man said. "I can't let her in and that's a fact."
"It's all right," she said with a soft smile. "You go."
"Excuse me," an older woman said as she came up to the Doctor. "Are you the Doctor?"
"Sure," he said to the woman.
"Not now," the man said. "We're busy. Can't you go home?"
"I just need a word in private," she said.
"I suppose so," the Doctor said to Rose. "Don't get in any trouble." He pointed his finger at her and she gave him a grin as he left.
"You haven't got clearance," the man said to the woman. "Now leave it." He turned to Rose. "I'm going to have to leave you with security."
"It's all right," the woman said. "I'll look after her. Let me be of some use." She put her arms around Rose and guided her away from the man. "Walk with me. Just keep walking."
"That's right," the woman said. "Don't look round. Harriet Jones, MP Flydale North." She flashed her badge to Rose. "This friend of yours, he's an expert, is that right? He knows about aliens?"
"Why do you want to know?" she asked. Suddenly the shock and trama of what Harriet had seen became too much for her, she burst into tears. Rose did her best to comfort Harriet, when she finally stopped crying they made their way to the cabinet room.
"They turned the body into a suit," she said. "A disguise for the thing inside!"
"It's all right," Rose said. "I believe you. It's, it's alien. They must have some serious technology behind this. If we could find it, we could use it." They searched the room, she opened the wardrobe and found a body inside. "Oh, my God! Is that the-" She didn't get to finish her question when the man for earlier burst in.
"Harriet, for God's sake," he said. "This has gone beyond a joke. You cannot just wander." That is when he saw the body on the floor. "Oh, my God. That's the Prime Minister!"
"Oh!" came a female voice. "Has someone been naughty?" They all turned to see a large woman in the doorway. Rose knew her but she couldn't put her finger on who she was.
"That's impossible," he said as the woman moved in closer to them. "He left this afternoon. The Prime Minister left Downing Street. He was driven away!"
"And who told you that, hmm?" she said. "Me." Finally it came to Rose the woman was the transportation security advisor or something like that, but her name was Margaret. She reached up to her hairline and unzipped revealing the alien underneath. She grabbed the man and held him up choking him. Something in Rose snapped and suddenly she ran up to the alien and used it massive belly for leverage in order to kick the alien in the face. The kick rendered the alien unconscious, saving the man.
"How'd you do that?" he asked.
"I don't know," she said. "But I hope I can do it again."
"So do I," Harriet said.
"Come on," Rose said as she pulled the two along with her. The man let go of Rose when the Margaret came after them again. Rose rolled her eyes as the man's cowardice. Then a thought came that wasn't her thought. Well, he's only human. She was a bit weirded out by that but she didn't let it show. She had gotten quite good at hiding. The two women came to a door that was jammed. Margaret cornnered them, but luckily for Rose and Harriet the elevator opened to reveal the Doctor.
"Hello!" he exclaimed cheerfully. Which destracted Margaret long enough for them to find a different door. They entered a room with no way out and Margaret was closing in.
"Hide!" Rose quietly exclaimed. Rose hided behind the cabinet, Harriet behind the screen. Margaret enters and sniffs around. Then two more enter the room.
"My brothers," Margaret said.
"Happy hunting?" a male asked.
"It's wonderful," she squealed. "The more you prolong it, the more they stink."
"Sweat and fear," a different male said.
"I can smell an old girl," the first male said. "Stale bird and brittle bones."
"And a ripe youngster, all hormones and adrenalin," she said. "Fresh enough to bend before she snaps. But brothers something smells off about the youngster." Rose could hear them sniffing.
"I agree sister," the second male said.
"Smells like a Kiwaka," the first male said. "But mixed with human."
"Well a hunt is a hunt," Margaret said as she pulled back the curtain. Rose growled low at the aliens. All her fear left her body. "That look. She is a Kiwaka. How delightful." Just as Margaret was about to kill Rose, the Doctor burst in with a fire extinguisher. He sprayed the aliens with it.
"Out, with me!" he commanded. She pulled the curtain down on Margaret, then ran out. A short time later the Doctor came out with Harriet. "We need to head to the Cabinet Room."
"The Emergency Protocols are in there," she said. "They give instructions for aliens."
"Harriet Jones, I like you," he said as they ran.
"And I like you too," she said. They got to the cabinet room with the aliens in tow. He grabbed the decanter and pointed the Sonic at it.
"One more move and my sonic device will triplicate the flammability of this alcohol," he said. "Whoof, we all go up. So back off!" They stepped back. "Right then. Question time. Who exactly are the Slitheen?"
"They're aliens," Harriet said.
"Yes," he said. "I got that, thanks."
"Who are you, if not human?" the first male asked.
"Who's not human?" she asked.
"He's not human," Rose said.
"He's not human?" Harriet asked as she pointed at the Doctor.
"Can I have a bit of hush?" he asked.
"Sorry," she said. Suddenly a rage boiled up in Rose so strong she had the desire to hit something or hurt someone. That was new.
"So, what's the plan?" he asked.
"But he's got a Northern accent," Harriet said.
"Lots of planets have a north," Rose said as the rage was almost uncontrollable.
"I said hush," he said. "Come on. You've got a spaceship hidden in the North Sea. It's transmitting a signal. You've murdered your way to the top of government. What for, invasion?"
"Why would we invade this God-forsaken rock?" the first male asked.
"Then something's brought the Slitheen race here. What is it?" the Doctor asked.
"The Slitheen race?" the second male asked with a small chuckle form the aliens.
"Slitheen is not their species," Rose said with the rage thick in her voice. "Slitheen is their surname." The Doctor gave her a confused look.
"That's right, Kiwaka," the first male said. "Jocrassa Fel Fotch Pasameer-Day-Slitheen at your service."
"So, you're family," the Doctor said as he looked back to Jocrassa.
"A family business," he said.
"Then you're out to make a profit," the Doctor said. "How can you do that on a God-forsaken rock?"
"Ah, excuse me?" the second male asked. "Your device will do what? Triplicate the flammability?"
"Is that what I said?" the Doctor asked.
"You're making it up," the second male said.
"Ah, well!" the Doctor exclaimed he passed the decanter to Harriet. "Nice try. Harriet, have a drink. I think you're gonna need it." She was holding the red case that had the emergency protocols in it.
"You pass it to the left first," she said.
"Sorry," he said as he passed it to Rose instead.
"Thanks," she said as she took the decanter.
"Now we can end this hunt with a slaughter," the second male said.
"Fascinating history, Downing Street," the Doctor said. "Two thousand years ago, this was marsh land. 1730, it was occupied by a Mister Chicken. He was a nice man. 1796, this was the Cabinet Room. If the Cabinet's in session and in danger, these are about the four most safest walls in the whole of Great Britain. End of lesson." He lifted a small panel that revealed a button, he pushed it and steel reinforced the room. "Installed in 1991. Three inches of steel lining every single wall. They'll never get in."
"And how do we get out?" she asked. The rage had died down.
"Ah," he said as if he hadn't thought of that. Harriet sat down in a chair and got comfortable. "How'd you know the Slitheen was a surname?"
"I don't know," she said honestly. She got closer to him so she could whisper. "Sometimes it's like someone else's thoughts are in my head. Thoughts and emotions."
"When we get back to the TARDIS we'll take a look," he said with a soft smile. "Sorry. Right, what have we got? Any terminals, anything?" He clapped his hands as he looked around.
"No," she said. "This place is antique."
"What I don't get is, when they killed the Prime Minister, why didn't they use him as a disguise?" Harriet asked.
"He's too slim," he said. "They're big old beasts. They need to fit inside big humans."
"But the Slitheen are about eight feet," she said. "How do they fit inside?"
"That's the device around their necks," he said. "Compression field. Literally shrinks them down a bit. That's why there's all that gas. It's a big exchange."
"Wish I had a compression field," Rose said jokingly. "I could fit a size smaller."
"Excuse me, people are dead!" Harriet exclaimed. "This is not the time for making jokes."
"Sorry," Rose said. "You get used to this stuff when you're friends with him."
"Well, that's a strange friendship," Harriet said.
"Harriet Jones," he said. "I've heard that name before. Harriet Jones. You're not famous for anything, are you?"
"Oh, hardly," Harriet said.
"Rings a bell," he said. "Harriet Jones?"
"Lifelong backbencher I'm afraid, and a fat lot of use I'm being now," she said. "The Protocols are redundant. They list the people who could help and they're all dead downstairs."
"Hasn't it got, like, defense codes and things?" Rose asked. "Couldn't we just launch a nuclear bomb at them?"
"You're a very violent young woman," Harriet said.
"I'm serious," Rose said. "We could."
"Well, there's nothing like that in here," Harriet said. "Nuclear strikes do need a release code, yes, but it's kept secret by the United Nations."
"Say that again," he said.
"What, about the codes?" she asked.
"Anything," he said. "All of it."
"Well, the British Isles can't gain access to atomic weapons without a Special Resolution from the UN," she explained.
"Like that's ever stopped them," Rose retorted.
"Exactly, given our past record," Harriet explained. "And I voted against that, thank you very much. The codes have been taken out of the government's hands and given to the UN. Is it important?"
"Everything's important," he said.
"If we only knew what the Slitheen wanted," she said. "Listen to me. I'm saying Slitheen as if it's normal." He walked up to Rose.
"Anything you know that could help us?" he whispered. She took a deep breath and looked deep, and sadly she could feel the presence of the rage she felt earlier but it felt like it was hiding. Hiding from her. She opened her eyes.
"Sorry," she whispered. "It's like it's hiding." He nodded and walked away from her.
"Well, they're just one family, so it's not an invasion," he said as he paced. "They don't want Slitheen World They're out to make money. That means they want to use something. Something here on Earth. Some kind of asset."
"Like what, gold?" Harriet said. "Oil? Water?"
"You're very good at this," he said with a proud smile.
"Thank you," she said.
"Harriet Jones," he said. "Why do I know that name?" Suddenly a phone made a beep noise.
"Oh, that's me," Rose said.
"But we're sealed off," Harriet said. "How did you get a signal?"
"He zapped it," Rose said as she raised the phone for Harriet to see. "Super phone." She lowered the phone and checked the message.
"Then we can phone for help," Harriet said. "You must have contacts."
"Dead downstairs, yeah," he said.
"It's Mickey," Rose said.
"Oh, tell your stupid boyfriend we're busy," he said bitterly.
"He's not my boyfriend, and not so stupid after all," she said as she showed him the picture that Mickey had sent of a Slitheen. She called him.
"No, no, no, no, no," he said as he answered the phone. "Not just alien, but like, proper alien. All stinking, and wet, and disgusting. And more to the point, it wanted to kill us!"
"I could've died!" she could hear Jackie shouting.
"Is she all right, though?" Rose said. "Don't put her on, just tell me."
"Is that Ricky?" the Doctor said, as he took the phone from Rose. "Don't talk, just shut up and go to your computer." Evidently Mickey said something because the Doctor spoke louder. "Mickey the Idiot, I might just choke before I finish this sentence, but, er, I need you." He plugged in the phone to a conference speaker. "Say again."
"It's asking for the password," Mickey said.
"Buffalo," the Doctor said. "Two Fs, one L."
"All the secret information known to mankind," Mickey said. Rose assumed he was talking to Jackie. "See, they've known about aliens for years. They just kept us in the dark."
"Mickey, you were born in the dark," the Doctor said.
"All humans were," Rose said then covered her mouth, as both he and Harriet gave her a strange look.
"Oi!" Mickey said. "Password again."
"Just repeat it every time," the Doctor said as he walked over to Rose again. "I thought you said it was hiding." He whispered the last bit.
"It was," she said. "I can't control it." She sighed. "We'll focus on me later, for now we need to stop the Slitheen." He nodded and turned back to the table.
"Big Ben - why did the Slitheen go and hit Big Ben?" he said.
"You said to gather the experts, to kill them," Harriet said.
"That lot would've gathered for a weather balloon," he said. "You don't need to crash land in the middle of London."
"The Slitheen are hiding, but then they put the entire planet on Red alert," Rose said. "What would they do that for?"
"Oh, listen to her," Jackie said over the phone.
"At least I'm trying," Rose said.
"Well, I've got a question, if you don't mind," Jackie said. "Since that man walked into our lives, I have been attacked in the streets. I have had creatures from the pits of hell in my own living room, and my daughter disappear off the face of the Earth."
"I told you what happened," Rose said.
"I'm talking to him," Jackie said. "'Cos I've seen this life of yours, Doctor. And maybe you get off on it, and maybe you think it's all clever and smart, but you tell me. Just answer me this. Is my daughter safe?"
"I'm fine," Rose said.
"Is she safe?" Jackie asked. "Will she always be safe? Can you promise me that? Well, what's the answer?" He looked at Rose with a sad look in his eyes. Rose was just about to say something when Mickey took the phone back.
"We're in," Mickey said.
"Now then, on the left at the top, there's a tab, an icon," the Doctor said. "Little concentric circles. Click on that." There was a strange sound was heard over the phone.
"What is it?" Mickey asked.
"The Slitheen have got a spaceship in the North Sea and it's transmitting that signal," the Doctor said. "Now hush, let me work out what it's saying."
"Hush!" Mickey said to Jackie.
"It's some sort of message," the Doctor said.
"What's it say?" Rose asked.
"Don't know," he replied. "It's on a loop, keeps repeating," Suddenly Mickey's door bell rang. "Hush!"
"That's not me," Mickey said then said something to Jackie that no one could hear.
"It's beaming out into space, who's it for?" the Doctor said.
"They've found us," Mickey said sounding fearful.
"Mickey, I need that signal," the Doctor commanded.
"Never mind the signal, get out!" Rose yelled. "Mum, just get out! Get out!"
"We can't," Mickey said. "It's by the front door. Oh, my God, it's unmasking. It's going to kill us."
"There's got to be some way of stopping them!" Harriet exclaimed. "You're supposed to be the expert, think of something!"
"I'm trying!" the Doctor shouted.
"I'll take it on, Jackie," Mickey said. "You just run. Don't look back. Just run."
"That's my mother," Rose said more to herself then to the Doctor. She searched inside for the voice.
"Right, If we're going to find their weakness, we need to find out where they're from," the Doctor said. "Which planet. So, judging by their basic shape, that narrows it down to five thousand planets within traveling distance. What else do we know about them? Information!"
"Raxacoricofallapatorius!" she shouted. The Doctor and Harriet gave her a strange look.
"Oh, yeah, great," Mickey retorted. "We could write 'em a letter."
"Get into the kitchen!" the Doctor exclaimed. "Calcium, weakened by the compression field. Acetic acid. Vinegar!"
"Just like Hannibal!" Harriet exclaimed.
"Just like Hannibal," the Doctor agreed. "Mickey, have you got any vinegar?"
"How should I know?" Mickey said.
"It's your kitchen," the Doctor said.
"I think it's in the cupboard by the sink, middle shelf," Rose said unsure of herself.
"What do you need?" Jackie asked.
"Anything with vinegar!" he exclaimed.
"Gherkins," she said. "Yeah, pickled onions. Pickled eggs."
"And you kiss this man?" the Doctor asked with a small look of disgust on his face.
"Used to," Rose laughed, as they hear a small explosion. "Hannibal?"
"Hannibal crossed the Alps by dissolving boulders with vinegar," Harriet explained.
"Oh. Well, there you go then," Rose said. They all toast to the survival of Mickey and Jackie.
"How'd you know what planet?" Harriet asked Rose.
"I'm not sure," she said honestly. She walked away from both Harriet and the Doctor, where she looked down at her hands in confusion. She felt a mix of emotions, the rage from earlier came back, a hint of sadness, and pain. Not physical pain, but her heart ached like she was missing something.
"Are you alright?" the Doctor asked as she came up behind her.
"I don't know," she said with a broken voice. "I-"
"The voice?" he asked. She nodded
"Listen to this," Mickey said.
"I'll explain later," she said. The Doctor nodded and walked back over to the table, where Harriet sat.
"Our inspectors have searched the sky above our heads," the Siltheen from earlier said. The screen said his name was Green. "And they have found massive weapons of destruction Capable of being deployed within forty five seconds."
"What?" the Doctor asked as he listened. Rose stopped listening, she couldn't listen without the rage growing. She heard enough to get the jest of the speech. The voice in her head was anxious and didn't want her to tell the Doctor, but she was firm on her decision to tell him. The Doctor's voice broke her out of her argument with the voice.
"He's making it up," he said. "There's no weapons up there, there's no threat. He just invented it."
"Do you think they'll believe him?" Harriet asked.
"They did last time," Rose said.
"That's why the Slitheen went for spectacle," he said. "They want the whole world panicking, because you lot, you get scared, you lash out."
"They release the defense code," she started.
"And the Slitheen go nuclear," he finished her statement.
"But why?" Harriet asked. He walked over to the steel shutter where the door once was and pushed the button to open the steel shutters.
"You get the codes, release the missiles, but not into space because there's nothing there," he said. "You attack every other country on Earth. They retaliate, fight back. World War Three. Whole planet gets nuked." His voice got grimmer as he spoke.
"And we can sit through it safe in our spaceship waiting in the Thames," Margaret said. "Not crashed, just parked. Only two minutes away."
"But you'll destroy the planet, this beautiful place," Harriet said. "What for?"
"Profit," he said bitterly. "That's what the signal is beaming into space. An advert."
"The sale of the century," Margaret said. "We reduce the Earth to molten slag, then sell it piece by piece. Radioactive chucks, capable of powering every cut-price star liner and budget cargo ship. There's a recession out there, Doctor. People are buying cheap. This rock becomes raw fuel."
"At the cost of five billion lives," he said bitterly.
"Bargain," Margaret said and the rage in Rose reached it boiling point.
"I give you a choice," he said. "Leave this planet or I'll stop you."
"What, you?" she asked smugly. "Trapped in your box?"
"Yes," he said firmly. "Me." The Doctor closed the shutters on Margaret's laughing face. Rose needed to calm down so, she sat down in a chair and her legs in another. She fell to sleep fairly quickly.
Crimson was much older, so old she lost track of how old she truly was. Though she hadn't physically aged. She was still Princess, scientist, and Warrior. But she had started her search for her imprint, she looked on all surrounding planets even Gallifrey which was no where near Domus. Finally she ended up on Shadouhōmu home of the Shadō shurui, her uncle's people and another race that looked like Demi-humans. Most were humanoid animals, but other were talking animals. They called themselves, Pīpuru. Which was Japanese for 'the people,' they spoke Japanese mostly but some knew English. Crimson found it inspiring that they didn't think themselves any different then anyone else. She was welcome with open arms.
That is were she met her best friend in the whole universe, Fenrir. He was the son of the chief of the tribe. She was exploring the surrounding area, when they literally bumped into each other. He was a tall lean man, with silver eyes, wild raven black hair, and two fuzzy wolf ears that sat atop his head. He wore a black duster made of leather that he left open with a pair of black trousers but no shoes. She could see his tail poking out from under his duster. "Forgive me," he said in English, she was shocked that his accent was like her fathers. He helped her to her feet.
"No, i-it was my fault," she stammered.
"I'm Fenrir," he said as extended his hand for her to shake it.
"Oh, forgive my manners," she said as she took his hand and shook it. "My name is Crimson."
"Oh, you're the princess that my father said was visiting," he said. "What is a princess doing out here?"
"Well I'm a lot more than my title suggests," she said with a warm smile.
"Can I have my hand back?" he asked. She looked down to see that she still had hold of his hand.
"I'm so sorry," she said.
"It's fine," he said with a laugh. "I seem to have that effect on women."
"I didn't," she said. "I don't." She shifted nervously.
"You're fine," he said. "Come on let's go back to the village." She nodded and they walked back. They talked a lot after that meeting, she found out that while he had an effect on women he wasn't interested in women in the slightest. He preferred men, which made her feel like a fool for crushing on him for the first few weeks they knew each other. He also told her that his blood line could transform into the animal they were, which for him was a large wolf, so large she could have used him like a horse. Since he opened up to her, she opened up to him and told him everything about herself, within the years that followed they became as close as two people that weren't imprints or bonded could be.
She left Shadouhōmu and went back to Domus with no hope of ever finding her imprint. But Fenrir told her to never give up. They stayed in contact and visited each other often, so often that rumors ran wild about them. Most claimed that he was indeed her imprint, while others said they were lovers. She shook her head at the rumors, she didn't even work to change them because they didn't care.
Years past, like leaves on the wind until the day that Domus welcomed Fenrir as one of it's own. He was visiting her because she was stressing over a large ball that was to be thrown for her new baby cousins. She was instructed to plan it. She hated planning parties, now planning battles or drawing plans for a new invention she could do not a problem. But they were in her room he was sleeping at her feet in his wolf form, while she racked her brain for some plan for the party. Suddenly a guard burst into her room.
"Princess," he said as he bowed to her. He had said it so loudly that it woke Fenrir who rose and hit his head on the desk he was under. He yelped as his head hit. "Forgive me Lord Fenrir."
"It's fine," he said as he transformed back to his humanoid form. He rubbed his head.
"Is there a propose to this intrusion of my room and my privacy?" she asked.
"Yes, Princess," the guard said nervously.
"Out with it, Rusty," she said with a smile, letting him know it was OK.
"Um," he said. "There was an attack on Shadouhōmu."
"Is everyone alright?" she asked.
"My tribe?" Fenrir asked.
"I'm sorry my Lord," Rusty said sadly. "You're tribe was kill save for the ones that escaped to the city of the Shadō shurui."
"Damn!" Fenrir shouted.
"Relax, Fenrir," she said softly as she laid a hand on his shoulder. "My Uncle will protect them."
"Was my father among them?" he asked.
"I do not know," Rusty said sadly.
"Let's go," she said as she started to change out of her pajamas right in front of the men. Rusty grew bright red and turned his back and Fenrir did nothing. She changed into her battle attire. "I'm all set." They traveled to the city of the Shadō shurui, when the three of them got there, everything was in ruins. Most people were alive and there were dead machines every where. She knew these machine, they were Cybermen. That saddened her. Cyberman were a converting race, they converted everything human into them, and destroyed the rest.
"Crimson!" Shadow shouted as he ran up to them. "Fenrir, you don't need to be here."
"I have to see my father," Fenrir said. Shadow looked away from Fenrir. "He's not! Tell me he's not!"
"I'm sorry," Shadow said. "You are the only surviving member of your family." Fenrir ran out of the city, she followed him. They ran all the way to were his tribe was. He found his father's body and he cried over it. She felt for him because he had no parents now. She cried with him, and yelled at the Gods for letting this happen to her best friend.
"Rose!" the Doctor shouted with fear and concern in his eyes. "Rose!"
"What?" she asked.
"You were yelling and crying in your sleep," Harriet said with almost as much concern as the Doctor had.
"I was?" Rose asked. "I don't remember." But she did remember. Which reinforced her decision to tell him about the dreams, but not now. Now was a bad time. "Let's call them back." Changing the subject and grabbed the phone to call Jackie and Mickey back.
"About time," he said.
"Hello to you too," Rose said sarcastically.
"All right, Doctor," Jackie said. "I'm not saying I trust you, but there must be something you can do."
"If we could ferment the port, we could make acetic acid," Harriet suggested.
"Mickey, any luck?" Rose asked.
"There's loads of emergency numbers," he said. "They're all on voicemail."
"Voicemail dooms us all," Harriet said.
"If we could just get out of here," Rose said.
"There's a way out," the Doctor said.
"What?" Rose asked.
"There's always been a way out," he said.
"Then why don't we use it?" she asked.
"Because I can't guarantee your daughter will be safe," he said as he rushed over to the phone.
"Don't you dare," Jackie said. "Whatever it is, don't you dare!"
"That's the thing," he said. "If I don't dare, everyone dies."
"Do it," Rose said firmly.
"You don't even know what it is," he said looking at her with a mixture of sadness and joy. "You'd just let me?"
"Yeah," she said.
"Please, Doctor," Jackie said. "Please. She's my daughter. She's just a kid."
"Do you think I don't know that?" he asked loudly. "Because this is my life, Jackie. It's not fun, it's not smart, it's just standing up and making a decision because nobody else will."
"Then what're you waiting for?" Rose asked firmly.
"I could save the world but lose you," he said with a look on his face that was priceless. Love.
"Except it's not your decision, Doctor," Harriet said. "It's mine."
"And who the hell are you?" Jackie asked.
"Harriet Jones, MP for Flydale North," Harriet said. "The only elected representative in this room, chosen by the people for the people. And on behalf of the people, I command you. Do it." He smiled at her then looked back to Rose.
"How do we get out?" she asked.
"We don't," he said. "We stay here." He shuffled through the protocols. "Use the buffalo password. It overrides everything."
"Hacking into the Royal Navy," Mickey said, most likely answering a question posed to him by Jackie. "We're in. Here it is. HMS Taurean, Trafalgar Class submarine, ten miles off the coast of Plymouth."
"Right, we need to select a missile," the Doctor said.
"We can't go nuclear," Mickey said. "We don't have the defense codes."
"We don't need it," the Doctor said. "All we need's an ordinary missile. What's the first category?"
"Sub Harpoon, UGM-A4A," Mickey replied.
"That's the one," the Doctor said. "Select. You ready for this?"
"Yeah," Mickey said firmly.
"Mickey the idiot, the world is in your hands," the Doctor said. "Fire."
"How solid are these?" Harriet asked.
"Not solid enough," the Doctor said. "Built for short range attack, nothing this big."
"All right, now I'm making the decision," Rose announced. "I'm not going to die. We're going to ride this one out. It's like what they say about earthquakes. You can survive them by standing under a door frame. Now, this cupboard's small so it's strong. Come and help me. Come on." She motioned to Harriet, who does.
"It's on radar," Mickey said. "Counter defense five five six."
"Stop them intercepting it," the Doctor commanded.
"I'm doing it now," Mickey said.
"Good boy," the Doctor said.
"Five five six neutralized," Mickey informed. The Doctor unplugged the phone and joined the women in the closet.
"Here we go," Harriet said. "Nice knowing you both. Hannibal!" It hit they rolled and tumbled around in the closet. Some time later after the closet had stopped rolling about the Doctor kicked open the door. He helped Harriet out first. "Made in Britain." Then he helped Rose out.
"Oh, my God," a solider said as he came up to them. "Are you all right?"
"Harriet Jones," Harriet said as she raised her ID badge. "MP, Flydale North. I want you to contact UN immediately. Tell the ambassadors the crisis is over. They can step down. Go on, tell the news."
"Yes, ma'am," he said happily as he ran off to do as she asked.
"Someone's got a hell of a job sorting this lot out," she said to the Doctor and Rose. "Oh, Lord. We haven't even got a Prime Minister."
"Maybe you should have a go," he said.
"Me?" Harriet asked. "Huh. I'm only a back-bencher."
"I'd vote for you," Rose said with a smile.
"Now, don't be silly," Harriet said. "Look, I'd better go and see if I can help." She turned back and made her way down the rubble. "Hang on! We're safe! The Earth is safe! Sergeant!"
"I thought I knew the name," he said. "Harriet Jones, future Prime Minister. Elected for three successive terms. The architect of Britain's Golden Age."
"The crisis has passed!" Harriet exclaimed as Rose and the Doctor walked away. "Ladies and gentlemen, I have something to say to you all here today! Mankind stands tall, proud and undefeated. God bless the human race."
Just as Rose was about to walk into the TARDIS and tell the Doctor everything, Jackie ran out and hugged Rose. She fell bad for Jackie, so she went with Jackie into the apartment. Some time later they were watching the TV and relaxing. "Mankind stands tall, proud-" Harriet said on the TV.
"Harriet Jones," Jackie said in disgust. "Who does she think she is? Look at her, taking all the credit. Should be you on there. My daughter saved the world!"
"I think the Doctor helped a bit," Rose said.
"All right, then," Jackie said. "Him too. You should be given knighthoods."
"That's not the way he does things," Rose said. "No fuss. He just moves on. He's not that bad if you gave him a chance."
"He's good in a crisis, I'll give him that," Jackie said.
"Oh, now the world has changed," Rose said. "You're saying nice things about him."
"Well, I reckon I've got no choice," Jackie said. "There's no getting rid of him since you're infatuated."
"I'm not infatuated," Rose said. "I just really think he can help with my dreams."
"What does he eat?" Jackie asked.
"How do you mean?" Rose asked as she turned and gave Jackie and odd look.
"I was going to do shepherds pie," she said. "All of us. A proper sit down, 'cos I'm ready to listen. I wanna learn about you and him and that life you lead. Only, I don't know, he's an alien. For all I know, he eats grass and safety pins and things."
"He'll have shepherd pie," Rose said with a small chuckle as she sat back into the chair. "You're going to cook for him?"
"What's wrong with that?" Jackie asked
"He's finally met his match," Rose teased.
"You're not too old for a slap, you know," Jackie said. "You can go and visit your Gran tomorrow. You'd better learn some French. I told her you were in France. I said you were au-pairing." Rose's phone rang, she looked at the number and it said TARDIS. She smiled.
"Hello?" she asked.
"Right, I'll be a couple of hours, then we can go," the Doctor said.
"You've got a phone?" she asked.
"You think I can travel through space and time and I haven't got a phone?" he asked. "Like I said, couple of hours. I've just got to send out this dispersal. There you go. That's canceling out the Slitheen's advert in case any bargain hunters turn up."
"Er, my mum's cooking," she said nervously.
"Good," he said, and she could hear his smile. "Put her on a slow heat and let her simmer."
"She's cooking tea," she said with a smile at his joke. "For us."
"I don't do that," he said.
"She wants to get to know you," she said.
"Tough," he said. "I've got better things to do."
"It's just tea," she said.
"Not to me it isn't," he said.
"She's my mother," she said.
"Well, she's not mine," he said.
"That's not fair," she said.
"Well, you can stay there if you want, but right now there's this plasma storm brewing in the Horsehead Nebula," he said. "Fires are burning ten million miles wide. Hurtle right across the sky and end up anywhere. Your choice." He hung up. She looked at the phone for a second then ran to her room and started to pack a bag.
"Rose, I was thinking," Jackie said. "I've got that bottle of Amaretto from New Year's Eve. Does he drink? I was wondering whether he drinks or not."
"Yeah, he does," Rose said as she finished packing.
"Don't go, sweetheart," Jackie begged as Rose pulled the bag up and carried it out of the room. "Please don't go." They walked out of the apartment. They got to the TARDIS. "I'll get a proper job. I'll work weekends. I'll pass my test, and if Jim comes round again, I'll say no. I really will."
"I'm not leaving because of you," Rose said. "I told you last night why, but I'll come back."
"But it's not safe," Jackie said.
"Mum," Rose said, that one word spoke volumes to Jackie. Rose put the bag into the Doctor's arm.
"Got enough stuff?" he asked.
"Last time I stepped in there, it was spur of the moment," she said with a smile. "Now I'm signing up. You're stuck with me." She moved to Mickey.
"Come with us," she said. "I could really use my best friend. There's plenty of room."
"No chance," the Doctor said. "He's a liability, I'm not having him on board."
"We'd be dead without him," she said.
"My decision is final," he said.
"Sorry," she said. Mickey straightened up and hugged her goodbye.
"Good luck, yeah," he said.
"You still can't promise me," Jackie said as she approached the Doctor. "What if she gets lost? What if something happens to you, Doctor, and she's left all alone standing on some moon a million light years away. How long do I wait then?"
"Mum, you're forgetting," Rose said as she walked over to Jackie. "It's a time machine. I could go traveling around suns and planets and all the way out to the edge of the universe, and by the time I get back, yeah, ten minutes would have passed. Just ten minutes. So stop worrying. See you in ten minutes' time, yeah?" Rose hugged Jackie and Rose waved to Mickey then got in the TARDIS with the Doctor. He pulled a lever on the console and the TARDIS made it's usual noise, signaling that they had left.
"Medical Bay, now," he said. It was not so much a command but a firm statement.
Notes: Chapter 2! Woot!. I know I said I wasn't going to do much rewrites but I felt this one was important. Well Thank you all for Reading and Reviewing. Oh, and if anyone wants the Kiwaka language messaged to them let me know and once I'm done righting it out I will give it to ya so you don't have to keep referencing this chapter. TTFN!