At nine in the morning, the Doctor was up and out of bed, heading to the shower. Jack had told them what happened in the cells and the Doctor was bristling with anger over the fact Rose had called his daughter a brat and then was happy with the fact Kui'la was hurting. So while it was against Martha's advice she helped him to remove the IV from his arm. She understood that he needed to be there when Mickey and Jackie arrived. He also needed to understand why Rose had attempted to kidnap his child. With Jack supporting him, the two of them showered and dressed. The Doctor in his brown suit and Jack in his military outfit. By ten in the morning, they were both in the hub waiting anxiously for their visitors to arrive. The Doctor was still weaker than he would admit and had taken to standing slumped against the wall while Jack paced the floor in front of him.
"They're here," Ianto called out from where he was watching the CCTV. Jack stopped his pacing to take the Doctor's hand in his as the Doctor stood up straight. Together they walked to the visitor's entrance going out to meet them. Over the past two years, Jackie had changed very little. Mickey, on the other hand, had a confidence about him that filled the room. It made the Doctor smile, even if he still thought of Mickey as an idiot, it was obvious that he had grown up in the other universe.
"Mickey, Jackie it is good to see you," The Doctor told them softly. His tone didn't reflect his words and Jack watched as the two of them exchanged glances.
"Doctor!" Jackie smiled. She came forward wrapping her arms around him. The Doctor hugged her back laying his head on her shoulder. Jackie had been the closest thing he had to having a mother again and while he wouldn't admit it out loud, he had actually missed her. "Oh, you've put weight."
"Oi," He exclaimed leaning back as Jack chuckled.
"It is a good thing. You were always far to skinny," Jackie informed him. He turned to pout at Jack, but Jack laughed again. He kissed the Doctor softly on the cheek.
"You look fine," Jack promised him.
"That explains a lot," Mickey spoke up.
"What does?" Jack wondered in confusion.
"You two," Mickey responded. Jack narrowed his eyes still confused.
"If you would follow me, there is cake as well as tea and coffee in the conference room," Ianto told them, making his presence known.
"Tea sounds lovely," Jackie agreed starting after Ianto. She grabbed Mickey's arm, looping her own around it. Mickey allowed himself to be pulled along as he looked at the technology in the hub. The Doctor took Jack's hand as they followed the others. They sat down near each other and the Doctor helped himself to a big slice of cake. None of the other's ate as they waited for Ianto to serve the coffee and tea. Once everyone's drinks had been served, Ianto excused himself.
"What has my Rose done? You said that she tried to take something close to you. Did you mean the Doctor?" Jackie questioned as soon as Ianto was gone.
"No, I didn't mean him. We'll get to exactly what happened in a little while. First I want to know why does our being a couple make sense for her behavior?" Jack wondered picking up their conversation right where they left off.
"It's a long story," Mickey told him.
"We've got plenty of time," Jack responded. It wasn't completely true, though. While he wasn't worried about the girls, as they were safe in Martha's care, he was worried about the Doctor. The Doctor should have been laying in bed healing, not sitting at the conference table eating cake. Still the Doctor seemed fine at the moment, so he would keep an eye on him to make sure he remained alright. Mickey took a deep breath.
"It started about four years ago. The day that she met you, Doctor. Rose changed that day. She went from being my girlfriend and working in the shops to traveling with you. She would come home from those trips telling us what she had done and the places she had seen. She loved you, but you always kept her at arm's length. Then you changed," Mickey started.
"Regenerated," The Doctor clarified for Jack. Jack nodded, motioning for Mickey to go on.
"After you regenerated, Rose called you her boyfriend. She would come back telling us of all the places you took her and how you almost kissed her," Jackie filled in. Mickey nodded looking slightly disgusted.
"Than she got trapped in the other universe. Her first few weeks there, all she could talk about was getting back to you. She claimed that she was pregnant with your child," Mickey went on.
"I never touched her," The Doctor squeaked interrupting them. He looked at Jack frantically. "Jack I never..."
"It's alright. Just calm down," Jack cooed, even as he seethed as well.
"She never let us examine her, though, and after the beach she claimed she lost it. After that she threw herself into her work at Torchwood, trying to find a way back to you. She worked day and night on the dimension cannon even when she was told to abandon the project out of fear that it could cause the universes to collapse. For months it didn't work, then one day it suddenly started to. At the same time the stars started to go out in the night sky," Mickey explained. He paused to take a drink of his coffee.
"Pete forbid her from using it again. He even had it disassembled to keep her from using it and locked it away. We didn't know it at the time, but she had a second one made at the same time and secured away. She left Torchwood due to personal differences as we rushed to stop the damage she had caused," Mickey advised them.
"And the entire time she was jumping between the universes," Jack concluded from the information.
"She wouldn't have been able to jump straight here, though," The Doctor pointed out. "She would have to keep trying for months, adjusting the coordinates until she found the right universe. I have been to some of them. There are universes where the laws of physic's were created by a mad man and others that are so dangerous that the Time Lord's sealed them away."
"She didn't care. She was coming home with strange bruises and cuts on her face and body. When I asked her about them she just told me she had fell or she had got in a fight with someone. I noticed, though, I did when she came home one night with her clothes baggy. I said to her, Rose you better not be pregnant. She told me not to worry about it," Jack informed them.
"Was she?" Jack questioned.
"I don't know. Next time I saw her was a week later and she had lost weight," Jackie answered. They all looked at the Doctor.
"Time works differently when moving between the universes. What could have been a week or more to her, could have only been five minutes to the rest of us. It is possible that she could have become pregnant and had the child while jumping between the universes," The Doctor answered. He felt a little sorry for Rose, understanding what it was like to become pregnant as the result of rape. He at least had Jack to stand by his side and support him while Rose had nobody.
"Pete, figured she was up to something and had me follow her. It took awhile, but I managed to find the second dimension cannon. When I arrived she had found this universe and was trying to get the time right. I tried to stop her, but she jumped before I could. I went straight back to Pete and it was agreed that we were to come her and bring her home. We considered just leaving her, but by then it was too late to reverse the damage she had caused. The stars are still going out and we don't know how to fix it," Mickey told them.
"I can help you. I can use the TARDIS to travel between the universes and find out what caused your universe to collapse. It will be a few days, as I can't move the TARDIS right now," The Doctor informed them.
"That's fine as long as I can get back to Pete and Tony. We have a doctor on the other side waiting to take Rose in his care as soon as we arrive," Jackie explained.
"What about you Mickey?" Jack wondered.
"I'm not going back. There is nothing for me in that universe now that my Gran died," Mickey answered. "Now we've explained what happened to Rose. Tell us what did Rose do?"
The Doctor let Jack tell them the story. Jack started with the valiant and explained to them what had been happening in this universe since they left. He told them briefly about the Doctor and him becoming a couple, then went on to explain the babies and their early birth. Nothing he told them, though, prepared them to hear that Rose tried to kidnap the weaker of the two babies.
"Where is she?" Jackie wondered angrily.
"Down in the cells," Jack told her. "Ianto can take you there." Jackie stormed out of the room.
"Rose Marion Tyler, how could you do such a horrible thing. I raised you better than that," They heard her yelling a moment later. All three of them collectively winced at her screaming. While none of them felt sorry for Rose, they were all relieved they weren't on the receiving end of her lecture.