Child of Earth
By Lumendea
Chapter Fifty-Six: Return of Fenric: The Last Mystery
Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or any of the spinoff material and I gain no income off of this story, just the satisfaction of playing with the characters.
…..
Ace opened her eyes and looked up the domed ceiling. The Doctor made an abortive move towards her only to stop short of her. His fingers curled into fists as he gave Ace a moment to breathe and wake up. He stepped back next to Rose and on instinct, she shifted next to him once again. The Doctor smiled a little and his arm returned to its prior position.
Ace stood up and groaned softly before she caught sight of the console. Blinking her eyes, she began to look around with a hint of unease. Her shoulders slowly relaxed and a slight smile tugged at her lips as her gaze shifted over to Rose and the Doctor. Smirking slightly, Ace nodded pointedly to where the Doctor's hand rested on the small of Rose's back just above her bum.
"Bit handsy Doctor?"
"You know very well that I'm married to her," the Doctor countered in a blend of annoyance and amusement.
"Not yet," Ace reminded him looking far too happy.
"Time Lord," the Doctor answered almost dismissively even as he gave Rose a soft glance that made her smile.
"I accepted that temporal shenanigans would be a thing long ago," Rose informed Ace with a laugh. None the less, she stepped away from the Doctor with a pointed look towards Ace.
"Am I… is Fenric?" Ace suddenly struggled with her words.
"Fenric is gone," the Doctor said. His tone was low and final as he stepped away from Rose and closer to Ace. "It can't harm you Ace. Never again. Fenric wasn't just expelled from a host, Fenric was completely destroyed."
"By what?" Ace's eyes were wide with shock and disbelief. "How? I mean it was around before the universe right?"
"It tangled with something much more powerful than it was."
"Is that all you're going to say?" Ace asked. Then she sighed and shook her head when he said nothing. "I guess some things don't change after all." Rose saw the Doctor's shoulders tighten at the words, but then the Ace's face cleared and she inhaled deeply. "Thank you for coming for me," Ace told the Doctor seriously, awkwardly crossing her arms over her chest.
"I would never let Fenric hurt you Ace," the Doctor assured her. Rose swallowed, there was a hint of pleading in his voice. "I hope you know that."
"Yeah," Ace breathed as tears gathered in her eyes. "I do know that." She rolled her lips for a moment and sniffed before saying. "You know when people ask me about my father I still think about you."
"I know," the Doctor answered so softly that she almost couldn't hear him. Then he smiled and reached forward to cup Ace's cheek for a moment. "I'm not proud of everything I put you through Ace, but I am so proud of what you did with all of it. I've always been proud of you."
Ace grinned, without warning, she threw her arms around the Doctor. He grimaced a look of distaste on his face and trying to fidget away from the embrace. Ace caught on quickly, but rather than releasing him only smiled evilly and held on. Grabbing the edge of the console, Rose tried not to fall over laughing.
"Alright!" the Doctor shouted. "Alright Ace, you've made your point. I'm proud of you and you're grateful. That's all very lovely." The Doctor almost spat the last word and Rose bit her lip. "Now let go of me."
Laughing, Ace released him and just smiled sweetly when he glowered down at her. "Sorry Professor, but you being grumpy just eggs me on."
"You never did need much encouragement," the Doctor muttered. He straightened his coat a little while Ace winked at Rose over his shoulder. "None of that."
"What she sees in you eludes me," Ace teased. She was still grinning at him.
"I'm a joy to be around," the Doctor said drily.
Rose lost it. Giggles escaped her and she half-collapsed over the controls. She couldn't help her grin and looked up to find the Doctor watching her not with irritation, but a warm expression. Ace was looking up at him and shaking her head fondly.
"You are so gone on her," Ace said warmly. She honestly looked very pleased by the whole thing. Then she looked back at Rose. "Thanks for coming Rose."
"Of course." Rose frowned a little. "Do you remember anything?"
Slowly Ace shook her head. "No," she finally said. "Nothing clearly anyway. It was sort of like sleeping, fuzzy like a dream."
"You were being suppressed," the Doctor said. "That's a normal side effect. I've checked you over Ace, nothing you need to worry about."
Ace nodded slowly and the Doctor relaxed at the show of trust. "Dare I ask where we are?" Ace asked, shifting a bit uncomfortably.
"Your flat. I'm afraid you need some window repaired, but so does half of New York at this point," the Doctor answered. He rolled his eyes a bit.
"If that's the worst aftermath of this, I will take it," Ace said quickly. She shivered. "It all happened so fast, I was barely aware of it before it-"
"Try not to think about it," the Doctor said, gripping Ace's shoulder again. "You made it through. You fought hard enough to survive being taken over Ace."
There was something passed unspoken between Rose and the Doctor. Some memory or some name from the last time they'd fought Fenric. To her surprise, Ace wasn't asking what had stopped Fenric. Lowering her eyes, Rose gave them a moment before the sound of the Doctor grumbling made her look up. Ace had the Doctor's arms locked in another hug and he was valiantly protesting. Then Ace released him, leaned up and kissed his cheek. This time the Doctor didn't protest.
"See you around Professor, don't wait years before you visit again." She walked across the room to Rose and pulled her into a hug. "Look after him," Ace whispered into Rose ear.
"I will," Rose promised. "I love him."
"Good, he deserves that." Ace let her go and looked between them. "I'll let myself out. I don't think I want to hang around in here with him looking at you like that." Her remark earned a dark look from the Doctor. "Take care Professor."
Rose managed a wave to Ace who gave her a grin and waved back on her way to the door. The Doctor grumbled something under his breath, but Rose didn't miss the way he gravitated towards her. Then his hand was resting on the small of her back again even as he adjusted the controls. Rose leaned her head against his arm, feeling a rush of satisfaction when he didn't pull away. The TARDIS groaned for a moment and then they were surrounded with a soft hum.
"We're in the Vortex now," the Doctor said. "I promised you I'd answer the questions I could."
"What exactly happened?" Rose asked. She stayed in her place next to him, enjoying the familiar cool of his body. At least that never changed. "I remember Ace- Fenric coming up to me and knocking Athena away. There was… Bad Wolf was graffitied on that small wall and I touched it, but it all goes blurry after that."
"Fenric was destroyed by something much more powerful than it," the Doctor said. Rose stared at him, frowning at the vague answer. Unlike with Ace he grimaced a little and sighed. "That wound in your arm, the one the Silver Lord caused with that sword, let it reach you. Bad Wolf echoes back in time, but that wound was a small rip your timeline and a small opening for the power to reach you directly. Under normal circumstances, the power of Bad Wolf is there, but can't be accessed."
Rose's mind sputtered at the information. Bad Wolf had always seemed like just a message… but then again there was Lumen. That figure from her painting that had been with the TARDIS and destroyed the Abomination. There had been power there, she'd felt it then. Aware that the Doctor was watching her, Rose swallowed and licked her lips.
"You're saying that something was able to reach me because of that wound the Silver Lord gave me?" Rose clarified. Her brow furrowed and she couldn't shake the sense of unease that gave her. "Bad Wolf is… sentient?"
The Doctor gently took hold of her shoulders. "Yes, but it's alright Rose. It won't harm you. That wound just created a weak point in your potentiality. It's been burned away now so you don't need to fear it. That can't happen again."
A sigh escaped Rose and she found herself biting back a shout at the Doctor. "If I asked you would you tell me what Bad Wolf is?"
"No," he admitted. He released her arms and stepped back. "I can't tell you that Rose."
"Those words are more than just a message," Rose said. "More than just words scattered through time and teaching me to pay attention. There's power in them. I felt that today."
"Darling, you know I can't tell you."
"Why not?" Rose nodded towards the door. "I know a lot about my own future already so that's not the reason. I know that we get married, have kids and grandkids. I know your next few faces. I know that I'll go missing for a time and then return so what's the big deal. Why is this different?" She was whining a bit now and she didn't care.
"As you said, there's power in those words," the Doctor said. His words rang of finality and she could tell he wouldn't budge, not even for her. "Power meant for a certain point in time."
Sighing, Rose brought a hand up and massaged her temple. She was frustrated, tired and irritated with the Doctor, but she couldn't argue the point. He lingered by the console, watching her and giving her some space. Rose looked down at her arm where the Silver Lord had cut her with that odd sword. She traced the skin, it felt normal now, but then again it had when the Seventh Doctor had used the dermal regenerator.
"My Seventh body didn't know enough about you to properly heal it," the Doctor said, answering the unspoken question. "Didn't know what he was dealing with."
"Funny, that's the second time that the Silver Lords attempts to destroy me have actually saved me," Rose said. "His programming to get me to marry him saved me from Apep's mental powers and now this."
"Well the universe is much fonder of you than him," the Doctor replied drily.
"That's a surprise considering my timeline," Rose said. She snorted a little and shook her head. "I figured that it would hate me."
"Gordian knot," the Doctor chuckled his grey eyes sparkling with amusement. "You're fairly fond of describing your timeline that way."
"Gordian knot?" Rose repeated with a small frown of confusion. "Isn't that the knot that can't be untied."
"According to legend Alexander the Great sliced it with his sword," the Doctor lectured. His eyebrows went up at the realisation that she didn't know this yet. "So this is the origin of that little joke of yours? Excellent."
Not liking the smug little smile on his face, Rose leaned up quickly and kissed him on the lips. It was just a fast brush of her lips to his, but it silenced him and he smiled warmly down at her. There was a hint of awe in his grey eyes that made Rose want to grin like an idiot. He really was very attractive even if he was a bit older looking now. She was pretty sure mooning over him in every body was weird and undignified, but she didn't care.
"Rose Tyler," he breathed as he gently cupped her cheek. "Love of my life and completely unfazed by regeneration." He chuckled and gestured to his face as he added, "And to think I was worried that you wouldn't be happy with me regenerating older."
"Well we are grandparents at this point," Rose pointed out with a chuckle before her eyes widened. "Uh… you do know who Adam is right?"
"I do know Adam." The Doctor looked too amused. "And it's great-grandparents actually," the Doctor informed her with a soft sigh. "Found that out shortly before I regenerated. I blame the age on that news, nothing makes you feel old quite like getting a great-grandchild."
Chuckling, Rose leaned her head against the Doctor's shoulder. He was the same height as his earlier green eyed self and she fit against him perfectly. Sometimes the simple fact that they always fit astounded her. This Doctor didn't seem as fond of hugging or touching as his prior lives but seemed quite content to have her against him. Which was fine; she was happy to just be beside him.
"You were saying about the Gordian knot?" Rose questioned after a moment of silence. "What about it?"
"The crossing of timelines was forbidden by Time Lords as it usually creates a weak point in time," the Doctor explained. As he shifted towards the TARDIS controls, his arm wrapped around her and settled comfortably on her hip. "But as you well know your timeline is very complicated, what with you meeting me over and over in all of my bodies before you even travel with me. For a normal person, this would be dangerous due to the vulnerability it could create. In your case… thanks to the Guardians and all the times you've looked into Time and absorbed knowledge of alternate realities it makes your timeline a Gordian knot. It can't be untied, any attempt to do so would create a paradox which would alert the Guardians and as the Trickster proved any attempt to cut your timeline, as it were, creates a new alternate reality." He gestured towards her arm. "Or allows the future to bleed into the past as part of a closed loop."
"So is that good or bad?"
"Actually it protects you," the Doctor replied. "Attempts to rewrite your past create cosmic ripples that alert the Guardians that there is a problem. It keeps you safe from attempts by… future enemies to change our history together." He frowned for a moment and his eyebrows shadowed his eyes. "That's why the Silver Lord had to create that special sword to kill you." His grip on her hip tightened and Rose leaned up to kiss his jaw in silent reassurance that she was fine.
"And it means I get to meet all of you," Rose said with a smile. She didn't want to think about the Silver Lord today. "That part is nice too." She turned, placing her hands on his chest and feeling the steady beat of his hearts. "I just-" Rose cut herself off and shook her head.
The Doctor held her close and kissed her forehead gently. "I know Darling, but there are things I can't tell you now. There are things that you and I need to live through and discover together." He tilted her chin up so she was looking up at him. "Mysteries are hard to live with, but I must ask you to live with this one a little longer."
Holding back a sigh Rose nodded. She understood what he was saying even if she didn't like it. Bad Wolf. The two words had been following her for years and while Rose didn't fear them they were a message just out of her reach. They were a guide but meant far more to others than they did to her. Today had proven that there was real power in those words, but she didn't understand what or why yet. It was frustrating, but she could only nod.
"You're my wife Rose," the Doctor whispered. His Scottish bur had softened to a gentle soothing tone. "Someday you'll know everything."
"Everything is a lot," Rose said. She gave him a smile. "Besides I thought you rather liked your mysterious nature."
"I'm a bit simpler in this body," the Doctor said. He smiled slightly and nodded towards the door. "I leave a lot of the universe saving to the younger generation." Rose raised an eyebrow, doubting that statement. "Except when really bored," he amended a moment later.
"So you're just a traveller now?" Rose questioned. She couldn't help but smile at the relaxed soft smile. It wasn't a broad grin like his tenth body or a wild one like his eleventh. It was settled, content and at ease. She rather liked it on him. Even if he did play grumpy this time around.
"Traveller and a family man."
"Good life then?"
"Better with two." He raised her hand to his lips and kissed it gently. "Time to get you home."
"Yeah, I've got finals waiting for me," Rose groaned. "Well if nothing else this puts that all into perspective." She smiled at the Doctor. "I should've run off with you when you first asked."
"You wouldn't be you if you'd done that," the Doctor reminded. He released her hand and gave her another small secretive smile. "And I rather like how you turned out."
"You say the most romantic things, my love," Rose said, raising an eyebrow.
The Doctor flipped a lever and raised one of his eyebrows right back at her. Rose chuckled, he was definitely better at that than she was. Then he reached out and cupped her cheek again, gently drawing her towards him. Rose didn't resist and leaned up to meet his kiss, sealing their mouths together. She sighed happily and wrapped her arms around his shoulders. Regeneration or not he was still a very good kisser.
…..Next Time…
Rose headed deeper into the house, but there was still no one. Rose frowned and looked around the house carefully. It was all too quiet and still. Her mum was supposed to be here with her boyfriend ready for Rose to meet. Something about the house just felt wrong and Rose wasn't sure what it was. Stepping further down the hallway, Rose glanced into the living room. Still no sign of her Mum or Rita-Anne for that matter.