Rose Tyler couldn't keep the silly grin from her face as she watched the Doctor literally dance around in place as he waited for her at the entrance to the TARDIS.
"Come on, Rose Tyler! Look sharp! Allons-y!" He grinned manically as he held out a hand for her and opened the door. She placed her hand in his, his fingers instantly entwining with hers.
A gentle breeze caressed her face as she stepped outside on this new planet, her eyes blinking rapidly as they adjusted to the bright lights.
"Where are we at again?" she asked.
He beamed at her, his eyes crinkling at the corners. "The Fourth Moon of Kentucky. The planet, not the state."
"You'd think there would be some blue," she joked, her hand shielding her eyes from the glare. The sky was a deep shade of green, and Rose noted the binary suns, one purple and the other a deep orange.
"Weeellll, not for another few centuries," came the response. "We are in the year 8752, and this small moon is known for the best market in the HorseHead Nebula." He leaned closer to her, and Rose followed suit, as though they were about to share a secret. "Also, some of the best chips in Orion's belt." He winked at her.
Rose's stomach growled at the thought of food. The Doctor chuckled and pulled her along towards the town just up ahead.
The market was a kaleidoscope of colors. Rose's eyes nearly crossed as they darted from one incredible stall to the next. She breathed in the strong scent of spices as they passed what appeared to be a spice stall, noting some of them smelled somewhat familiar.
Aliens of all types packed the streets, and Rose edged even closer to the Doctor as one large insectoid passed by them. He pulled her closer, his arm going around her. "Careful," he murmured in her ear. "Those creatures are relatively harmless, but they are known to release a chemical that causes hallucinations through their skin."
Rose swallowed and nodded as the Doctor kept his arm around her, his hand just below her hip. She tried to suppress a shiver at the contact.
"Doctor," Rose frowned as she gazed around the market. "I don't see any humans at all here. Isn't that a bit odd?"
The Doctor grinned down at her. "Oh, you humans won't make it out this far in the universe for another few thousand years. At this time, you've barely made it to the outer reaches of your own solar system. I dare say, Rose Tyler, that you're probably the first human to have ever set foot on this moon."
He squeezed her hip, and Rose had to concentrate to keep her heartbeat steady. Gods, he'd been like this for a few days now, and it was slowly driving her insane. Ever since last week, when they'd both thought they'd lost each other…
It was probably just her silly, foolish, wishful thinking, but ever since that fateful trip, it seemed like the Doctor couldn't stop touching her, reaching for her, invading her personal space at every opportunity. Just the other day, as he was puttering about the TARDIS console, he kept a hold of her hand the entire time, rotating her this way and that, almost like an awkward dance. Just that morning, he'd stood next to her in the kitchen while she poured the tea, his hand running up and down her back, drawing idle circles as he chatted about their plans for the day.
"Come on, Rose–look at those! Ooh! I haven't seen these in over three hundred years!" His delighted tone startled her from her thoughts. He began showing her all the strange and unusual wares, pointing out the ones he knew, chatting idly to the various merchants as they meandered through the streets. He introduced her to some sort of strange sugary drink that changed flavors with each sip. They had chips, or rather, what passed for chips in this part of the galaxy from a street vendor. Rose had nothing to compare them to, not having tried any other chips in Orion's Belt, but they were rather tasty.
The afternoon passed by quickly, and Rose found herself waiting while the Doctor argued with a shopkeeper about the price of something he thought would work for the TARDIS. She let her gaze roam over the streets as creatures of all sorts milled about. The Doctor was definitely right about her being the only human, all the other beings they'd met so far in the market were decidedly not so. She could recognize a few species from their previous travels, none of them even remotely resembling a human. The noise of the crowds as the lifeforms argued and bartered over quality and prices gave her a slight headache, and she scooted over to the side just to get a moment to herself.
She exchanged glances with the Doctor, who was still going at it with the shopkeeper. He grinned at her and rolled his eyes as though to say "Can you believe this guy?" She giggled as the three-armed shopkeeper must have seen him, and he became even more agitated, his eyestalks waving back and forth angrily.
"Oi, that wasn't directed at you," the Doctor explained as the furry creature waved all three of his arms about. "I have, a…uh…I have an uncontrollable eye condition! It gets triggered every so often."
With all the crowds and noise, Rose shouldn't have been able to spot the little child as quickly as she did, especially as it was quite some distance away, but curiosity and her genuine need to help had her scurrying over.
He was standing just outside an alley, and he was crying.
He was also very, very much human.
Without thinking, Rose was at his side in an instance, crouching down to his height.
"Hey, are you alright? Did you lose your parents?"
She nearly lost her balance as she met a pair of bright blue eyes, tears falling softly down his freckled cheeks.
"Mummy! I didn't mean to wander off, but there was some sort of animal that ran by me and I just wanted to follow it–" The little boy threw his arms around her as he sobbed helplessly.
Rose felt her arms return the hug reflexively, not knowing what else to do.
"Peter!" a voice called. Both Rose and the little boy looked up to see a tall, lanky, teenage girl–again, human–approach them.
"It's ok! I found mum!" The little boy called out.
The girl froze, her eyes wide as she stared at Rose. "That's not mum."
The boy frowned. "What's wrong with you? Of course that's mom! She even smells like her." The boy hugged her even tighter, not noticing that Rose's arms had fallen away in shock.
"That's not mum," the girl repeated. "That's a time paradox." The girl gave a wide grin, a dimple appearing on freckled cheeks. "Dad's going to be in soooo much trouble."
Rose swallowed as she stared at the teen. The girl had on a multi-colored jumper, ripped jeans under a short, frilly bright yellow mini-skirt, and a pair of red fingerless gloves. She had long, curly blond hair that Rose envied. Her brown eyes twinkled with a delighted mirth, as though she was vastly amused by Rose.
"What's wrong with you?" the boy named Peter frowned. Rose stared down at the boy, unable to believe what she was seeing. He couldn't have been no more than six or seven years old. Both the boy and the girl had similar features, although the boy had light brown hair that stuck out in all directions. He was dressed as any normal human boy would be, in black jeans and a plain green jumper. He had a small smattering of freckles across his nose and cheeks, which only made his light blue eyes all the more vivid.
Eyes the same color and shape exactly as her mum's.
"That's not mum," the girl rolled her eyes at the boy. "Look at her!" She giggled again, and Rose stiffened.
Peter took a step back, his mouth opening and closing in shock as he stared at her. "Oh. You're right."
It was unnerving, the way the kids both stared at her, smiling like they were both in on a prank.
"Hi, I'm Rose Tyler." She gave them a weak wave of her hand.
The kids both grinned in unison. "We know."
There was something about those two kids that disturbed her, and she wished fervently that the Doctor would hurry up and find her.
As though he'd heard her thoughts, his voice rang out. Rose nearly collapsed with relief, thankful the wall was supporting her.
"What did I tell you? No wandering off! How many times do I have to say it? Just wait until your mu–" His voice trailed off as he noticed her.
Shocked brown eyes met hers. The air rushed from her lungs.
"Oh, bloody hell. I'm going to be in so much trouble," the man said.
That wasn't the Doctor.
…
That wasn't the Doctor. Rose knew it couldn't be the Doctor.
She wasn't sure how long she stood there, silently pressed up against the wall as she watched the man quarrel with the two kids. He was wearing a white Oxford, the sleeves pushed up to his elbows, his collar loose about his neck. A brown and blue plaid vest stretched across his chest, held together by a single button. Her gaze lowered to a pair of matching plaid trousers, and she went dizzy.
The shoes.
She knew those shoes, had seen those shoes running ahead of her, beside her for the past year. Propped up on the TARDIS console as they sat on the jump seat, planning their next adventures. A small gasp escaped her lips, and suddenly the man and the children stopped arguing. All three of them turned to face her.
Rose swallowed nervously, panic starting to set in. She knew she should run, go find the Doctor, but she couldn't seem to make herself move, especially as the man tentatively approached her, smiling.
"Hello." His voice was the same as the Doctor's, maybe a bit deeper.
Instinctively, her lips stretched into a smile. "Hello."
If anything, his smile grew larger, and Rose tilted her neck to focus on his face.
Oh, God.
He was older. His hair was different, a shade or two darker. He had an undercut, but of course there was no mistaking the familiar shock of hair on top and the sideburns. His face had more wrinkles, but it just made him appear more rugged. Those beautiful brown eyes twinkled down at her.
It couldn't be.
"Is she ok, dad? Her heart is racing."
His eyes never left hers. "Yep." God, he even spoke the same, popping the "p." "She's just in a bit of shock at the moment."
The man tentatively raised his hands. "Don't be afraid. I'm going to fix this, ok? Everything will be fine. I promise you."
She nodded, unable to speak.
"What did I say about wandering off? I swear–" A female voice called out. The man in front of her stiffened, his face going pale as he quickly spun around.
'There you are! I told you no wandering off–" Now that was the Doctor's voice. Her knees went weak with relief that he'd found her and again, she was thankful for the wall keeping her upright. She said a quick prayer to the universe that he would be able to make sense of all of this…well, whatever this was.
Cool fingers entwined with hers as he pulled her to him. "What are you doing over here? Rose, you wouldn't believe what that silly merchant was charging for a substandard semi-automatic, subatomic transmitter from Cygna-16. I wouldn't have given him a farthing. Well, you know if I had one–" He was doing that rapid fire thing where he was oblivious to everything around him, focused only on her.
He suddenly frowned, noticing her discomfiture. "You're staring at me. What's wrong?"
Rose tried to find enough breath to speak, but was interrupted by a shrill voice. In sync, they both turned their heads.
"-wouldn't listen to me, would you? Now who's the stupid ape? I told you that you needed to double check the date, but oh no–" the female's irate voice turned deeper, as though she were mocking someone. "-it's all hunky-dory, easy peasy, Rose! We'll land two hundred years–"
Her eyes widened when she heard her name. She felt the Doctor's fingers tighten around hers.
That female's voice sounded so familiar.
"I've never seen mum get so angry," the girl said to her brother. Both of them giggled.
The male was blocking her view of the woman, and Rose stretched up on her tip-toes trying to get a good view. For one of the few times since she'd met him, Rose willingly let go of the Doctor's hand as she crept forward, craning her neck to get a good look at the woman.
"Rose, no! Get behind me," the Doctor jerked her back. Both the man and the woman whipped around in unison.
Rose slumped against the Doctor as she stared straight into an identical pair of hazel eyes.
Her eyes.
"What's going on here? Who are you?" The Doctor's body was so tense as he slid in front of her, trying to protect her from whatever threat he sensed.
The woman sighed, running her hands through her blond hair. "I am going to kill you," she glared at the man.
He sighed. "I told you, I'll get this sorted." He gave the woman a charming grin, which never faltered as he turned to face Rose and the Doctor. "Look at you," he said with a playful tone. "Absolutely adorable." Rose felt heat rush to her cheeks. He beamed at her as though she was a long-lost friend.
Rose felt the Doctor stiffen even further. "Who are you?" he repeated firmly.
The man only shook his head. "It's not important, right now. What is important is we figure out how you got here. Rose," he nodded his head in her direction. "Tell us what happened."
Rose swallowed, finally finding her voice. "That little boy was crying, and I wanted to help him–"
"Of course you did." All three of the adults spoke at the same time and she blinked.
"Always jeopardy friendly," the man muttered under his breath, giving Rose a wink.
"It wasn't my fault!" The little boy cried. "Mum, I was following a furry little creature that looked like it might be a cat. It was purple and green and I wanted to see if it would let me pet it, and then she–you–" the boy pointed at Rose. "Found me."
The girl snorted. "I'm surprised we were able to recognize you under all that makeup, mum. I mean, look at you!" The teen pointed at Rose incredulously.
"Oi!" both of the parents said at the same time.
"I mean–" the girl spoke over the pair. "-how old were you, here? Sixteen?"
"I'm twenty!" Rose told the girl indignantly.
"That's not much better!" The girl snapped, rolling her eyes. "Dad, what the hell were you thinking, creeping on mum like that! It's disgusting!"
"There was no creeping involved!" the man grumbled.
"Didn't gran give him a smack?" the little boy giggled as he pointed to his father. Both kids burst in peals of laughter, clutching their sides.
"Both of you, that's enough!" the woman scolded, and the image of her mum suddenly popped into Rose's mind. Jackie had that exact same exasperated tone when she was irritated with Rose.
"Why are we in trouble?" the girl shot back. "Dad's the one who caused a time paradox–" she gestured at her father.
"This isn't a time paradox!" the man protested. Both the man, woman, and teen began talking over each other.
Rose wasn't sure how long she and the Doctor stood there, both staring dumbfoundedly as they watched the three bicker about temporal paradoxes and ontological paradoxes. Rose wondered if she was having some sort of hallucination, maybe that insect creature accidentally brushed by her at the market? She nudged the Doctor, who was strangely quiet.
"Doctor?" she whispered. "What's happening here?"
He shook his head. "I don't know," he whispered back. "Something's wrong here though, I can feel it."
"They are talking about time paradoxes though. You've noticed, haven't you, that the man and woman there look–"
"No." Rose shuddered as the Doctor spit out the word. He kept his gaze centered on the other couple. "No, it's not possible."
A wave of sadness suddenly washed over Rose. "But that man, his eyes, his smile–"
The Doctor's head snapped around and Rose shuddered at the cold look he gave her. "This isn't a time paradox."
Rose watched the man throw his arms up in the air, pacing madly between the woman and the girl. God, he even had the same movements… "But Doc–"
She gasped as the Doctor suddenly grabbed her arms, gripping them almost painfully. "Rose, that woman is not you, and that man is definitely not me. I don't age."
Rose held his cold stare, stepping back. "You're right. This isn't real." The Doctor studied her for a moment, then whirled back to watch the couple who were still arguing.
Rose stiffened, her eyes suddenly burning with angry tears that she forced herself to fight back. Her chest ached. It was stupid, so damned stupid to even briefly entertain the idea that this was anything other than the universe once again proving just how cruel it could be. Just a few days before, she and the Doctor sat under a glowing black hole, talking about carpets and mortgages. Shame tore through her as she remembered thinking that even though they were stranded without the TARDIS, trapped with no hope of returning home…she was almost pleased, happy even. Selfish, so selfish of her to think even for a split second that maybe she would get exactly what she wanted; a life, a future–with the Doctor.
The universe was now punishing her for that stray bit of hope.
Rose jerked as she felt a small hand clasp hers.
"It's ok, mum," the little boy smiled up at her. "Dad–well, that dad–" he pointed to the man, "-will fix this."
Rose took a deep breath, smiling sadly. "You have eyes just like my mum's."
His smile widened, his tongue poking out between his teeth. "That's what Gran says too. She loves to brag about how much I look like her. Dad tells her she's nuts." He squeezed her hand in comfort. "I'm Peter."
She was unable to resist his smile. "Hello, Peter."
He scowled at the Doctor. "He was rude to you."
Rose shrugged. "It's fine."
"He doesn't think this is real, does he?" Peter tugged on her hand.
Rose blew out a breath, gazing at the Doctor. His eyes were totally focused on the other three people, his brow furrowed, trying to solve whatever complex puzzle that only he could see. His lips moved silently.
"No, and I don't think I believe this either," Rose told the boy. "But I'm glad I got to meet you in any case." She reached out to ruffle his hair, marveling at the soft texture.
"-THAT'S IT! I'VE GOT IT!" Both Rose and Peter jumped a part as the man shouted, his arm held up in triumph. He grinned madly as he looked at Rose and the Doctor. "We need to figure out where–they–uh–we–uh…" He said to woman, who was now smiling at him, her previous anger apparently forgotten. "What should we call them–us–"
"Other Dad and Other Mum?" Peter suggested.
"The Pinstripe Perv and the Peroxide Blonde?" The girl added. "Teen Mum and the TARDIS Man?"
"Oi! Watch it!" The woman frowned at the girl, who playfully stuck out her tongue at her mother.
A bubble of laughter erupted from Rose. It was like she had been teleported in the middle of some live-action sitcom, which only contained her deepest desire–she and the Doctor, with two amazing children. This definitely wasn't real. She slowly lowered herself to the floor, overcome with hysterical laughter.
"Rose?" The Doctor knelt next to her, concerned etched on his face. He cupped her cheek, and Rose hated how she relaxed into the touch.
"I'm fine, Doctor," Rose replied. "Everything's fine." She shrugged her shoulders, pulling away. "You're right, this isn't real. I'm sure I've just breathed in some sort of weird space spice from one of the stalls, or I don't know–maybe I wandered into some alternate reality–a wormhole…" She gave a hiccup as she tried to calm herself. She was a jumble of nerves–and once again, cursed the universe because she couldn't even have a breakdown without an audience, imaginary or not.
"Wormholes don't work that way," the girl moaned disparagingly.
"No, Rose, it's not that," the Doctor whispered, ignoring the young girl's snarky comment. "This is wrong, this is all wrong."
"What's that pretty boy?" The man squatted down on the other side of Rose, placing a hand on her shoulder.
"Pretty boy?" The Doctor sputtered. "Are you referring to me?"
"God, yes." Rose's head snapped as the woman spoke. She clasped her hands over her mouth as though she'd not meant to speak out loud.
"Hey!" the man frowned at the woman. "I'm right here!"
"And there," Peter pointed to the Doctor.
"Oh, come off it," the woman strode over to the man, and gave him a quick peck on the lips. She straightened his thin gray tie. "You know you are incredibly," she kissed him again. "Ruggedly handsome." Another kiss followed, and the man's face flushed.
"Gross," the young girl said. Her brother giggled.
The Doctor abruptly rose, circling the couple. "Do you want to know why, Rose–" he pointed at her. "Why I know that this isn't real? Well," he cocked his head to the side. "I mean besides the fact that as a Time Lord, I don't age, and I damned well wouldn't be caught dead in—" he sneered at the man, who bristled. "-In a suit that's about two sizes too small, and plaid! Plaid of all things! You know I'd never, ever, never in a million, billion years wear plaid again!"
"I like the plaid, dad–" the girl told her father. "Plaid is cool." Her father beamed over at her.
"Oh, like the pinstripes were that great–" the man snarled back at the Doctor. "Stupid layered shirts and ties–like you're some renegade history professor!"
"Better that than a chartered accountant on a bender!"
"ENOUGH!" Everyone jumped as the woman held her hands out, separating the two men. She looked a bit surprised as she stood between them. She shuddered, murmuring "Oh, I'm having a lot of thoughts here…" under her breath.
The man leered at her, chuckling. The Doctor just gaped at the woman, as though he was just registering her presence.
As though she'd been avoiding it herself, Rose studied the woman, finally getting the courage to look at her thoroughly. She had to admit, if her mind was hallucinating all of this, then it was doing a fantastic job. The woman had the same blond hair, although a bit longer than her current style. Her face was the same, although a bit older– a bit more defined, a few fine lines in all the expected places. Less makeup. Her attire was ordinary, a pair of blue jeans and a fitted jacket of red, blue and yellow, with some sort of chevron pattern across the front. She was beautiful.
The woman smiled at the Doctor. "Hello," her voice was playful, flirty.
"Hello," the Doctor responded with a smile, his eyes admiring her. Rose bristled.
"It's like they all have some sort of instinct," Peter turned to his sister. "An unconscious natural response."
The parents rounded on their children. "Ok, you two–this has gone on long enough! We've got to figure out how to correct this time paradox before–"
"It's not a time paradox," the Doctor frowned at the woman.
She shot the Doctor a glare, and he swallowed. "Do not interrupt me! Now, kids–come here." She motioned to the children, and fumbled around her jacket pocket. "Take this," Rose recognized a universal credit manipulator.
"I want you and your brother to go three streets over, to the left, five doors down, and stay in the sweet shop until your father and I come get you."
"Fantastic!' The girl took the credit manipulator and beamed at her mother.
"Can't we stay here?" Peter whined. "I think this Dad and that Dad" he pointed to the men, "are going to come to blows!"
"We're not fighting," the man threw his arms up in air. "That really would cause a time paradox." He smiled at the children. "Go on, the both of you. Do as your mother says."
Rose found herself pushed back against the wall again as Peter wrapped his small arms around her, squeezing her tightly. "Good bye, mum!" He repeated the action with the Doctor, who gaped down at the boy. "Good bye, dad!"
The young girl followed suit, wrapping Rose into another hug. "Bye mum! Don't worry," she whispered in her ear. "Dad will fix this. Trust him." Rose wished she had the courage to ask for her name, but knew it didn't matter. None of this was real.
The Doctor received a hug as well, although he was too stunned to return it. "Remember, you promised to get us a dog from Barcelona!" The little boy called out.
Rose let out a startled bark of laughter as the children happily jogged off.
"You laugh now, but wait until they rewire the TARDIS console to play pop music from the largest moon Vega/Pineapple," the woman told her with a smirk, her tongue peeking out the corner of her mouth. "It took days to fix it."
"Alright, so first thing is first," the man said, clapping his hands and rubbing them together. "I've got to wipe some memories, but this is super tricky to do."
"How so, Doctor?" the woman replied. Rose refused to refer to her as "older Rose," if indeed, that's what she was. Maybe Peter was right, maybe "Other Rose" and "Other Doctor" would fit better.
"I have to pinpoint the exact moment that we–uh, they–got here, and erase the memory from the exact moment that you–uh–" he paused and smiled admiringly over at Rose.
"I think I'll call you the Absolutely Adorable Rose, how does that sound?" He clapped his hands in glee. "And you–" he pointed at Other Rose. "You are the Brilliantly Beautiful Rose!" He beamed around at everyone as though it was the greatest idea in the universe.
"Why don't you ever wear that top anymore? I always thought it looked so fetching on you." Rose flushed as the Other Doctor indicated the light blue sweater she wore.
Other Rose sighed. "Like I could fit in something like that after two children." She punched the Other Doctor's arm. "Now, focus!"
He cleared his throat. "Quite right. Now as I was saying, we have to be very precise. I'm going to have to find the exact moment that the Absolutely Adorable Rose here," he nodded in her direction, "found Peter. I can't stay in your–her–mind longer than a few seconds. It's too dangerous."
Other Rose let out a breath. "Maybe next time, you'll listen to your wife–" She gasped when he kissed her, pressing his forehead to hers.
"I swear, I'll sort this out. Trust me," he suddenly turned serious. "You know I'm not going to risk any harm to you or the kids." Rose shivered at his tone. A sharp pain went through her chest as she watched the couple. She'd give anything to have her Doctor look at her like that.
The Doctor wasn't paying attention to the scene in front of him. He'd started pacing, his arms folded, muttering under his breath.
"Doctor," Rose said. Her Doctor looked up as though he'd just remembered he wasn't alone.
"Rose," he came over to her, his hands on her shoulders. "I'm not sure what's going on." He stretched his arms out, his palms up. "Do you feel it? There's some sort of time interference, but it's different."
"You don't think this is like when we went to Ancient Rome? The statue of Fortuna and all that…" Rose immediately regretted the question as the Doctor's eyes turned cold again.
"I don't age, Rose. I don't grow old," the Doctor reiterated. "Good job, the both of you–whatever you are," the Doctor raised his voice so the couple could hear. "Well done indeed. Especially you," he pointed at the Other Rose. "You definitely deserve an award because you–" the Doctor let out a wolf whistle.
Rose swore the Other Rose blushed.
The Doctor turned serious. "But whatever it is that you're doing, or want–it's not going to fool us."
The Other Doctor stalked towards him. "God, you are such an arse. If I knew it wouldn't cause a complete fracture in the space time continuum, I think I really would beat the shit out of you."
Rose shivered as she saw the fury in the Other Doctor's face.
"Now," he continued. "Here's what's going to happen. I've got to erase your memories of this meeting–."
"You won't be able to get through my mental shields," the Doctor sneered back.
"Wanna bet?"
"Both of you, please," the Other Rose interjected. "The longer we stay here in this moment, the harder it's going to be. Doctor," she smiled wryly as both men looked her way. "The Ruggedly Handsome one here, can only hold the link for a minute at the most. We've got to first figure out where you are in our timeline."
"Rose," the Doctor pulled her to him, whispering in her ear. "Rose, this isn't real–you don't seriously believe–"
"You keep saying that Doctor. Are you trying to convince me, or yourself?" Anger laced her voice, and his eyes widened. It was rare that Rose lost her temper with him, and she was sure it was because she was still so raw from Krop-Tor.
He dropped his head to her shoulder in defeat. "Rose." His voice cracked, and Rose's heart broke at the sound.
"Rose," she looked up to see the Other Rose staring at her, her eyes glassy with unshed tears. "Please, help me. Help us."
The Doctor stiffened and raised his head, his hair a soft caress against her cheek. Rose gave him a determined look and turned to face the couple. "What do you need to know?"