Disclaimer: I don't own Doctor Who.

Changes

"I don't go anywhere without her," The Doctor had once said, back when he'd had a different face.

That had clearly changed. No longer his "plus one," but just his assistant, no longer his partner in crime, but just a tagalong traveler, Rose wondered what else had changed.

Sighing, Rose wandered the halls of the TARDIS. Running her hand gently over the walls, she stopped when she felt the TARDIS's prompting. Opening the door, she found the wardrobe room. Wondering what sort of adventure this new Doctor would choose for them next and the sort of clothes it would require, Rose began searching through the clothes, moving deeper into the closet with each nudge from the TARDIS.

The nudging ceased, and she came to a stop in front of a row of jackets. There were women's jackets, men's jackets, long jackets, short jackets, a leather jacket…Rose reached out to touch it. She could remember the feel of it in her hands as she hugged the Doctor's arm, the feel of its slight warmth against her cheek as she leaned against his shoulder. Pulling it off the rack, Rose tucked her nose into the collar. Breathing deeply of the scent that still lingered, she sank to the floor. Huddled against the wall, she drew the jacket over her shoulders, curling herself into it. It still smelled like him, though it no longer held his warmth.

The Doctor was still alive, but he had still died. The man who'd taken her hand so long ago, and told her to run was gone, even if he wasn't. Rose thought she'd been handling the regeneration quite well, considering. So, really it was no wonder that she suddenly felt this way. So much had happened that she'd had no time to mourn the man he was, so intent on learning the man he'd become.

The tears came then, silent but swift. She buried her face in her hands, tucking herself further into the jacket, wishing she could still feel his warmth.

"Rose?"

The Doctor's gentle voice startled her, and she sat up, hastily wiping her tears away.

He sat down next to her, giving her a few more moments to mourn.

"I thought you still believed I was him," the Doctor said hesitantly.

"I do," Rose said urgently. "I do, but you're different 's all. 's just not the same, and that's a lot to have to get used to," she finished sadly.

The Doctor flinched. He knew Rose had reacted better to his regeneration than he could have hoped. He knew it was really asking a lot of her, to just accept that he was the same man. And really, in a lot of ways, he was a different man.

"Oh, Rose." He pulled her into his embrace, letting her cry against his shoulder. She really hadn't had time to mourn his other regeneration. He tucked his hands under his old leather jacket and ran his hands comfortingly over her back.

Her tears slowed, then stopped, and she sighed into his neck before pulling away so she could see his face.

"I'm sorry, Doctor."

"It's all right, Rose. I know it's a lot to get used to."

She nodded, but let her head rest on his shoulder again. He held her more firmly, and she wrapped her arms around his neck. The old leather felt strange against his skin, and he pulled back from her embrace.

Reaching up to touch the lapels of his old jacket, he stared understandingly into her eyes, even as she blushed. "Do you really need this, Rose?"

"I…" she hesitated. "I thought I did," she admitted.

"And now," he wondered, still touching the jacket.

"I…I don't know," she said sadly.

He sighed. "Do you trust me, Rose?"

She glanced at him, startled, before nodding. "Of course, Doctor."

He smiled gently before moving his hands underneath the jacket, running them gently over her shoulders as he pushed the jacket from her arms. It pooled on the floor behind her, and he grasped her hand in his, marveling at the way they still fit perfectly together, using it to pull her into his embrace, maneuvering her so that she was sitting in his lap. Tucking her head back under his chin, he wrapped his long arms around her. She rested her hands on his forearms, and leaned back against him. Holding his hand, being in his arms had always felt right, and she realized that it still did.

Resting in her Doctor's arms, Rose realized that while everything may not be the same, the fundamental things that made them who they were had not changed. They were still The Doctor and Rose Tyler traveling together in the TARDIS, and that would never change.