It wasn't until the Doctors had decided to find somewhere and wire the bio-scanners of all three of the available TARDISes that the opportunity for Jack and Louve to have a moment alone came up.
It was supposed to be just long enough for them to walk her back to her TARDIS, then move it to an out of the way location. Somewhere along the way, their hands had slipped together. Neither of them were sure who grabbed who first, but in the moment, it didn't seem to matter. It was comforting.
"We're going to find her." He'd said after a long while of silence.
"I know." She'd replied, nearly a whisper.
"The Doctor- He's not going to rest until whoever took her has paid. Neither of them are." He'd said again. There was something behind his voice- like Jack wasn't saying any of this for her benefit. It was a reminder for himself.
"I know." She'd repeated. Louve did not trust her own voice. She'd been fighting tears the entire time since the sedative wore off.
They made it to the parking garage and when she went to unlock her door, Jack stepped forward and stopped her.
"Wolvie, I-"
"Please don't." She snapped. Her eyes finally met his, and she could see the worry and hurt he'd been holding in the entire time.
"But-"
"Javic, no." She shook her head, ignoring how hurt he looked as she snapped off his thought. "I don't want to hear it. I don't want another set of 'I'm so sorry' and 'If I could've-', It doesn't help anything. We need to get in here, go see what dad has figured out, and find our girl. That's it. That is the only thing."
Jack looked at her, jaw set. He huffed and opened the door for her before following her in.
Rose had tried to wait it out. Let the Doctor speak first.
He'd led her silently back to his TARDIS, hand in hand, and simply walked up to the console when they'd entered the ship, and began setting controls to the warehouse his older self had suggested as a place to set up their search.
Rose simply sat down on the jump seat, hands folded in her lap, and watched as he moved around, setting coordinates. She could see even beyond his large leather coat that his shoulders were tensed.
"Do you think we should-"
"Talk about her?" The Doctor correctly guessed, finishing Rose's question. He glanced over his shoulder, his blue eyes shining with emotion he dare not let slip onto his face. He turned to fully face her, seeing that his poor Rose was on the verge of tears once again. "Yeah, if it would help. But Rose- when this is over, to reset this timeline, to fix the paradox, we will have to forget almost everything."
"What? Why?!" She cried out, almost falling off the seat she sat forward so abruptly.
"Because this isn't our timeline. It's his. That's over a thousand years from now for me." He looked at her, and his voice cracked as he spoke. "I'm so sorry. But think of it this way- Consider you don't want to not have Louve. So whatever it is that you end up doing that causes the heart of the TARDIS to get involved doesn't happen. Maybe she never even meets Jack. She certainly won't have her own TARDIS, because River Song, who I do not know yet, is who will help me grow it faster. She never meets Jack, she never has Rosaline. She never has Rosaline... she never comes back to meet us- none of this happens. It resets the timeline in ways we can't even begin to predict."
"It's not fair." Rose broke, a sob wracking her. The Doctor knelt before her, taking her face gently in his large hand.
"I know." He whispered. "I hate it, too. But before we have to give it all up, we can help find our granddaughter. So I think we need to focus on that. On the goal, on helping."
He gently stroked at her tear streaked cheek with his thumb, and put a gentle kiss on her fore head.
Clara was trying to get a read on the Doctor.
She'd propped herself up on the railing overlooking the console, watching as he mumbled to himself, getting wires out to be ready to wire his TARDIS to the others.
"It's hurt, hasn't it?" Clara said, barely earning a glance in her direction.
"Rose?" He clarified, though he knew it was exactly what she meant. "It always hurts. Sometimes there are people you can't bear to lose. And when you're cursed as I, as I unfortunately passed on to both my daughter and granddaughter, you lose them anyway. It always hurts."
He finished his thought and turned to look at her.
"She's different though, isn't she? Not like Amy, or like Donna..."
"No, friends and lovers aren't exactly the same sort of loss." He growled, and turned back around. "Rose is who saved me from myself after the Time War. I never expected her to become who she was to me."
"So what happened?" Clara pressed.
His former face had once told her a bit about Rose, how much he'd loved her. He'd been under the influence of some exotic drink on a planet far from earth, and he'd gotten sentimental.
"I left her with a clone of myself in a pocket dimension." He answered shortly.
"I feel like there's a bigger story here." Clara crossed her arms.
"I feel like I don't want to tell it." He grunted back, slamming the lever that sent the TARDIS engine into motion. Clara blinked back at him, sighed and shook her head.
"You shouldn't just hold onto hurt, you know." Clara reminded him. "You know how you get."
The Doctor turned abruptly again, face to face with her. He held out a keyboard and bundle of wires.
"We've landed." He grunted, turning back to take his own set of supplies before striding off toward the door.
The Doctors had somehow managed to find an abandoned factory suited to their needs.
Given the Elder Doctor's knowledge and recurrent issues with Missy, formerly known as the Master, he'd concluded she was the most likely suspect to have taken little Rosaline. He'd explained this to all the others, sparing no detail, and had formulated a plan to scan the known universe, past-present-and future with the three TARDISes on hand. Parking the two Police Boxes and Louve's TARDIS, which she'd had turn into a third Police Box (but in purple) just to fit in, in a triangle formation, he'd been able to wire all three together in order to make a full scale sweep of existence as quick as possible.
The troubling part was that even this would take upwards of two days once the scan started- and it'd only been going for two or three hours, now.
The Doctors took turns monitoring any and all data that came through, awaiting a hit that would show both Missy and Rosaline's genetic signature- or showed any of Rosaline's genetic signature without a member of her family present. If they could find her without one of them, even if it wasn't Missy or the Master- they'd find out who it was quick enough once it was narrowed down.
Louve had tried to insist she be allowed to help, but her father had declined, insisting she keep on a regimen of calming medications, though why, Rose nor her Doctor were quiet sure. Jack had started to explain once, but had been silenced by one look from the brooding elder Doctor, who then continued to set up his work.
Growing tired of standing around the computer build in the middle of the TARDIS triangle, Louve came over and hooked an arm through Rose's.
"Fancy a distraction?" She ask, nodding toward the open door of her TARDIS. "Come on. I'll never have a chance like this with you again."
Rose didn't need convincing, and she simply allowed her daughter to guide her away, leaving the two Doctors to be babysat by Clara and Jack.
The Console Room of Louve's TARDIS was similar enough to the other two, but had some dark stained wood paneling along the walls, and fairy lights wrapped around the railings leading up to the Console, as well as the walkway to the rest of her ship. There was a vine growing from somewhere further inside, and it had crept along the wall to the point it was about a third of the way around the room. Rose paused and took the whole thing in. There were a few odd toys laying around on the grates, and a stuffed otter lay on Louve's console, right next to the hatch they'd opened to wire her TARDIS to the others.
A few feet away from the real console was a smaller, near replica toy console, with brightly colored nobs and buttons. Louve caught Rose staring at it and gave a sad smile.
"It was mine." She explained. "Dad made it for me. I uh- I didn't grow up in his TARDIS, if you can believe. Not full time, anyway. We lived in a rented house near the planetary park where the Singing Towers are. But even when I was little, and my TARDIS was growing, Dad wanted me learning. So he built me that, and held onto it. Glad he did. Lanie loves that thing."
"Its amazing." Rose commented, running her hand along the play set as they walked by. She jumped when the sound of something running down the hallway caught their attention. Suddenly a small tabby cat was in the air, and then it landed on Louve's shoulder and began purring loudly. She appeared to be full grown, but had stubby limbs and a slightly shorter torso, rather small by house cat standards.
"Shrimp Toast!" She laughed, scooping the kitten down and into her arms. "I'm sorry sweet kitty, it's been a rough couple days."
"Shrimp Toast?" Rose snorted at the name.
"I know, its a bizarre name- It was just what stuck. She was marked as a casualty of the battle I told you about, where I met Jack. I had scooped her up, and Jack made a comment, still trying to get me to stop interfering with his team's interfering, 'Seriously, that little Shrimp is toast- put her back'- but if she was destined to die anyway- nobody would miss her... So she lives with me, now. So really, her dumb name is Jack's fault."
Louve gently sat the cat down, where she began circling her owners legs, still purring loudly.
"What erm-" Rose started to ask, then closed her mouth, following her daughter down the long hallway.
"Go ahead." Louve smiled gently, pausing for Rose to catch up. "Ask."
"Well, its just... Jack." She said quietly. "I mean- when I met him, when me and the Doctor met him- he was very flirty... With both of us."
"Yeah. Word you're looking for is 'Pansexual'- he likes a bit of everything." She replied with a shrug.
"Right. But he said something about being single." Rose added, still speaking slowly, like she was afraid she'd misspeak and hurt her daughter's feelings.
"Because he is." Wolvie shrugged again, this time her eyes fell away from Rose's.
"But like... Is he, though?" Rose ask, stopping in the hall. "Like- I would normally say 'Oh- it's not my business', but speaking, and oh God how weird it feels to say this, speaking as your mum... Kinda seems like..."
She stopped speaking when she saw Louve's eyes change. She's seen that change in the Doctor's eyes, too. When someone says something that changes the mood in an instant.
"Yeah, well..." Louve craned her neck from side to side, like she wanted to pop her spine and release some of the tension, "Our child is missing. And we're friendly, ya know?"
"But you love him." Rose accused. Louve didn't look back at her.
"He's my daughter's father." She replied quietly. She did not offer any more, and Rose wanted to know, to see if she could somehow help.
"What happened?" Rose pressed. "Look- I know now isn't the time, but we don't have much else to do except talk and wait... but its more than obvious that he kind of wishes he wasn't single, and like... Anyone with eyes can see how he looks at you. And you just look hurt around him. Kind of seems like there's more to it."
Louve sighed heavily, turned away, and kept walking.
"You and younger dad talked about me yet?" She deflected. Rose made the same move to looked at the ground.
"No. It uh- He's been busy with the 'other him', ya know?" She replied, tensing up.
Louve simply nodded and then stopped them before a door.
"Here." She said, opening a door. "This is my room. Pictures. That's what we're after."
Rose stepped in behind her and noticed this was much less a bedroom and more like a small apartment. There was a door inside the room with a sign in the shape of a star that read 'Rosaline' in swirling script, marking where the toddler's own bedroom was. There was a bed and dressers on one side, hidden partially by a dividing wall, a couch, large armchair and television set up toward the middle of the room, right before the door to Rosaline's room, and then a collection of books and various trinkets lined the far wall. Rose also noticed that just under the edge of the bed were a pair of men's boots, and on one of the hooks on the wall hung a long coat, nearly identical to the one Jack was wearing when they'd met, except this one was deep navy in color.
Rose continued to take everything in. The walls of the room that didn't contain shelves had countless pictures in frames across them.
"They're all mixed in but... Pictures are important to me. Especially in a family with people who can change so much." Louve started at the wall beside the door. She pointed to a picture of a rather beautiful woman holding what looked like Rosaline on her hip. "That's me when I was little, and M- River." She said quietly, correcting herself.
"You can call her 'Mum' you know, Wolvie." Rose promised. "I get it."
"Feels kinda wrong." Louve replied quietly, eyes on the floor.
"It isn't. I owe her a lot..." Rose looked at the other pictures as she moved slowly through the room. Many of them had the same woman, River, and Wolvie, along with the Doctor, and occasionally, just River and the Doctor. There were several others. Some featuring Clara. Many with Jack, including a couple that Wolvie was pregnant in. She paused at one with Rosaline on the shoulders of another petite blonde. "This Jenny?" She ask.
"Mhmm." She confirmed.
"I hate to ask it like this..." Rose started, biting at her thumbnail, "But who is-"
"Jenny doesn't have a mother." Louve cut her off. "In any capacity. She's a clone- and an accidental one at that."
"I'm not even going to ask..." Rose laughed nervously.
"She was made in something called a 'loom', it basically uses living DNA to print out ready made, full grown soldiers for war. Dad was doing his usual 'Save the Day' thing, accidentally had a full grown child made. Genetically speaking, Jenny is my sister. Half-sister? I dunno. Been an adult her whole existence. Still though- Dad's a good dad, he loves us the same. Big softy, really. She's a great big sister- I have no idea where she is now though. It's not like her to ignore calls- especially as many as Dad and I have called her since Lanie was taken. Kinda worried about it, honestly."
"Wow." Rose breathed, as she kept going. She looked at each picture, and then doubled back to one where Louve was clearly pregnant, Jack standing behind her, beaming for the camera like an idiot. She squinted and looked at Louve, then to the picture, then back again, checking the shoes her daughter was currently wearing, noticing they were flats.
"You're taller." Rose said. "Like... Properly taller. At least three or four inches from that photo there."
"Regeneration defect." Louve shrugged.
"Regen- but you look the same?" Rose gasped.
"Why'd you regenerate?" The younger Doctor's voice called from the doorway, Jack peeking around from behind him. "I was going to knock but it was open..."
"It's fine." Louve sighed. She looked over at Jack, who raised an eyebrow but nodded to her, letting her know it was up to her to decide if she wanted to tell or not. "I uh- Well... I was not super with it." She shook her head. "Jack, you can honestly tell that one better."
She moved over and took a photo album from the shelf. She flipped it open to a picture of the elder Doctor standing over a baby in a NICU style set up in a TARDIS med-wing.
"Two months before she was due, Lanie must have got tired of waiting around." Jack started, nodding to the picture Louve had handed to her younger parents. "Wolvie had a tear in amniotic sac and since it wasn't near time for her, she'd not gotten into birthing position. The Doctor, who- Wolvie, now that I'm thinking about it, I have no clue how we got through that without Clara saying his name- anyway..." Jack shook his head to try and remember where he was on his train of thought, "He had to do a literal emergent c-section. I uh... I did not hold it together well." Jack licked his lips and looked down for a second.
"Kind of understandable, mate." Rose tried to comfort him.
"Yeah, well. I'm sure the extra hands would've been more useful. Lucky thing Clara came with the Doctor... But given all that, between the tear and impromptu surgery, Louve lost basically all her blood volume. We're talking several pints."
"You can't regenerate if you lose too much blood." The younger Doctor looked at his daughter, arms crossed and an eyebrow arched quizzically. "Same as if your hearts are damaged too badly."
"Yeah, I'm told I very nearly died for good." She shrugged. "Dunno, don't remember."
"So how'd you manage?" Rose urged.
"Clara stuck the other Doctor, ran a line from his arm to Wolvie's. Direct blood transfusion. He was begging her to regenerate, bleeding himself dangerously low to try and transfuse her. Clara had handed me Rosaline, and I was just sort of... sobbing in the corner on the floor, brand new baby on my chest, wrapped in a infirmary towel, trying to come to terms with..." Emotion broke the American's voice. He shook his head hard, as if trying to shake the emotion of it all away. "We all thought she was gone. He got enough blood back in her, and she regenerated. Except..."
"Guided regeneration. You kept your face." The younger Doctor concluded, looking at her proudly. "You have any idea how few ranking, trained Time Lords can even do that?"
"Yeah, the other you may have mentioned." She laughed. "I didn't want to not look like you. Dad just... lets what will happen, happen."
"Well, that's how everyone mostly did. Doing a guided regeneration is extremely hard. The will and control it takes is enormous." The younger Doctor agreed. He craned his neck as he looked around. "Nice ship, by the way."
"Thanks." Louve sighed. "You two come with news?"
"Oh, no." The Doctor shook his head. "Clara and later me are squabbling, so we decided to give them room. He's not willing to walk away from that console, so if something happens, he'll know."
"Squabbling?" Louve looked at Jack, looking for a better answer.
"Screaming at each other." He explained. "You know..."
"Oh. My. God." Louve breathed. "I'm going to kill him."