Rosalind picked up the morning's newspaper from her home, before heading to Mickey's to print out her resume.
Then she went out visiting different establishments with 'Help needed' signs and the circled businesses on the newspaper. She couldn't help her sighs through the day.
The living plastic wouldn't come back.
She wasn't going to Clive's when she already knew who the Doctor was. Even if she knew Mickey would be alright if he was abducted, she wasn't going to put her bestie in a situation knowing it would cause him harm.
They had become only closer over the years, more like siblings, without the complexities of 'will they/won't they' going on between them.
So Rosalind spent the day giving out her resume, by the time she came home she felt dead on her feet.
"Mum? I'm home."
The house was dark except a light towards the back coming from the kitchen. And it was oddly quiet. Her mum must have been out.
Rosalind went into the living room, heading toward the small kitchen to get a glass of water. Only to jump when she saw a figure out of the corner of her eye.
It was her mum.
"Mum, you gave me a right fright."
"Where've you been?"
"I thought I'd put in some resumes."
"Were you with him, the Doctor?"
Rose froze in the doorway to the kitchen. She hadn't told her mum his name. Slowly she turned on the light only to see 'Jackie' sitting stiffly at the dining table. Eyes staring out unblinking. Skin with an odd sort of sheen.
It couldn't be. She'd been careful.
"He left, mum."
Keeping it as cool as she could.
"Where did he go?"
"He's just gone."
An odd desire came up despite the situation, a desire to hear something.
"What do you think about calling for some pizza? Or maybe Greek?"
"P...pizza."
Pursing her lips to stop the nervous giggle from coming out, Rosalind began backing up toward the corridor. Not sure what she was going to do. Just get away. Oh if only she could ring the Doctor.
The plastic Jackie rose, "Where are you going, darling, sweet-ling, sweetheart?"
"To get the pizza."
She was halfway into the hall when a muffled voice from the other side of the front door came.
"Coming through."
Rose was quick to open it.
"You!" The plastic Jackie shouted before her hands became cleavers and she charged.
The Doctor only grinned before charging back, ducking as plastic Jackie swung at him before coming from behind her and going for the head. Yanking it off.
The eyes swiveled and glared at him, a wide eerie grin on the not-Jackie's face, "Like that will even slow me down."
"Time to run!" The Doctor slipped past Rose and grabbed her hand on the way out the door. They ran down the stairs at the corner of Powell Estates. Running and running with the not-Jackie following behind.
They ran straight through the blue box's open doors not even slowing down til they reached the console.
While the Doctor began finagling something to track the signal, Rosalind stared around at the wide expanse of space.
"Bigger on the inside." She whispered with a smile.
It was one thing to watch it on the telly and a whole 'nother to actually stand inside the TARDIS.
Rosalind always thought it looked like it was in the middle of a Dalek when watching it on the telly.
The pentagon shapes on the walls arching up into a circular center all focused on the console.
It was cleaner than she had thought. Darker metal trellises and platforms but not a dust mote in sight. The towering columns with their organic sway to them had a copper-gold sheen.
"You are beautiful."
A soft thrumming came from beneath her feet and Rosalind wondered if the TARDIS was responding.
"Very sexy."
This time there was no mistaking the familiar warmth that surrounded her at that comment.
Rosalind turned back to the Doctor to find the plastic head well plugged into the TARDIS console and the Doctor had turned toward her.
"So?"
She grinned and nearly skipped to him.
"So we better boogie. Wherever they are keeping mum, she's going to be raving mad."
The Doctor looked at her with a furrowed brow, a look that seemed to have become his staple when he was confused regarding her. "No questions for me?"
"Not right now."
"Well that's a first." He glanced up at the TARDIS's ceiling in wonder.
"Doctor, the head!" She thought she'd kept their talking to a minimum and still it had melted.
She wondered if this meant her mum was in more danger, if the plastics could lose patience.
"No, no, no, no!" The Doctor shouted before quickly turning to the console, switching switches and pressing buttons before the center engine began to move up and down and the classic TARDIS-with-her-brakes-on sound went through the room.
Everything rumbled as the ship seemed to settle or land and the Doctor was off running for the doors with her running right after.
They were by the Thames, looking across from the London Eye.
"Alright what next Doctor?"
He was looking around so lost.
"How can you hide something so big in a city so small?
Rosalind wouldn't call London small but the Doctor had of course seen whole new planets.
"What does it look like?"
"Like a transmitter. Round and massive, somewhere slap-bang in the middle of London."
Shaking her head, she took the Doctor's hand and walked a few paces to the right and turned him so he faced the London Eye.
"Big enough?"
"What?"
"The London Eye - massive, circular, in the center of London."
His eyes widened and he grinned, "Oh, Fantastic!"
His big grin caused butterflies in her stomach but there was no time to think on that as he started pulling her across the bridge toward the London Eye. They ran beside each other until they reached the walkway below the Eye, down to an underground entrance to the side.
Red light came from the entrance, and as they descended it grew hotter and hotter as they moved deeper underground.
They entered a vast room where at the bottom was the moving Living Plastic consciousness.
"The Nestene Consciousness. That's it." The Doctor pointed to the vat, "A living plastic creature."
Rosalind nodded down to it, "Well go give it its chance and I'll look for mum. Surprised I can't hear her already honestly."
Then some clanging and a yell answered that question.
"Let me go! You big thing! How dare you! When I'm free, you'll wish you never set those things after me."
"Charming." The Doctor intoned. Rosalind elbowed him before making her way down the stairs towards the sounds of her mother.
On another platform close to the Nestene Rose could barely see a tough with a blonde hair.
"Mum!"
"Rose!"
As the Doctor began to start his partially diplomatic speech, Rosalind reached her mother.
"Oh mum." Giving her a big hug ignoring the dampness of her mother, no doubt from all the sweating, "Did they hurt you?"
"Who's that man, Rose? He doesn't work for Henrik's does he?"
Rose shook her head, "I was attacked and Wilson died because of some of the living mannequins. The Doctor saved me, and helped me find you. He's here to help."
As they rose, Jackie looked over at the Doctor.
"Fine job he'd doing, look he's getting captured."
And sure enough he was, and the other mannequins had the anti-plastic.
The Doctor shouted and pleaded, "That was just insurance. I wasn't going to use it. I'm here to help. I'm not your enemy, I swear."
Mum and Rose watched as the molten lava looking thing roared and screamed.
The TARDIS was revealed and Rose nudged her mum, "That's our way out of here."
"Its just a box."
"It's bigger on the inside. Just trust me. Head there."
"What about you?"
"I have to help the Doctor."
"Why must it be you?"
Rose turned and gave Jackie a hug.
"Because he doesn't have anyone else."
The Doctor shouted toward Rose and Jackie.
"It's going to the final phase. Get out while you still can."
Jackie looked into her daughter's eyes and saw only stubborn determination; something she'd seen reflected in her own gaze many times before. "Go!"
Not knowing if she had the strength necessary Rose made her first wish in this new dimension. 'I wish I could have strength like that of Marvel universe's Loki or Sif.'
She hoped that was exact enough.
Running down she jumped down to the platform that held the Doctor, it rattled dangerously and he looked at her with wide eyes stopping briefly from his struggles.
"How did...?"
"Not now Doctor."
It was ridiculously easy to tear the mannequins free from the Doctor.
His gaze went to the anti-plastic and Rose decided to take the decision away from him. He would not have this on his conscience too.
With a kick toward the mannequin with the anti-plastic, it fell into the vat.
The Nestene screamed as it shook, and the whole room shook with it.
The Doctor grabbed Rosalind's hand before running up the remaining stairs toward the TARDIS. As soon as they were in, Jackie froze at the Entrance, while the TARDIS doors closed behind her. They locked themselves, which was good because Jackie nearly backtracked it out of there.
"It's...It's..."
Rose answered, "A spaceship."
"And he's..."
"An alien."
The Doctor just watched from the console, while Rose grinned at her mother.
"Isn't it brilliant!"
"Its something alright." Jackie got oddly quiet.
Quiet when they settled and the TARDIS doors unlocked.
Quiet when Rosalind turned back to the Doctor.
"So that's it then?"
"Yeah."
Rosalind couldn't hide her disappointed frown.
"Well Doctor it was absolutely fantastic!"
She gave a grin of her own that reflected his past ones, before heading towards her mother trying to stop herself from looking longingly behind her.
"Well I'll be off then."
Jackie grabbed Rose's arm just as the Doctor continued, "Unless..."
Rosalind looked back at him, "Unless you come with me."
Jackie's hold on Rose's arm grew tight, "Don't Rose." Jackie tried to pull her away while Rose held her ground.
"I said I wanted to go traveling, this is the best offer I'm going to get."
Jackie looked at the Doctor, "Is it always this dangerous?"
"Yeah."
Jackie looked back to her daughter, "Don't go Rose."
Rose fully turned to her mother. And she was her mum, her mum for nearly five years now. She'd been there for the highs and lows. The nightmares. The days where she cried for her lost dimension. Everything.
"Mum, have you ever had something that you knew would change your life forever...but decided to take the leap anyway?"
"Yeah when I married your dad and when I had you."
"Did you ever regret it?"
Jackie shook her head, "Never."
Rose smiled at her mum, "I have to do this or I'll always be wondering."
"I don't like it."
Rose kissed her mum's cheek.
"I love you."
They hugged each other tightly.
Jackie left with lingering looks back at her daughter.
"Thank you mum."
Then Rose ran back toward the console, the TARDIS doors closing behind her.
The Doctor smiled genuinely at her, "Where to Rose Tyler? You have the whole of the universe. Oh and did I fail to mention time?"
"Please call me Rosalind."
"Why not Rose?"
"That belongs to another and I wish to be no one but myself with you Doctor."
He looked at her from across the console, "Will you tell me, someday?"
She smiled, "Someday, Doctor."