It's just too little, too late, a little too wrong...

[belle_heaven]

You forget how easily things fall apart when you refuse to acknowledge anything around you. When you're getting so caught up in distraction after distraction that you're not even sure where you are, who you are, what you want. Something to keep you from sleeping, something else to keep you from feeling. One miracle pill after another.These are the

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[2ndchanceacharm]

Grace tends to be drawn to people in need. Well, she's a doctor, and one who really cares about that job, so that's not surprising. And on top of that, she's been on edge all day. A large part of that is Des' fault, not that she knows it, or would be able to fix it if she did.

But she does happen to come across Rose in the lobby at about the time she starts melting down, and starts toward her with a frown - slowly, so as not to... startle her or anything. "Are you alright?"

[belle_heaven]

Rose jumps and recoils with a growl, her eyes wide in her face.

"What?! Oh yes. No. I'm...yes. I'm, I'm...I'm."

She kind of flails and turns around, looking for all the world like a confused puppy.

"I'm, I'm looking for my, my pack. And I'm...I'm glowing again, and I'm seeing things and there is a thing and its...where is my pack?"

A high pitched whine escapes her throat and she looks around her again, turning in a circle.

[2ndchanceacharm]

Grace is a little startled at the growl, but not enough that it's going to make her back down. "Your... pack?" There's confusion for a second, but that's really as long as it last, and a second later it's replaced by her best attempt at calm. Which is pretty good, actually, when she's not freaked out herself.

"Shh, it's okay. I want to help, but you're going to have to explain a little more clearly, okay?" Her voice is gentle, soothing, like she'd talk to a scared animal or a hurt child, and she reaches out to lightly touch Rose's shoulder. She is glowing, Grace notices after a moment. Even more brightly than Romana, which is more than a little weird. But she'll let it go for now.

[belle_heaven]

Rose whimpers in confusion.

"Yeah. M-my pack. I...I'm alone, and where's my pack? Alpha..I'm just a pup, I can't do this by myself."

She's twitching, antsy and nervous.

"I, I, I...the pack. The pack is stronger together. Lone wolf, sad. Where's my Alpha?"

[2ndchanceacharm]

"I know," Grace says softly, her voice soft and gentle. She really doesn't know, but it's just one of those things you say when someone's on the verge of panic and rambling. "What are their names? I'll help you find them, I just need to know who they are." Not that Grace knows hardly anyone down here, but she's not shy. She'll ask around and damn well find them if that will help.

She studies Rose for a moment. Besides the glow, she looks a little... out of it. "How are you feeling besides that? Okay?"

[belle_heaven]

Her pack. Who makes up the pack?

"My Alphas, the TARDIS, the Doctor. Charlie, Jack...and Mat. Packmates. More packmates. Just a cub, I'm just a pup."

She's glancing, around her and twitching as vision upon vision wracking her mind. Snippets of horrible things flashing through her senses, burned into her memory and into her veins.

"I'm seeing...The sickness, and the pain, the fear and terror. Memories, and futures and I can't breathe..."

Her whole body is quivering, her eyes feverishly bright, still glowing with the golden light of the Time Vortex, and the light from her skin is steady.

[2ndchanceacharm]

"Okay. Okay. Shhh." Grace puts both her hands on Rose's shoulders, looking her straight in the eye. "How about this? I'll take you to the medical room, and you can sit down there, and then I'll go and find your friends. Okay?"

The way she's shaking, a sedative might be in order. Wanderer. She must be a wanderer. Grace is really taking to heart that 'wanderers are strange' mantra Robin keeps giving her. The more she meets, the more she's starting to think it's very true.

[belle_heaven]

"Yeah, I ca-I can do that. I-I-I-I...'M so dizzy."

The biggest problem with being a human and having the Time Vortex is that the mind doesn't have the capacity to sort out what is relevant. She can't seem to sort out that this isn't here and now, that the bodies aren't around her, that she really isn't smelling death.

Rose reaches up and latches onto Grace's hand, which feels like ice.

"They've gotta help or I'm goin'ta'go mad. I can't make it stop and it's driving me insane!"