[Thread] I will not stand, nor will I utter words...

[phd_query]

Who?: OU!Rose Tyler, OU!Tenth Doctor
Where?: Church balcony.
When?: Late evening.
Summary?: Ten has a chat with Rose about some recent events.
Warnings?: None

Comments

[never_stay_home]

It was not without a faint trace of hesitancy that Rose entered the church, a half-beat drag to her steps that marked a mind worrying a little more than it ought over something it couldn't change. It was nothing so productive as framing words of her own, being rather more akin to prodding at a sore spot despite knowing that yes, it will ache this time, too. Her gaze sought the balcony even as her feet found their way to the stairs, and she made her ascent, skipping steps to avoid the worst of the creaking. One hand nudged a little self-consciously at a few tendrils of hair that had slipped free of her loose ponytail, tucking them back behind her ears.

[phd_query]

The balcony was getting a little chilly this time of year, holes in the roof not helping keeping any of the scarce heat from the daytime in. The balcony flat had become a little more recognizably a livable space, a few books scattered about, bookshelves moved up from the rectory supporting the weight of a few larger volumes.

The Doctor was wearing his coat, long, brown, all purpose, all weather. He held his screwdriver in the other hand and tapped it against his lips as he paced. When Rose appeared at the top of the stairs, the Doctor swept towards her, unsmiling, eyes dark.

[never_stay_home]

Rose, for her part, tried for a smile, though it was a little uncertain, almost-guilty, fading around the edges under the Doctor's unsmiling gaze. She stepped away from the edge of the stairs, then halted, eyeing him questioningly. "Hey," she ventured, the fingers of one hand curling and uncurling at her side in an empty gesture, something like an aborted wave.

[phd_query]

A few more steps brought the Doctor into Rose's immediate proximity, and without pause, he embraced her wordlessly. It was one of those tight, half-desperate hugs he had traded with her time and time again, after a narrow brush with death, or a long separation. He was trembling faintly. A minute or so rolled by before he abruptly released her, dropping his hands back to his sides.

"Right then..."

[never_stay_home]

Rose clung to the Doctor, all but burrowing her face in against his shoulder. It was a familiar process, and she found it comforting in its familiarity, a sliver of something certain against the maddening inconstancy of the compound outside. A spark of anger kindled as she felt his trembling, sharp for all that it lacked direction outside of the apparent habits of Econtra, anthropomorphized enough to grant it, in her mind, the capacity for will and malice. Or schadenfreude, at the very least.

She let her own hands fall back to her sides reluctantly, thumbs hooking into the pockets of her jeans, the posture a little self-conscious, and just a little stubborn. "Right," she replied, and chewed at her lip for a moment. She drew a deep breath, then huffed it out, settling on, "This place is mad."

[phd_query]

"Oh, you've got no idea," murmured the Doctor, a rueful laugh half-bitten off in his words. Econtra had a way of sort of warping everything that was part of itself - if a person liked to sing, the place would curse the entire place with singing, gardeners tomatoes turned feral, a woman seeking the truth forcing her desires on the entire compound. Yes. This place was mad, undoubtedly.

He stood there, chewing on his lower lip, hands in his pockets, gaze at the floor.

"'Allo," he finally manged after a somewhat uncomfortable silence, chancing a smile.

[never_stay_home]

"I'm starting to get a bit of one," Rose replied with a slight, wry grimace. Not yet a month, and already the place had run wild with strange phenomena twice. At least the singing had been mostly harmless, if a little deafening around some of the participants.

Her toes curled and uncurled in her shoes, in an invisible sort of fidget. "Hey," she replied when he broke the silence. Or repeated, perhaps, having said it once already. Her own smile in response was just a fraction brighter than might have been warranted, with relief at the breach of the discomfiting quiet.

And then, abruptly, "I wouldn't either, you know."

[phd_query]

The Doctor looked up. Confusion registered on his face, "Wouldn't what?"

[never_stay_home]

"Up and vanish," Rose replied. And then, in deference to the realities of strange, reality-spanning technology, qualified with, "Not without one hell of a fight."

She canted her head, shoulders shifting in a slight, uncomfortable shrug. "Just...you know. Thought I should say."

[phd_query]

The Doctor reached forward, taking Rose firmly by the shoulders.

"You wouldn't. I won't let them take you, Rose. Not again. Not ever. Yeah? That alright with you? Cause... I mean... if you want to go home, then... I can do that too, hopefully, someday..."

[never_stay_home]

"I want to stay with you," Rose replied, with a certainty that scoured away the lingering traces of self-conscious unease, at least for the time being. "I've not changed my mind on that. Not in that other world, not here, not ever. You're stuck with me." She reached up to cover his hands with her own, briefly. "Even if I have to...find my way back from the end of the whole bloody universe. I'm not gonna leave you."

[phd_query]

"... Yeah?" the Doctor offered Rose one of his half-smiles, feeling his own uncertainly crawl up the back of his throat. He shifted his weight over his Converses, staring at Rose's scalp, the tinge of brown that always seemed to lurk into the bleached blonde. The Doctor tightened his hands on Rose's shoulders, "Rose, I-... I need to tell you something. I made a promise to someone that I'd tell you, but now it's just gotten all confused and useless and-" the Doctor paused, his eyes looking anywhere but Rose's face, the woodgrain, his left wrist, the funny hole in the ceiling that looked like Mickey Mouse. Anything. Anything at all.

[never_stay_home]

"Yeah." Rose's voice had softened a little as she gave that confirmation, a small smile tugging at the corners of her mouth despite the hint of something almost sad that lingered behind the determination in her eyes.

She peered up at him, head held at a faint, quizzical angle, curiosity as easily read in her posture as her expression. "Yeah, Doctor?" she prompted quietly. "What is it?"

[phd_query]

"Oh bollocks. It's nothing you... don't..." choked the Doctor, turning his gaze to the floor and coughing out a chuckle under his breath. "I'm a big coward, you know that? One big, wussy gooey sort of pansy... all wibbly and wobbly on the sort; can end a war, face down the Daleks, cavort through time and space without a thought, but can't-..."

The Doctor slumped a little, and then looked up sharply, obviously quite horrified. "Oh, blimey, Rose, you must be freezing. Here. Really, I didn't even think about it, it's just starting to get comfortable up here for me, but outside it's really rather cold for humans isn't it..." He swept his jacket off and draped it around the girl's shoulders. "There we are, that's better, yeah?" The Doctor gave Rose a manic smile.

[never_stay_home]

"It's not that bad," Rose replied, though this assurance was not entirely genuine. While she wasn't freezing, the dissipation of what little heat the sun had granted while in the sky had left the air uncomfortably chilled. She looked up at him for a moment, and then, smiling, admitted, "Yeah, that's better. Thanks."

She chewed her lip thoughtfully, peering up at him, and after a moment added, "You're not a coward. You're the last person I'd call a coward. You're braver than anyone I've ever known."