Fic: Kissing Rose Tyler (5/11)
Title: Kissing Rose Tyler
Characters: Doctor 10.5, Rose Tyler, Jackie Tyler, Pete Tyler
Summary: Back on Pete's World Rose and the Doctor try to figure out where they've been in order to discover where they're going.
Rating: Teen for sexual situations.
Spoilers: Nothing's sacred. Watch the series (starting with the first Doctor in 1963) if you don't like surprises.
Disclaimer: Not mine. Wouldn't own 'em if I could. Too high maintenance.
Author's notes: This is a post-Journey's End AU. Canon junkies beware, I'm with Steven Moffat. The Teen rating is for sexual situations and language. If it bothers you that the characters don't always drop their G's just imagine them falling off like leaves from a tree. Final word: This part of the series is complete so I'll be posting all 11 chapters over then next several days.
Previous posts: Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4
Chapter 5
The Doctor looked up as Rose, dressed only in his red tee, joined him in the kitchen. For nearly five minutes he'd been standing by the open fridge trying to decide what it was he wanted. She gave him a bemused look, reached past him into the freezer compartment and removed a pint of iced cream. Linking her arm in his, she snatched a spoon from a drawer and led him outside onto the small patio. There, Rose curled up on an oversized, heavily cushioned loveseat, drew him down beside her then opened the carton and spooned out a mouthful for herself. She gave him the next spoonful and he sighed, nodding in appreciation. Oh yeah, he thought, that was it. Leave it to Rose to know the best post-coital snack food.
Rose grinned at his expression and commented, "A bit Wild Kingdom your lot, once they get the scent."
"Oi!"
"Not complaining, mind. Just a bit surprised." She winced as she shifted position. "And a little sore. Nice though." She leaned forward and licked a tiny drop of iced cream from his upper lip then kissed him lightly on the spot.
"Yes, well..." The Doctor felt a flush of pride mixed with a tinge of embarrassment. Time Lords didn't do the post performance round-up commentary the way Humans tended.
"Ooh, look at you!" she teased. "If you were a peacock you'd be spreadin' your tail feathers for me."
"Must be my human half," he responded drolly. "Biological imperative meets Time Lord expertise. Devastating mix. Who knew?"
Rose laughed and settled deeper into his side. He put his arm around her shoulders, enjoying the comfortable feel of her against him.
"This is a good look for you." She ran a hand down his lapel, letting her fingers brush against his bare chest. "Very Miami Vice."
"Mmm." The Doctor raised a brow. "That's because someone stole my only shirt."
"Borrowed."
"In that case, can I have it back?"
She handed him the iced cream and reached to pull it off.
"Oi! Not here!"
"Why not here?" she teased him again.
"Ah... Your mother might come by?"
Rose rolled her eyes. "You'll have to do better than that. She's me mum. She's seen me naked lots of times."
"Then have a little respect for my ancient Time Lord sensibilities. I've only got the one heart. If it stops now we'll both be disappointed."
"Okay, I'll buy," she laughingly agreed and settled back against him, reacquiring the iced cream. After sharing it back and forth for a few minutes she finally asked, "Now, what was so important earlier that you almost distracted me from my mission in life?"
"Mission?" the Doctor repeated around a frozen mouthful.
She let her eyes slowly sweep the length of his body and he suddenly remembered that look. "Really? Since our Christmas?"
After taking care of the Sycorax and Harriet Jones he'd gone back to the TARDIS to choose his new costume, something he always did first chance he got after regenerating. He'd joined her family - well, Mickey and her mother - for dinner when he was done.
"I thought you were just checking out the new wardrobe." Rose's smile broadened. "Undressing me were you?"
"Nah! Just remembering."
"You didn't? I thought Mickey-" The Doctor pursed his lips as Rose burst out laughing. "Oh, never mind! At least I met with your approval. That's all that mattered to me then as now."
"Glad to hear it. Now back to the point."
"Which point?"
"The laptop," Rose said, exasperated. "What did you want to show me on the laptop?"
"Oh, right!" he exclaimed excitedly. He grabbed her hand and pulled her to her feet. "Come have a look!"
***
"It's a suit."
The Doctor nodded happily. "What do you think?"
Rose bit her lip, leaning closer to the screen. "It's a red suit."
"Copper," he corrected.
It was also Italian silk and cost twice her monthly pay packet. "Very smart. Very you," she decided. In any event, it wasn't like he'd ever blend in. Brown pinstripes or copper pinstripes, the Doctor never cut a sedate figure unless he chose to modify his behavior. And he was generally too gregarious to do that for long, even when he chose.
"It is me, isn't it?" he grinned.
Rose smiled back. "You going to order it or you want to visit the shop and have it tailored?"
"Good question. The TARDIS did all my tailoring. I suppose I'll have to go to the shop." He looked a bit put out by the notion. "Still," he added in resignation. "I'll need shirts, ties, a proper coat. God I'm going to miss that coat. Did I ever mention Janis Joplin gave me that coat? I loved that coat."
"We could check the internet," Rose suggested. "Maybe she's still alive in this universe. You might could buy it off her, yeah?"
"There's a thought." The Doctor had his screwdriver out and pointed at the computer. "That's odd. There it is again."
"What's odd?" she asked as he put on his glasses.
"That little hiccup there. The one that looks like a glitch but isn't. See?" Rose peered over his shoulder and the Doctor repeated what he'd done to cause the effect. "Hold on. It looks like there's another desktop hidden behind the main one."
"There can't be," Rose insisted. "Dad would have stripped all that off."
"Stripped what off?" The Doctor looked back over his shoulder.
"Torchwood. Security protocols. You can't just log into the mainframe from any computer. You've got to have the hardware on board."
The Doctor changed settings, pointed his sonic at the drive and the screen suddenly switched to the hidden desktop.
"That's not Torchwood!"
"No, it's not," the Doctor agreed tapping the very official logo splashed across the background. "When I went shopping I reversed the remote access to see everything in stock, not just whatever the shops wanted me to see. Must've pulled in this lot - whoever they are."
"Military," Rose stated succinctly. She pointed to an icon on the desktop. "Trilateral Acquisitions Department. TRIAD we call 'em. That's a defense protocol. An agreement between the Republic of Great Britain, the Union of European States and the Russo-Asian Confederacy. Supposedly it's all about transparency in weapons sales and monitoring trade in advanced technologies."
"Supposedly?"
"We caught one of that lot sniffing around Torchwood a while back. Came in as a file clerk in Data Encryption. She filed stuff alright. Right into a nifty little device that passively recorded and transmitted everything that came up on the surrounding computers to a virtual storage dump. We never could trace who owned the site. Best we could do was tie her to TRIAD, give her the boot and keep an eye on her movements."
"Which were?"
"Cut short in a freak accident." The Doctor's brows rose. "Apparently, she fell in the bath fully clothed holding a running hair dryer."
"Ouch!" The Doctor grimaced.
"Anyway," Rose moved to leave. "I'd better call Torchwood and notify them of the hack."
"Could do. Or we could..."
Her eyes widened with excitement. "Yeah, we could, couldn't we?"