Who Fic - Aliens Don't Celebrate Christmas 2/3
Title: Aliens Don’t Celebrate Christmas 2/3
Fandom: Doctor Who
Rating/warnings: PG-13
Genre: angst, hurt/comfort
Character/s: Rose/10.5, Jackie, Pete, Tony, a mention of Marion Reed (an OC from Recurrence)
Spoilers: up to JE
Summary: It’s 10.5 and Rose’s first Christmas together in the alt!verse - and what would the festive season be without Ten's unlucky tuxedo and an invasion of rogue aliens at the Torchwood Christmas party?
Disclaimer: Doctor Who and all it’s associated characters/situations etc do not belong to me, I’m just borrowing them.
< Part One
~*~
She’s lost a lot of blood, her right scapula has been quite badly damaged by one of the bullets and so have several ribs - but apart from that it’s mostly soft tissue damage and more than this, she’s alive and they can see her as soon as she’s been settled into her room. He can hardly stand still for waiting but Jackie has a tight grip on his hand so he can’t go running off or start climbing the walls.
When they enter the room together and the Doctor sees Rose lying there with machines and tubes and all manner of paraphernalia hooked up to her he honestly feels like he could kill. Nobody should hurt Rose - ever.
“This.” he says through gritted teeth. “Is why. I hate. Guns.”
Jackie squeezes his hand a little tighter and a glance at her reveals that she’s crying quite silently. He squeezes her hand back, his anger dissipating slightly, and then they take a seat on either side of the bed and wait.
~*~
He’s still there almost a week later, waiting for her to wake up. The nurses have resigned themselves to setting up a camp bed for him but he refuses to use it, instead choosing to sleep in his chair next to her bed so that he can hold her good hand. If she wakes up when he’s asleep then he wants her to know that she’s not alone, that she’s got someone there holding her hand.
That he’s holding her hand.
After the first night his lower back starts aching.
At six days they take out the breathing tube and within the hour she begins mumbling nonsense under her breath intermittantly. Jackie and Pete are there for the momentous occasion - Tony is being looked after by his nanny so he doesn’t get upset at seeing Rose in the hospital.
“She’s probably dreaming.” one of the nurses explains. “Sleep talking. She’s still on quite heavy painkillers but she’ll wake up when she’s ready.”
“Can she hear us?” Jackie wonders softly. Her usually racous personality seems somewhat diminished in the face of her daughter’s mortality. The Doctor knows how she feels.
“She should be able to.” the nurse assures them. “And even if she doesn’t really understand what you’re saying she should be comforted by the sound of your voices.”
Jackie nods and strokes the hair back from her daughters face.
“My baby girl.” she says tenderly then chokes on a sudden sob and before anyone can even make a move to comfort her she’s wailing openly. Pete goes to her and holds her grimly whilst the Doctor looks on awkwardly.
~*~
On the ninth day Jackie and Pete have to forgo their usual visit in lieu of attending the Vitex Christmas party. Rose makes little whimpering noises all day and the Doctor nearly goes out of his brain with worry, trying desperately to get the nurses to bring up the dosage on her drugs.
“She’s in pain!” he all but begs. “Just listen to her!”
“She probably just wants something.” the attending nurse says, bored.
“Yeah.” the Doctor snaps. “More painkillers.”
“I was thinking some lip balm maybe. Her lips are quite chapped.” At his glare the nurse merely rolls her eyes. “If she starts saying ‘morphine’ then we’ll take a look. Until then...”
The Doctor talks to Rose all afternoon, growing increasingly frustrated when he yields little more than the same whimpering and whispery moans.
“What do you want?” he asks softly again and again, thumb stroking her pale cheek. “Rose?”
“Mm...” she says softly and her voice seems a little stronger as she leans ever-so-slightly into his touch. “Mm...”
“I’m here, I’m listening.” he bends his ear close to her lips. “Tell me. Rose?”
“Mm...mum...”
And finally it comes out - clear as a bell (if a little raspy). The first coherent thing she’s managed to say since the accident and she’s asking for her mother. He should be overjoyed that she’s starting to respond to stimuli again but he’s simply not prepared for the sudden toxic anger and hurt that surge through him.
Pulling back he fumes silently for a moment. Who’s been sitting here with her day in and day out, not sleeping, barely eating out of worry? Who has aching muscles and stiff joints after sleeping in a chair for over a week? Certainly not Jackie bloody Tyler.
“She can’t come.” he snaps at her, but Rose has seemingly slipped back under already and inexplicably, he feels a wash of guilt for having snapped at her - even if she won’t remember it.
What the hell is wrong with him? Rose has been shot, she’s been fighting for consciousness for over a week now, her first request (subconscious or not) is for her mother and he’s getting angry at her? Once upon a time he would have leapt for joy and gotten Jackie in immediately. Now he feels almost...betrayed?
Oh now what the hell is that about? What a stupid thing for him to feel! And what a stupid thing to do - putting his own feelings ahead of Rose’s needs when she’s so fragile. True, he’s not the same man he used to be, but even when he’s been forced to stand by and watch other men drool and paw at Rose like she’s a raw steak (and it’s happened more frequently than he would like since he came here) he’s never felt such blindingly powerful jealousy before.
Is this a human thing he wonders - to be so jealous that her first thoughts aren’t of him? Logically, he wonders how he can possible begrudge her for loving and needing her mother just as much if not more than him. He’s been human for months now, struggling to control emotions far more potent than anything he’d ever had to try and repress as a Time Lord - but this is the first time he’s felt truly stupid for letting himself feel something.
After a final stunned moment in which he shakes his head at himself, the Doctor reaches for the phone and autonomously dials Jackie’s number. She answers so quickly that he’s not even sure if it gets the chance to ring at all.
“What’s wrong?” Jackie blurts. “Is she alright?”
“No, no - she’s fine,” the Doctor explains quickly before she gets hysterical. “But she wants you.”
“Oh my god!” Jackie’s voice rockets up so high that the Doctor winces and pulls the receiver away from his ear slightly so that he doesn’t lose his sense of hearing. “She woke up?!”
“Not...entirely no.” he reaches out and strokes the back of Rose’s hand with his as he speaks. “Can you come?”
“Of course I can come!” Jackie snaps as if she’s offended at the notion. “This is my daughter we’re talking about here Doctor, who cares about some stupid party? Anyway Pete’s a big boy - he can handle this lot without me. I’ll be there in fifteen minutes.”
There’s an abrupt click and then the dial tone begins to beep out its steady rhythm. The Doctor smiles as he hangs up and a nurse coming into the room baulks at the sight before returning the gesture.
“Well it’s nice to see you smiling for once!” she says as she sets about a routine check of Rose’s vitals. “You’ve been looking like death on a stick last few times I’ve been in here.”
He laughs at that, surprising even himself.The nurse looks pleased.
“She’ll be right enough once she’s woken up.” she tells him before she leaves. “Lots of physical therapy and all that but it’s not the end of the world.”
“Yeah well.” he drawls, smiling slightly. “Been there, done that.”
The nurse looks puzzled but smiles at him anyway as she leaves. Exactly eleven minutes and twenty three seconds later Jackie barges into the room, resplendent in a dark blue satin evening gown and sparkly snowflake earrings.
“What happened?” she demands, reaching for her daughters hand even as she appeals to the Doctor.
“She said ‘mum’.” he tells her simply. “Clear as a bell.”
Jackie goes out in tears instantly but her sobs mingle with relieved laughter as well. Once she has finally pulled herself together she wraps the Doctor up in a joyous hug and he squeezes her back as well. Really, he could get used to this - hugging Jackie. It’s better than getting slapped at any rate.
She stays until well after midnight but Rose doesn’t say much and when Jackie’s eyelids start to drop the Doctor lightly suggests that she go home.
“Suppose I should.” Jackie yawns, then turns to him. “Don’t suppose you want to come home for a night?”
The Doctor shakes his head, his eyes on Rose. “I think I’ll stay.”
“Yeah I thought you might. Thank you.” Jackie says as she hugs him (again). “Thanks for letting me know about Rose. And for taking such good care of her for me.”
“Oh, well...” he begins, hand jumping to his hair as it does when he’s uncomfortable. “I haven’t really done...”
“No but really Doctor,” Jackie interrupts him. “You might be a bit of a fruitcake but...well you love my daughter to pieces. Always have. I tell you - if she had to fall in love with an alien then I’m glad it was you.”
The Doctor blinks, touched. “Jacqueline Tyler, I think that’s the nicest thing you’ve ever said to me.”
Jackie smiles tiredly at him. “Goodnight Doctor.”
“And you.” he returns before settling down in his chair and taking Rose’s hand, carefully sliding his palm against hers and twining their fingers. “You know what?” he murmurs, half to himself, half to Rose as he lays his head down and settles down to sleep. “I think your mother might actually like me. Or she’s been replaced by a Slitheen.” Rose’s fingers twitch reflexively against his and the Doctor smiles as he shuts his eyes. “Goodnight. My Rose.”
~*~
There is little change in Rose’s condition until the early hours of the twelfth day when the Doctor wakes up to a slight pressure against his fingers. When he lifts his head he meets a pair of tired hazel eyes.
“Hello.” Rose whispers scratchily and he sits up, instantly awake.
“Hello!” he returns gently and touches a hand softly to her cheek. Rose leans into his touch, the closest thing they have to an embrace for now and then manages a feeble, cracked-lip smile. “How do you feel?”
“Oh I’m brilliant.” Rose says as she takes in his appearance. “You look pretty awful though.”
“Says she who’s hooked up to twenty different machines.” the Doctor says dryly as he takes his hand from her face and Rose rolls her eyes weakly at him.
“How long’ve I been out?” she asks. “Must’ve been a while. You look like a caveman.”
Self conscious, he touches his chin. The growth there does seem abnormal. He hadn’t even noticed it really. “Eleven days.” he says finally. “Six hours and probably about...” he considers. “Nine minutes?”
She doesn’t look surprised at his attention to detail. “You’ve been here all that time?”
She’s looking more and more exhausted with each word. “You’re exhausted. You should go back to sleep.” he says hastily. “Don’t worry. I’ll be here when you...”
“You been here all that time?” she repeats, a bite of impatience in her voice.
Tugging at his ear he feels suddenly foolish. “Yeah.”
“Idiot.” she says fondly but she smiles at him anyway and then sobers. “What happened? I don’t remember much from...”
Two bullets lodged in the scapula, one ricochet, broken bones, tissue damage. Enough blood to fill up a small swimming pool, hours of panic and days of sitting around just waiting, waiting, waiting...
“Taqworps went home.” he avoids her gaze, runs his fingers along the edge of the thin hospital blanket. “Torchwood sorted it all out in the end. Just a misunderstanding.”
“Good.” Rose’s eyelids are starting to flutter now. “You should go home. S’Christmas soon.”
“So it is.” he remembers with a start. He’d almost forgotten, what with everything. “You’d better be out of hospital by then - your mother might baste me for dinner if I’m not careful.”
Her eyes are shut now but she can still smile. “Not enough meat.” she manages to whisper. “Too skinny.”
“Quite right too.” he responds softly as she slips back under.
When he’s certain she won’t wake again he calls her mother.
Part Three >
Fandom: Doctor Who
Rating/warnings: PG-13
Genre: angst, hurt/comfort
Character/s: Rose/10.5, Jackie, Pete, Tony, a mention of Marion Reed (an OC from Recurrence)
Spoilers: up to JE
Summary: It’s 10.5 and Rose’s first Christmas together in the alt!verse - and what would the festive season be without Ten's unlucky tuxedo and an invasion of rogue aliens at the Torchwood Christmas party?
Disclaimer: Doctor Who and all it’s associated characters/situations etc do not belong to me, I’m just borrowing them.
< Part One
~*~
She’s lost a lot of blood, her right scapula has been quite badly damaged by one of the bullets and so have several ribs - but apart from that it’s mostly soft tissue damage and more than this, she’s alive and they can see her as soon as she’s been settled into her room. He can hardly stand still for waiting but Jackie has a tight grip on his hand so he can’t go running off or start climbing the walls.
When they enter the room together and the Doctor sees Rose lying there with machines and tubes and all manner of paraphernalia hooked up to her he honestly feels like he could kill. Nobody should hurt Rose - ever.
“This.” he says through gritted teeth. “Is why. I hate. Guns.”
Jackie squeezes his hand a little tighter and a glance at her reveals that she’s crying quite silently. He squeezes her hand back, his anger dissipating slightly, and then they take a seat on either side of the bed and wait.
~*~
He’s still there almost a week later, waiting for her to wake up. The nurses have resigned themselves to setting up a camp bed for him but he refuses to use it, instead choosing to sleep in his chair next to her bed so that he can hold her good hand. If she wakes up when he’s asleep then he wants her to know that she’s not alone, that she’s got someone there holding her hand.
That he’s holding her hand.
After the first night his lower back starts aching.
At six days they take out the breathing tube and within the hour she begins mumbling nonsense under her breath intermittantly. Jackie and Pete are there for the momentous occasion - Tony is being looked after by his nanny so he doesn’t get upset at seeing Rose in the hospital.
“She’s probably dreaming.” one of the nurses explains. “Sleep talking. She’s still on quite heavy painkillers but she’ll wake up when she’s ready.”
“Can she hear us?” Jackie wonders softly. Her usually racous personality seems somewhat diminished in the face of her daughter’s mortality. The Doctor knows how she feels.
“She should be able to.” the nurse assures them. “And even if she doesn’t really understand what you’re saying she should be comforted by the sound of your voices.”
Jackie nods and strokes the hair back from her daughters face.
“My baby girl.” she says tenderly then chokes on a sudden sob and before anyone can even make a move to comfort her she’s wailing openly. Pete goes to her and holds her grimly whilst the Doctor looks on awkwardly.
~*~
On the ninth day Jackie and Pete have to forgo their usual visit in lieu of attending the Vitex Christmas party. Rose makes little whimpering noises all day and the Doctor nearly goes out of his brain with worry, trying desperately to get the nurses to bring up the dosage on her drugs.
“She’s in pain!” he all but begs. “Just listen to her!”
“She probably just wants something.” the attending nurse says, bored.
“Yeah.” the Doctor snaps. “More painkillers.”
“I was thinking some lip balm maybe. Her lips are quite chapped.” At his glare the nurse merely rolls her eyes. “If she starts saying ‘morphine’ then we’ll take a look. Until then...”
The Doctor talks to Rose all afternoon, growing increasingly frustrated when he yields little more than the same whimpering and whispery moans.
“What do you want?” he asks softly again and again, thumb stroking her pale cheek. “Rose?”
“Mm...” she says softly and her voice seems a little stronger as she leans ever-so-slightly into his touch. “Mm...”
“I’m here, I’m listening.” he bends his ear close to her lips. “Tell me. Rose?”
“Mm...mum...”
And finally it comes out - clear as a bell (if a little raspy). The first coherent thing she’s managed to say since the accident and she’s asking for her mother. He should be overjoyed that she’s starting to respond to stimuli again but he’s simply not prepared for the sudden toxic anger and hurt that surge through him.
Pulling back he fumes silently for a moment. Who’s been sitting here with her day in and day out, not sleeping, barely eating out of worry? Who has aching muscles and stiff joints after sleeping in a chair for over a week? Certainly not Jackie bloody Tyler.
“She can’t come.” he snaps at her, but Rose has seemingly slipped back under already and inexplicably, he feels a wash of guilt for having snapped at her - even if she won’t remember it.
What the hell is wrong with him? Rose has been shot, she’s been fighting for consciousness for over a week now, her first request (subconscious or not) is for her mother and he’s getting angry at her? Once upon a time he would have leapt for joy and gotten Jackie in immediately. Now he feels almost...betrayed?
Oh now what the hell is that about? What a stupid thing for him to feel! And what a stupid thing to do - putting his own feelings ahead of Rose’s needs when she’s so fragile. True, he’s not the same man he used to be, but even when he’s been forced to stand by and watch other men drool and paw at Rose like she’s a raw steak (and it’s happened more frequently than he would like since he came here) he’s never felt such blindingly powerful jealousy before.
Is this a human thing he wonders - to be so jealous that her first thoughts aren’t of him? Logically, he wonders how he can possible begrudge her for loving and needing her mother just as much if not more than him. He’s been human for months now, struggling to control emotions far more potent than anything he’d ever had to try and repress as a Time Lord - but this is the first time he’s felt truly stupid for letting himself feel something.
After a final stunned moment in which he shakes his head at himself, the Doctor reaches for the phone and autonomously dials Jackie’s number. She answers so quickly that he’s not even sure if it gets the chance to ring at all.
“What’s wrong?” Jackie blurts. “Is she alright?”
“No, no - she’s fine,” the Doctor explains quickly before she gets hysterical. “But she wants you.”
“Oh my god!” Jackie’s voice rockets up so high that the Doctor winces and pulls the receiver away from his ear slightly so that he doesn’t lose his sense of hearing. “She woke up?!”
“Not...entirely no.” he reaches out and strokes the back of Rose’s hand with his as he speaks. “Can you come?”
“Of course I can come!” Jackie snaps as if she’s offended at the notion. “This is my daughter we’re talking about here Doctor, who cares about some stupid party? Anyway Pete’s a big boy - he can handle this lot without me. I’ll be there in fifteen minutes.”
There’s an abrupt click and then the dial tone begins to beep out its steady rhythm. The Doctor smiles as he hangs up and a nurse coming into the room baulks at the sight before returning the gesture.
“Well it’s nice to see you smiling for once!” she says as she sets about a routine check of Rose’s vitals. “You’ve been looking like death on a stick last few times I’ve been in here.”
He laughs at that, surprising even himself.The nurse looks pleased.
“She’ll be right enough once she’s woken up.” she tells him before she leaves. “Lots of physical therapy and all that but it’s not the end of the world.”
“Yeah well.” he drawls, smiling slightly. “Been there, done that.”
The nurse looks puzzled but smiles at him anyway as she leaves. Exactly eleven minutes and twenty three seconds later Jackie barges into the room, resplendent in a dark blue satin evening gown and sparkly snowflake earrings.
“What happened?” she demands, reaching for her daughters hand even as she appeals to the Doctor.
“She said ‘mum’.” he tells her simply. “Clear as a bell.”
Jackie goes out in tears instantly but her sobs mingle with relieved laughter as well. Once she has finally pulled herself together she wraps the Doctor up in a joyous hug and he squeezes her back as well. Really, he could get used to this - hugging Jackie. It’s better than getting slapped at any rate.
She stays until well after midnight but Rose doesn’t say much and when Jackie’s eyelids start to drop the Doctor lightly suggests that she go home.
“Suppose I should.” Jackie yawns, then turns to him. “Don’t suppose you want to come home for a night?”
The Doctor shakes his head, his eyes on Rose. “I think I’ll stay.”
“Yeah I thought you might. Thank you.” Jackie says as she hugs him (again). “Thanks for letting me know about Rose. And for taking such good care of her for me.”
“Oh, well...” he begins, hand jumping to his hair as it does when he’s uncomfortable. “I haven’t really done...”
“No but really Doctor,” Jackie interrupts him. “You might be a bit of a fruitcake but...well you love my daughter to pieces. Always have. I tell you - if she had to fall in love with an alien then I’m glad it was you.”
The Doctor blinks, touched. “Jacqueline Tyler, I think that’s the nicest thing you’ve ever said to me.”
Jackie smiles tiredly at him. “Goodnight Doctor.”
“And you.” he returns before settling down in his chair and taking Rose’s hand, carefully sliding his palm against hers and twining their fingers. “You know what?” he murmurs, half to himself, half to Rose as he lays his head down and settles down to sleep. “I think your mother might actually like me. Or she’s been replaced by a Slitheen.” Rose’s fingers twitch reflexively against his and the Doctor smiles as he shuts his eyes. “Goodnight. My Rose.”
~*~
There is little change in Rose’s condition until the early hours of the twelfth day when the Doctor wakes up to a slight pressure against his fingers. When he lifts his head he meets a pair of tired hazel eyes.
“Hello.” Rose whispers scratchily and he sits up, instantly awake.
“Hello!” he returns gently and touches a hand softly to her cheek. Rose leans into his touch, the closest thing they have to an embrace for now and then manages a feeble, cracked-lip smile. “How do you feel?”
“Oh I’m brilliant.” Rose says as she takes in his appearance. “You look pretty awful though.”
“Says she who’s hooked up to twenty different machines.” the Doctor says dryly as he takes his hand from her face and Rose rolls her eyes weakly at him.
“How long’ve I been out?” she asks. “Must’ve been a while. You look like a caveman.”
Self conscious, he touches his chin. The growth there does seem abnormal. He hadn’t even noticed it really. “Eleven days.” he says finally. “Six hours and probably about...” he considers. “Nine minutes?”
She doesn’t look surprised at his attention to detail. “You’ve been here all that time?”
She’s looking more and more exhausted with each word. “You’re exhausted. You should go back to sleep.” he says hastily. “Don’t worry. I’ll be here when you...”
“You been here all that time?” she repeats, a bite of impatience in her voice.
Tugging at his ear he feels suddenly foolish. “Yeah.”
“Idiot.” she says fondly but she smiles at him anyway and then sobers. “What happened? I don’t remember much from...”
Two bullets lodged in the scapula, one ricochet, broken bones, tissue damage. Enough blood to fill up a small swimming pool, hours of panic and days of sitting around just waiting, waiting, waiting...
“Taqworps went home.” he avoids her gaze, runs his fingers along the edge of the thin hospital blanket. “Torchwood sorted it all out in the end. Just a misunderstanding.”
“Good.” Rose’s eyelids are starting to flutter now. “You should go home. S’Christmas soon.”
“So it is.” he remembers with a start. He’d almost forgotten, what with everything. “You’d better be out of hospital by then - your mother might baste me for dinner if I’m not careful.”
Her eyes are shut now but she can still smile. “Not enough meat.” she manages to whisper. “Too skinny.”
“Quite right too.” he responds softly as she slips back under.
When he’s certain she won’t wake again he calls her mother.
Part Three >