Fic: You've Got to Hide Your Love Away (5/17)
Title: You've Got to Hide Your Love Away (5/17)
Rating: I'm going with PG-13 but I'm not really good with ratings
Characters: Ten, Rose, Jack, Tosh, Ianto, Gwen, Owen, Pete, Jackie, Mickey, Jake, Martha, other characters
Spoilers: Anything up till the end of season three is fair game
Summary: The sequel to Mrs. Jones You've Got a Lovely Daughter and part of my Homesick In Heaven series. Rose is back, has been for awhile now, and the Doctor is none the wiser. She's making a go of it and life is good...as good as it can be without him by her side. But what happens when forces beyond her control bring the two of them back together? What happens when the Doctor finds out she's been hiding from him all these months? Will Rose reveal her deepest, darkest secrets to him before it's too late?
Author's Note: The rest of this story is dedicated to Shara on Teaspoon for her in-depth e-mail review. Thank you again, for your complete and utter honesty. I've done some minor changes here and there and I really hope they help to clear up some of the issues you had. Thanks also to SnowFox3 on fanfiction.net for her continued support and flawless beta'ing. I'm changing it as I go along though, so all mistakes are mine and mine alone.
~~~
“Hey Doc, change in plans,” Jack's voice crackles over the intercom the former Time Agent had installed during his first stint in the Tardis.
Sighing, the Doctor sets down the book he’s been reading. His initial search for a species similar to the one Pete had described turned up with nothing. So, while waiting for the others to return he had figured he’d catch up on some of his reading. This book in particular - The Trials of Cross-Breeding Alien Fauna - had piqued his interest many years ago but he hadn’t had the opportunity to pick it up till now.
“Pete says you should meet us in the communications room, which is…” there’s a pause and he can hear Jack asking someone for directions. “Oh, well that’s convenient. Com room is five doors down from you on the left.”
He contemplates ignoring the Captain’s call but there’s a certain urgency in his voice that the Doctor can’t deny. After a moment’s hesitation he pulls his jacket back on and goes in search of the others.
The first thing he notices, upon entering the room, is the large group of people huddled around one of the work stations. The rest of the space is empty of inhabitants, making the cold, almost clinical-like atmosphere that much more glaring.
It’s a fairly large room filled with row-after-row of work stations similar to the one that’s currently garnering so much attention. Each station holds a personal computer and nothing more; no personal belongings, no family photos, no coffee mugs proclaiming world’s best dad or mum in bright lettering on the side. The floor is made of a simple grey tiling, the walls nothing more then white slabs. There’s no carpeting, no rugs and no posters, not even of the sort that would normally adorn a typical workplace environment (of course this isn’t your average run-of-the-mill job but still).
“There’s more of ‘em then last time,” he hears a familiar yet unrecognizable voice mumbling.
His presence, so far, has gone unnoticed so he clears his throat to gain their attention. When the heads all turn as one towards him, he realizes that they’ve gained a few extra faces, familiar faces.
“Doctor,” Mickey nods curtly in his direction, tight-lipped and looking none-too-pleased. He’s actually quite glad to see Rose's ex but for whatever reason the feeling doesn’t seem to be mutual. He's fairly sure it has everything to do with the current situation and not Rose...but that doesn't stop the doubt from setting in. Maybe Mickey too has turned against him. Not like they were really all that close but he thought both of them had made it to a point of mutual understanding and respect.
“Mickey,” he replies cautiously, then beams when he notices another old friend - this time with a much friendlier face - amongst them. “Jake! Good to see you lad!”
Jake waves and smiles in his direction but is too intent on what’s happening on the screen in front of him to respond. As the Doctor crosses the room he pulls his glasses out of his pocket and places them on his face. Sliding through the huddled mass and into a position that allows for optimum viewing of the computer monitor they've all been so focused on, he doesn't miss the fact that he's now within mere inches of Rose.
She doesn't back away though, doesn't try to create some distance between them. But then again, he's not even sure she's noticed his presence at this point. Her attention is too preoccupied with whatever it is that's brought them all here in the first place.
Tearing his eyes away from her, he focuses on what is obviously an image being projected from a satellite floating somewhere above the Earth. He's never been overly fond of human data screens - Gallifreyan technology is so much easier to understand - but in no time at all he's deciphered the grainy image.
“When did they appear?” He asks, pointing to the blips on the screen that represent some sort of space vessel. If this was displaying on the Tardis he'd be able to tell how long they'd been there, where they'd came from, and who, exactly, they are. But, as it stands, he's got to make do with the limited resources available to Torchwood and, therefor, him.
Pete shakes his head in frustration, “We’re not sure exactly. Everyone’s been kind of in celebration mode since we scared them off the last time.” The Doctor raises his eyebrows at this. It’s one thing to be relieved that you’ve saved your planet from certain destruction; it’s another thing entirely to slack off in the first row of defense. “I know,” he replies before the Doctor can say anything. “It’s my fault, not theirs. It was a mistake, I realize that now. But Doctor, these people worked for seven days straight, many without sleep, just to find a way to fight these bastards off the first time.”
He nods and, while waiting for Pete to continue, notices that a few more blips have shown up on the screen. Then, before his very eyes, there appears a few more and a few more after that. At first he doesn't think anyone else has seen them, they're all too busy focusing on the head of Torchwood, and then there's a sharp intake of air on his left and he turns to find Rose; staring at the multiplying ships, a look of fear crossing her features. He knows that look oh so well and doesn't even think about it - it's second nature to him after all - before reaching out a comforting hand to her.
The instant flesh meets cloth though he realizes his mistake.
And so does she.
Jerking away from his touch, Rose moves as quickly as she can through the throng, nearly colliding with a nearby filing cabinet in the process. He'd go after her, call out her name, anything to try and stop this whole strange situation that seems to be spiraling out of control at breakneck speed but he can't.
He can't move, not even to open his mouth. In the background he can hear Pete's voice, telling him something he's certain is important, but it's like he's in a dream; his mind reeling from the feel of her beneath his palm. Such a short amount of time but that's all it took to drown his senses in her again. She felt like coming home, like everything that makes you feel safe and secure, enveloped in love; your mothers cooking, your fathers cologne, the blanket you wrapped yourself in as a child when the monsters taunted you from beneath the bed.
That's not all he felt though and it takes his mind - his brilliant, fabulous mind - a few minutes to figure it out. But before he can name it, there's a commotion on his right and an arm shoots out across his shoulder, pointing to the all important monitor screen. “What's that?”
The Doctor watches as Pete leans down, studying the spot Jack just indicated. “I’m not sure. Never seen anything like that one before and it’s certainly not one of ours.”
That statement is all the Doctor needs to clear the fog from his mind. He raises an eyebrow; the Torchwood here has it's very own space ships? That’s news to him but now is not the time or the place to worry overly much about this revelation (though it might come in handy later on). The direness of the situation did not diminish any during his momentary lapse in focus and there's more pressing matters to deal with then what's happening between him and Rose.
“Alright, well see if you can’t get some line of communication open with them, whoever they are.” He addresses Pete. “Worse case scenario, it’s another alien looking to take over your tiny planet. Of course that might not be such a bad thing in the long run. The two of them fight it out for a bit and the victor moves on to you but with fewer numbers.”
No one seems particularly impressed with his possibility and he begins to walk back towards the door. “If you’re lucky though, it might just be an enemy of your enemy come to help eliminate them from the galaxy.” He’s reached the door by now and is just about to turn the knob to leave when Pete stops him.
“Doctor?”
“Don’t worry Pete. I’m not leaving you to your own devices…you’ve already proven what you lot can do with the resources you have,” he keeps his tone neutral but it’s definitely meant in a sarcastic way. “Just popping out quick to see what the Tardis can come up with.”
“Hold on a tic,” Jake speaks up. “There’s something else you should see first.” He turns to Pete whose face has suddenly turned white as a ghost. “Come on boss, you need to show 'im.”
There’s a long pause while Pete considers the younger man’s suggestion and the Doctor starts to feel a bit impatient. Before he can bring up the lack of any sort of time to think things through Pete sighs and gives a curt nod in agreement.
“Jake’s right,” he says reluctantly. “You need to know exactly what we’re dealing with here, Doctor.” Stepping up to what looks like a completely normal section of the wall he runs his hand over its smooth surface. After feeling around for a bit he finally finds what he’s looking for and a panel opens up, revealing a security box, complete with keypad, retina and fingerprint scanner, and a speaker for voice recognition.
The Doctor can’t help but wonder what it is they are keeping so tightly under lock and key.
~~~
She can't believe she let her guard down, can't believe she let him get that close. It was a huge mistake and one that may have just cost her a secret or two.
The defenses she had learned how to build - protection against contact with psychic races or those sensitive enough to detect her emotions - were strategically placed and well maintained. But, even still, when sufficiently distracted or surprised, they were easy enough to breach.
His brief touch, at the exact moment when realization dawned on her as to just who these beings were, was all it took to shatter her resolve, tear down a few of her walls. She won't deny that it felt good (because it did), can't ignore the memories and emotions it brought...
Once upon a time she swore she'd never let go, never stop holding his hand...not never, ever. And he...he held her heart in his hands and yet, he never knew it, never knew how much she loved him.
There was so much she never told him. She always thought there'd be more time...
Then, before either of them knew what was happening, they were caught up in that horrible chain of events, an integral part of thing they could not change. Despite all her promises of forever, she let go. It had never been her intention to but she simply hadn't been strong enough.
And her world had suddenly turned upside down.
The pain of it, loving, and then losing him before their time, is so overwhelming she feels like she's going to be sick. Maybe it's not worth it, keeping these secrets, keeping herself from him. Maybe, just maybe, her judgment has been clouded by the fear of rejection...a fear that is quite possibly unfounded and just a tiny bit irrational.
When has he ever been anything but understanding and kind?
She knows now that she has to talk to him, has to apologize for the way she's been acting. She has to at least give him the chance. But, when she raises her head, eyes seeking his, she finds that the world hasn't stopped revolving just because of her. Life moved on while she sat, inactive, drowning in her own selfish thoughts.
The tight-knit crowd has dispersed and all eyes are on Pete, standing before a seemingly normal wall, an unhappy expression marring his features. She can't figure out what's so fascinating about the unblemished expanse of white plaster and paint. But then, before her very eyes, half the wall disappears and she's rising from her seat in shock and amazement.
She’s never seen this hidden room before, never even heard rumors of its existence. Admittedly this was obviously very top-secret but in the little bit of time she worked at Torchwood her security clearance had risen quite rapidly to the highest possible; an accomplishment that had infuriated some of her team-mates to no end. It was difficult to ignore the sideways glances and whispers that it was only because she was the director’s daughter but Rose knew better. She had earned each and every commendation that had been given to her, had worked just as hard as the rest of them, and had thought she’d earned Pete’s respect and trust.
Obviously she’d been mistaken though if he had felt the need to keep something this important from her. Oh she wasn’t mad at him - she was sure he had his reasons - but that didn’t stop it from stinging just a little.
Jack turns and gives her a look of confusion but all she can do is shrug as she follows her dad and the Doctor into the hidden room. Like in Communications, the area is extremely clinical in appearance. Glaringly white walls and a grayish flooring - both bare of any sort of decoration - leave one feeling like they’ve just entered a morgue. There’s a single desk facing the north wall, complete with computer and chair. And that’s it.
She can't help but shudder as, once everyone has moved into the cramped space, the wall seemingly reappears behind them. Pete then punches a few keys on the keyboard and quickly moves to stand in front of the monitor before anyone can see as the display comes to life. “We’ve had it for about a week now, under the strictest of security. We didn’t want to take the chance of it getting out but could not pass up the opportunity to study it further and…” his face is becoming flushed and he looks more then a little embarrassed. “Well, if nothing else, we figured we might be able to use it as leverage.” At that he moves out of their way and a few gasps are heard throughout the room.
Standing on tiptoes Rose cranes her neck to see past the people standing in front of her. What she sees there is so jarring - so awful - that, with a quick intake of breath, she takes a step back and away from it. Before she can take another one strong arms grasp her shoulders, holding her both in place and upright.
It’s not that the creature is all that horrible - she has, after all, seen some really awful things in her time - but there’s just something about it. She doesn’t even know what it is, can’t even begin to describe it, but something about it scares her more then anything else she’s ever faced. It probably doesn't help any that there’s the unnerving feeling that, despite the fact that it’s in another room altogether, it is looking right at her.
“It’s alright,” Jack murmurs in her ear and she realizes that her whole body is so tense it must feel to him like she’s about to bolt.
She takes a deep shuddering breath and forces herself to look at the screen in front of her once more. Using a technique that she learned during her training at Torchwood, she manages to keep herself calm enough to regard the creature analytically.
Though she can’t stand to admit it the alien is most definitely humanoid. Everything about it in fact follows the basic human form, with no extra appendages or missing parts. It has two arms and two legs, stands upright, has a head firmly attached to its shoulders, two eyes, a nose, and a mouth…and so on and so forth. If she’s being completely honest, the few differences are so minor that one could easily mistake this creature as someone dressed up for Halloween.
His skin - she assumes it’s a male though she’s not sure why - is a sort of nauseatingly green color; kind of like a cross between pea soup and lichen. It really is quite an interesting combination when you throw in the white-as-snow hair that reaches well down his back and the funny looking goatee on his chin. Then there are the small gashes, one under each eye, that remind her distinctly of gills. They don’t appear to move at all, not even when he’s breathing, so she has to assume they have some other function.
So costume party, yeah?
It’s his eyes that give him away, that reveal the truly terrifying thing he is inside. Just glance at them and you won’t notice anything amiss but look deeply enough and you’ll see it, the pure evil that resides within those orbs. There’s obvious contempt there too, contempt for anything he feels is beneath him and his. It smacks too much of another alien species that seemed hell-bent on the destruction of every other race in the galaxy. But the Daleks couldn’t hold a flame to this thing.
She’s seen enough and is just about to say so when the Doctor speaks up. “I want to talk to him,” his voice is so low she has to strain to hear it. There’s a tone to it she’s only heard a handful of times, a tone that betrays just how dangerous of a man this Time Lord is.
“I don’t think that’s a wise idea,” Pete replies but his confidence has gone. This is why he was so reluctant to show us, Rose thinks to herself. He knows the Doctor isn’t going to agree with chaining some alien being up just to study it. “These creatures are extremely dangerous and I seriously doubt even you would be safe in the same room as it.”
“I said, I want to talk to him,” the Doctor repeats and, though his voice hasn’t gotten any louder, everyone jumps.
“Doc…” but before he finishes his argument Pete shakes his head in concession and walks over to the west wall, finding the same sort of security device there as he did in the room before this one. Though the protocol is the same it takes him a bit longer to complete it; the string of numbers is longer, both eyes and every finger needs to be scanned and the voice recognition software requires a larger number of words to be uttered before he’s cleared. This time though, the wall stays in place and instead a door appears as if out of nowhere. Pete hesitates briefly then motions towards it.
"Just...just be careful ok?"
Chapter Six...
Rating: I'm going with PG-13 but I'm not really good with ratings
Characters: Ten, Rose, Jack, Tosh, Ianto, Gwen, Owen, Pete, Jackie, Mickey, Jake, Martha, other characters
Spoilers: Anything up till the end of season three is fair game
Summary: The sequel to Mrs. Jones You've Got a Lovely Daughter and part of my Homesick In Heaven series. Rose is back, has been for awhile now, and the Doctor is none the wiser. She's making a go of it and life is good...as good as it can be without him by her side. But what happens when forces beyond her control bring the two of them back together? What happens when the Doctor finds out she's been hiding from him all these months? Will Rose reveal her deepest, darkest secrets to him before it's too late?
Author's Note: The rest of this story is dedicated to Shara on Teaspoon for her in-depth e-mail review. Thank you again, for your complete and utter honesty. I've done some minor changes here and there and I really hope they help to clear up some of the issues you had. Thanks also to SnowFox3 on fanfiction.net for her continued support and flawless beta'ing. I'm changing it as I go along though, so all mistakes are mine and mine alone.
~~~
“Hey Doc, change in plans,” Jack's voice crackles over the intercom the former Time Agent had installed during his first stint in the Tardis.
Sighing, the Doctor sets down the book he’s been reading. His initial search for a species similar to the one Pete had described turned up with nothing. So, while waiting for the others to return he had figured he’d catch up on some of his reading. This book in particular - The Trials of Cross-Breeding Alien Fauna - had piqued his interest many years ago but he hadn’t had the opportunity to pick it up till now.
“Pete says you should meet us in the communications room, which is…” there’s a pause and he can hear Jack asking someone for directions. “Oh, well that’s convenient. Com room is five doors down from you on the left.”
He contemplates ignoring the Captain’s call but there’s a certain urgency in his voice that the Doctor can’t deny. After a moment’s hesitation he pulls his jacket back on and goes in search of the others.
The first thing he notices, upon entering the room, is the large group of people huddled around one of the work stations. The rest of the space is empty of inhabitants, making the cold, almost clinical-like atmosphere that much more glaring.
It’s a fairly large room filled with row-after-row of work stations similar to the one that’s currently garnering so much attention. Each station holds a personal computer and nothing more; no personal belongings, no family photos, no coffee mugs proclaiming world’s best dad or mum in bright lettering on the side. The floor is made of a simple grey tiling, the walls nothing more then white slabs. There’s no carpeting, no rugs and no posters, not even of the sort that would normally adorn a typical workplace environment (of course this isn’t your average run-of-the-mill job but still).
“There’s more of ‘em then last time,” he hears a familiar yet unrecognizable voice mumbling.
His presence, so far, has gone unnoticed so he clears his throat to gain their attention. When the heads all turn as one towards him, he realizes that they’ve gained a few extra faces, familiar faces.
“Doctor,” Mickey nods curtly in his direction, tight-lipped and looking none-too-pleased. He’s actually quite glad to see Rose's ex but for whatever reason the feeling doesn’t seem to be mutual. He's fairly sure it has everything to do with the current situation and not Rose...but that doesn't stop the doubt from setting in. Maybe Mickey too has turned against him. Not like they were really all that close but he thought both of them had made it to a point of mutual understanding and respect.
“Mickey,” he replies cautiously, then beams when he notices another old friend - this time with a much friendlier face - amongst them. “Jake! Good to see you lad!”
Jake waves and smiles in his direction but is too intent on what’s happening on the screen in front of him to respond. As the Doctor crosses the room he pulls his glasses out of his pocket and places them on his face. Sliding through the huddled mass and into a position that allows for optimum viewing of the computer monitor they've all been so focused on, he doesn't miss the fact that he's now within mere inches of Rose.
She doesn't back away though, doesn't try to create some distance between them. But then again, he's not even sure she's noticed his presence at this point. Her attention is too preoccupied with whatever it is that's brought them all here in the first place.
Tearing his eyes away from her, he focuses on what is obviously an image being projected from a satellite floating somewhere above the Earth. He's never been overly fond of human data screens - Gallifreyan technology is so much easier to understand - but in no time at all he's deciphered the grainy image.
“When did they appear?” He asks, pointing to the blips on the screen that represent some sort of space vessel. If this was displaying on the Tardis he'd be able to tell how long they'd been there, where they'd came from, and who, exactly, they are. But, as it stands, he's got to make do with the limited resources available to Torchwood and, therefor, him.
Pete shakes his head in frustration, “We’re not sure exactly. Everyone’s been kind of in celebration mode since we scared them off the last time.” The Doctor raises his eyebrows at this. It’s one thing to be relieved that you’ve saved your planet from certain destruction; it’s another thing entirely to slack off in the first row of defense. “I know,” he replies before the Doctor can say anything. “It’s my fault, not theirs. It was a mistake, I realize that now. But Doctor, these people worked for seven days straight, many without sleep, just to find a way to fight these bastards off the first time.”
He nods and, while waiting for Pete to continue, notices that a few more blips have shown up on the screen. Then, before his very eyes, there appears a few more and a few more after that. At first he doesn't think anyone else has seen them, they're all too busy focusing on the head of Torchwood, and then there's a sharp intake of air on his left and he turns to find Rose; staring at the multiplying ships, a look of fear crossing her features. He knows that look oh so well and doesn't even think about it - it's second nature to him after all - before reaching out a comforting hand to her.
The instant flesh meets cloth though he realizes his mistake.
And so does she.
Jerking away from his touch, Rose moves as quickly as she can through the throng, nearly colliding with a nearby filing cabinet in the process. He'd go after her, call out her name, anything to try and stop this whole strange situation that seems to be spiraling out of control at breakneck speed but he can't.
He can't move, not even to open his mouth. In the background he can hear Pete's voice, telling him something he's certain is important, but it's like he's in a dream; his mind reeling from the feel of her beneath his palm. Such a short amount of time but that's all it took to drown his senses in her again. She felt like coming home, like everything that makes you feel safe and secure, enveloped in love; your mothers cooking, your fathers cologne, the blanket you wrapped yourself in as a child when the monsters taunted you from beneath the bed.
That's not all he felt though and it takes his mind - his brilliant, fabulous mind - a few minutes to figure it out. But before he can name it, there's a commotion on his right and an arm shoots out across his shoulder, pointing to the all important monitor screen. “What's that?”
The Doctor watches as Pete leans down, studying the spot Jack just indicated. “I’m not sure. Never seen anything like that one before and it’s certainly not one of ours.”
That statement is all the Doctor needs to clear the fog from his mind. He raises an eyebrow; the Torchwood here has it's very own space ships? That’s news to him but now is not the time or the place to worry overly much about this revelation (though it might come in handy later on). The direness of the situation did not diminish any during his momentary lapse in focus and there's more pressing matters to deal with then what's happening between him and Rose.
“Alright, well see if you can’t get some line of communication open with them, whoever they are.” He addresses Pete. “Worse case scenario, it’s another alien looking to take over your tiny planet. Of course that might not be such a bad thing in the long run. The two of them fight it out for a bit and the victor moves on to you but with fewer numbers.”
No one seems particularly impressed with his possibility and he begins to walk back towards the door. “If you’re lucky though, it might just be an enemy of your enemy come to help eliminate them from the galaxy.” He’s reached the door by now and is just about to turn the knob to leave when Pete stops him.
“Doctor?”
“Don’t worry Pete. I’m not leaving you to your own devices…you’ve already proven what you lot can do with the resources you have,” he keeps his tone neutral but it’s definitely meant in a sarcastic way. “Just popping out quick to see what the Tardis can come up with.”
“Hold on a tic,” Jake speaks up. “There’s something else you should see first.” He turns to Pete whose face has suddenly turned white as a ghost. “Come on boss, you need to show 'im.”
There’s a long pause while Pete considers the younger man’s suggestion and the Doctor starts to feel a bit impatient. Before he can bring up the lack of any sort of time to think things through Pete sighs and gives a curt nod in agreement.
“Jake’s right,” he says reluctantly. “You need to know exactly what we’re dealing with here, Doctor.” Stepping up to what looks like a completely normal section of the wall he runs his hand over its smooth surface. After feeling around for a bit he finally finds what he’s looking for and a panel opens up, revealing a security box, complete with keypad, retina and fingerprint scanner, and a speaker for voice recognition.
The Doctor can’t help but wonder what it is they are keeping so tightly under lock and key.
~~~
She can't believe she let her guard down, can't believe she let him get that close. It was a huge mistake and one that may have just cost her a secret or two.
The defenses she had learned how to build - protection against contact with psychic races or those sensitive enough to detect her emotions - were strategically placed and well maintained. But, even still, when sufficiently distracted or surprised, they were easy enough to breach.
His brief touch, at the exact moment when realization dawned on her as to just who these beings were, was all it took to shatter her resolve, tear down a few of her walls. She won't deny that it felt good (because it did), can't ignore the memories and emotions it brought...
Once upon a time she swore she'd never let go, never stop holding his hand...not never, ever. And he...he held her heart in his hands and yet, he never knew it, never knew how much she loved him.
There was so much she never told him. She always thought there'd be more time...
Then, before either of them knew what was happening, they were caught up in that horrible chain of events, an integral part of thing they could not change. Despite all her promises of forever, she let go. It had never been her intention to but she simply hadn't been strong enough.
And her world had suddenly turned upside down.
The pain of it, loving, and then losing him before their time, is so overwhelming she feels like she's going to be sick. Maybe it's not worth it, keeping these secrets, keeping herself from him. Maybe, just maybe, her judgment has been clouded by the fear of rejection...a fear that is quite possibly unfounded and just a tiny bit irrational.
When has he ever been anything but understanding and kind?
She knows now that she has to talk to him, has to apologize for the way she's been acting. She has to at least give him the chance. But, when she raises her head, eyes seeking his, she finds that the world hasn't stopped revolving just because of her. Life moved on while she sat, inactive, drowning in her own selfish thoughts.
The tight-knit crowd has dispersed and all eyes are on Pete, standing before a seemingly normal wall, an unhappy expression marring his features. She can't figure out what's so fascinating about the unblemished expanse of white plaster and paint. But then, before her very eyes, half the wall disappears and she's rising from her seat in shock and amazement.
She’s never seen this hidden room before, never even heard rumors of its existence. Admittedly this was obviously very top-secret but in the little bit of time she worked at Torchwood her security clearance had risen quite rapidly to the highest possible; an accomplishment that had infuriated some of her team-mates to no end. It was difficult to ignore the sideways glances and whispers that it was only because she was the director’s daughter but Rose knew better. She had earned each and every commendation that had been given to her, had worked just as hard as the rest of them, and had thought she’d earned Pete’s respect and trust.
Obviously she’d been mistaken though if he had felt the need to keep something this important from her. Oh she wasn’t mad at him - she was sure he had his reasons - but that didn’t stop it from stinging just a little.
Jack turns and gives her a look of confusion but all she can do is shrug as she follows her dad and the Doctor into the hidden room. Like in Communications, the area is extremely clinical in appearance. Glaringly white walls and a grayish flooring - both bare of any sort of decoration - leave one feeling like they’ve just entered a morgue. There’s a single desk facing the north wall, complete with computer and chair. And that’s it.
She can't help but shudder as, once everyone has moved into the cramped space, the wall seemingly reappears behind them. Pete then punches a few keys on the keyboard and quickly moves to stand in front of the monitor before anyone can see as the display comes to life. “We’ve had it for about a week now, under the strictest of security. We didn’t want to take the chance of it getting out but could not pass up the opportunity to study it further and…” his face is becoming flushed and he looks more then a little embarrassed. “Well, if nothing else, we figured we might be able to use it as leverage.” At that he moves out of their way and a few gasps are heard throughout the room.
Standing on tiptoes Rose cranes her neck to see past the people standing in front of her. What she sees there is so jarring - so awful - that, with a quick intake of breath, she takes a step back and away from it. Before she can take another one strong arms grasp her shoulders, holding her both in place and upright.
It’s not that the creature is all that horrible - she has, after all, seen some really awful things in her time - but there’s just something about it. She doesn’t even know what it is, can’t even begin to describe it, but something about it scares her more then anything else she’s ever faced. It probably doesn't help any that there’s the unnerving feeling that, despite the fact that it’s in another room altogether, it is looking right at her.
“It’s alright,” Jack murmurs in her ear and she realizes that her whole body is so tense it must feel to him like she’s about to bolt.
She takes a deep shuddering breath and forces herself to look at the screen in front of her once more. Using a technique that she learned during her training at Torchwood, she manages to keep herself calm enough to regard the creature analytically.
Though she can’t stand to admit it the alien is most definitely humanoid. Everything about it in fact follows the basic human form, with no extra appendages or missing parts. It has two arms and two legs, stands upright, has a head firmly attached to its shoulders, two eyes, a nose, and a mouth…and so on and so forth. If she’s being completely honest, the few differences are so minor that one could easily mistake this creature as someone dressed up for Halloween.
His skin - she assumes it’s a male though she’s not sure why - is a sort of nauseatingly green color; kind of like a cross between pea soup and lichen. It really is quite an interesting combination when you throw in the white-as-snow hair that reaches well down his back and the funny looking goatee on his chin. Then there are the small gashes, one under each eye, that remind her distinctly of gills. They don’t appear to move at all, not even when he’s breathing, so she has to assume they have some other function.
So costume party, yeah?
It’s his eyes that give him away, that reveal the truly terrifying thing he is inside. Just glance at them and you won’t notice anything amiss but look deeply enough and you’ll see it, the pure evil that resides within those orbs. There’s obvious contempt there too, contempt for anything he feels is beneath him and his. It smacks too much of another alien species that seemed hell-bent on the destruction of every other race in the galaxy. But the Daleks couldn’t hold a flame to this thing.
She’s seen enough and is just about to say so when the Doctor speaks up. “I want to talk to him,” his voice is so low she has to strain to hear it. There’s a tone to it she’s only heard a handful of times, a tone that betrays just how dangerous of a man this Time Lord is.
“I don’t think that’s a wise idea,” Pete replies but his confidence has gone. This is why he was so reluctant to show us, Rose thinks to herself. He knows the Doctor isn’t going to agree with chaining some alien being up just to study it. “These creatures are extremely dangerous and I seriously doubt even you would be safe in the same room as it.”
“I said, I want to talk to him,” the Doctor repeats and, though his voice hasn’t gotten any louder, everyone jumps.
“Doc…” but before he finishes his argument Pete shakes his head in concession and walks over to the west wall, finding the same sort of security device there as he did in the room before this one. Though the protocol is the same it takes him a bit longer to complete it; the string of numbers is longer, both eyes and every finger needs to be scanned and the voice recognition software requires a larger number of words to be uttered before he’s cleared. This time though, the wall stays in place and instead a door appears as if out of nowhere. Pete hesitates briefly then motions towards it.
"Just...just be careful ok?"
Chapter Six...