Ten In Nine's Rose World

[The Tenth Doctor]

(all right...but still waiting And I'm hoping you're feeling better now.)

[Donna Noble/Rose Tyler]

(still not great, but much better than I was, and I'm actually working on my post right now

[Donna Noble/Rose Tyler]

Not only did the Doctor never wear collared shirts, but this shirt looked really small, at least for the Doctor. Rose didn't know what to think, couldn't fathom what this meant.

"Wow...this is a mess," Ten commented. "Maybe...maybe we better look for something clean in the wardrobe room....yeah...there HAS to be something of his there...."

Rose ignored him. Standing up, shirt in hand, she looked around the room. There was a brown pinstriped suit jacket resting on the dresser...and next to it stood several pictures in frames. Walking up to them, she saw people she didn't know, laughing, smiling. An old white-haired man standing formally next to a young brunette girl. A man in a long long scarf grinning incessantly at a smiling young woman with a straw hat on. Two children sitting on the floor looking at the camera, laughing. There were others, but Rose honed in on one towards the front...that of herself, smiling, arm around the man standing behind her, David.

She picked it up. Turning, she looked at him. She opened her mouth, but found she didn't know what to say. Still couldn't fathom what was going on. So she opted for the simplest question.

"What's going on here?" Rose asked, her voice hoarse.

[[Blackie]theNinth]

"Our sensors indicated that you were a Time Lord....is that correct?" the smug, hostile expression on the creatures face amused the Doctor. He liked the way it treated him as inferior, glaring at him with aaggressive disdain. The Doctor swayed, a goofy expression on his face.

"Time Lord?" he asked in a sing-song voice. "What's that?"

Even as the sarcastic comment was escaping his mouth, a voice purred around his ears. It was like the wind, but multiple winds all moving around him with silky movements. They made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up.

we're not shy we're right here

"Are you?" he asked, his voice terse with uncertainty. "Friends of yours?" he asked the alien he could see.

you are not where you think you are.

"Well, that's a relief, I thought I was having one of those dreams where your pants fall off without you noticing." he retorted. The voices were making him nervous.

we'll help you if you'll help us.

The Doctor glared, turning to try and catch a glimpse of the voices in his ear. "Help? If that's all you wanted, you didn't have to go dragging me into an alternate universe. Is that what this is? A parallel world?"

you are in mortal danger, Time Lord.

"Good, I like danger. Keeps me on my toes. What do you need my help for?" He turned on the humanoid alien, narrowing his eyes. Warning. was written all over his face. He was tense, nervous, and worried about what these creatures were up too. "You'd better tell me what's going on."

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[The Tenth Doctor]

Ten looked away from Rose uncomfortably, not wanting to look her in the eyes. She had seen his pictures, and seen one in which he and Rose were together.

"I....well....this room.....it isn't your Doctor's any more...it's mine. I...uh...well, in my time line I'm a bit further along....and you meet me in your future....and we become...friends," Ten answered he uncomfortably.

What he had said wasn't exactly a lie. He simply hadn't told her that he was the Doctor. He glanced at her awkwardly, not sure of how she would receive his statement.

It was only then that he realized what he'd told her. Wanting to hit himself on the head, he realized that he'd just practically told her that they were in a TARDIS from the future. She was supposed to think that this was Nine's TARDIS, but now he'd gone and revealed that it was the TARDIS from the future. Perhaps Rose wouldn't notice.

He nervously ran his fingers through his hair, making it stick up in various places.

[The Tenth Doctor]

Spong sneered back at the Doctor, "Our sensors have never been known to be wrong. You will pay for the crimes of your species....it was your kind that caused us the humiliation we have suffered. We've had a hard time finding a Time Lord, but we finally have one. Don't think we'll be letting you go."

The alien gave Nine a look of satisfaction. "Now, if you tell us where the....royal family is...we might consider letting you see the rise of another sun."

Spong had no way of knowing that there was no royal family of Gallifrey any longer. That had long since disappeared. Not even those who had been the doctor's age knew about it. This was a secret long kept on Gallifrey -- that there had been a family.

[Donna Noble/Rose Tyler]

Rose stood there, not wanting to move, staring at David.

"The future? This...this isn't his TARDIS," Rose stated, panic bubbling up in her stomach. "You lied! Why?!? Who are you? You..."

Something clicked in her head. "You can't have a TARDIS. There aren't any left...he told me." She stared at him with more intensity than before. "Who. Are. You?" she demanded, backing up, feeling entirely unsafe. He could have easily killed the Doctor, taken his TARDIS...the pictures could have been before he did that...but then where was the Doctor in all this...

[The Tenth Doctor]

Ten let out a sigh, and ventured to look right at her. "Well, it IS the same TARDIS, but...well....this is a future version of the TARDIS that you know. I...I had to be sure that this version wasn't taken the way...the other one was...."

"And yes, I lied.....I'm sorry...." Ten continued to look right into Rose's eyes. He purposely avoided answering the question about who he was. He knew that it was inevitable -- he would have to tell her -- but he would avoid it for as long as possible.

[[Blackie]theNinth]

"Our sensors have never been known to be wrong."

"Well, there's a first time for everything." the Doctor replied. He was becoming annoyed. The fact that these aliens had been able to teleport him without alerting him to it was worrisome. What sort of technology must they possess? Fiegning boredom, the Time Lord began looking around the street, searching for a glitch that might indicate that his surroundings were actually computer stimulations.

"You will pay for the crimes of your species....it was your kind that caused us the humiliation we have suffered."

"What is your species, then?" he challenged, removing his sonic screwdriver from an inner pocket of his jacket. He adjusted a dial, giving it a shake.

"We've had a hard time finding a Time Lord, but we finally have one. Don't think we'll be letting you go."

The Doctor sighed, pointing the screwdriver at a building. It felt solid enough when he touched it with his hand. "I never admitted to being your Time-whatsit." he muttered. "And I suspect I'll have escaped on my own before you get a chance to let me." He flashed a winning smile. If he could, he wanted to unnerve his captor. Escaping would be much easier if they thought he would.

"Now, if you tell us where the....royal family is...we might consider letting you see the rise of another sun."

The Doctor frowned, pocketing his screwdriver and taking a few steps forward. "Royal family?" he asked with indignation. "Now I know your stupid. The Time Lords - and I'm not saying I am one - don't have a royal family. So what do you want?"

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[Donna Noble/Rose Tyler]

"If this is the same TARDIS, then where's the Doctor?" Rose asked forcefully, still staring at him. "Why is this not his room any more?" she paused for one second before throwing out more questions, louder than the others. "Who are you and what did you do to him?"

Rose's mind leaped to conclusions like a frog to lilly pads...He could have killed the Doctor, taken his TARDIS...her mind whispered. But then why would I be in pictures happy with him...? she asked back. He could have pretended...those could have been taken long before he killed the Doctor and ran. Conflicted, she still couldn't make sense of everything. HE LIED, her mind's voice echoed in her head, stopping any other thoughts. How can you trust him?

Rose had no answer, so she went back over the options she had thought of already, never taking her eyes off of the man.

[The Tenth Doctor]

The alien who had been speaking to the Doctor replied, "We are the Pasejinar. And you will not escape us....you are a Time Lord...according to our detection device, and we have your ship....not here...but somewhere else. It is a Time Lord vessel.

The alien stared right back at the Doctor, crossing his arms. "The Time Lords DO have a royal family. What was he called? Aragorn-something. Your kind takes to long names, and I'm not sure we found out the rest of it. And there was a child. If you find us either the parent or the child, we would offer you a reward. Your kind and the Daleks are responsible for our embarrassment and our set backs. Their leader was called Davros, I believe."
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Ten, unable to look at Rose replied, "I didn't say that this wasn't the Doctor's room anymore...at least I don't think I said that...I only meant that it wasn't...wasn't the Doctor that you know...it isn't his room any more."

Ten dared to meet her eyes once more. He let out a sigh of frustration. There was no doubt about it; he'd have to tell her eventually. He'd have to tell her who he was. This would mean he would have to erase these memories later so that it wouldn't affect the time line. Rose wasn't supposed to know about regeneration yet.

"I...I...did nothing to him...." Ten uncomfortably stated. "He...he....made a choice....so that you could live...." Ten knew that his former self wouldn't have had have saved Rose's life. He could have chosen to watch her die. Of course he would never have done that. He loved her.

[[Blackie]theNinth]

"We are the Pasejinar. And you will not escape us....you are a Time Lord...according to our detection device, and we have your ship....not here...but somewhere else. It is a Time Lord vessel."

"Alright," the Doctor growled, finally too annoyed to play any more games. "I'm a Time Lord and you're a Pase-whatsit. Have you got a name, then?" he inclined his head toward the alien, studying its build. He was of half a mind to threaten it and find out what would happen next, but not until he had gathered more information. He still wasn't entirely sure where he was or what he was there for.

"The Time Lords DO have a royal family. What was he called? Aragorn-something. Your kind takes to long names, and I'm not sure we found out the rest of it. And there was a child. If you find us either the parent or the child, we would offer you a reward. Your kind and the Daleks are responsible for our embarrassment and our set backs. Their leader was called Davros, I believe."

"If there's one thing I know for certain, its that the Daleks and the Time Lords would never work together for anything, even if they had a common enemy, which they don't." he scowled. Even the thought of cooperating with a Dalek put him on edge. "And I have no idea what you're talking about. I don't know any Aragorns, and I don't know anything about a royal family. You sure you haven't been reading to much Tolkien?"

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[Donna Noble/Rose Tyler]

Ten, unable to look at Rose replied, "I didn't say that this wasn't the Doctor's room anymore...at least I don't think I said that...I only meant that it wasn't...wasn't the Doctor that you know...it isn't his room any more."

"The Doctor I know? What does that mean?" Rose stood there, picture still clasped her hands, things getting more confusing by the second. Her gaze dared him to look back up and face her.

Ten dared to meet her eyes once more. He let out a sigh of frustration.

"I...I...did nothing to him...." Ten uncomfortably stated. "He...he....made a choice....so that you could live...."

"So that I could live??" Rose shook her head sharply. David was talking around the subject and confusing her all the more. "I don't understand...he's...what are you saying??"

[The Tenth Doctor]

The Pasejinar narrowed his eyes at the Doctor. "My name is Spong, the current leader of my people." He let out an annoyed sigh when the Doctor went on to say that the Daleks and Time Lords would never work together at something.

"I do not know whether or not it was a colloborative effort on the part of Time Lords and Daleks, but the end result is the same -- your presence on the planet Sol 3 at our moment of invasion was enough to destroy our plans. We cannot seem to locate Gallifrey on our sensors, so your people must have erected a device to block our sensors out so that we could not find you. I am sure that I haven't been reading Tolkien. If you are trying to protect your people's royal family, it won't work. Besides, we have a picture of the baby."

One of the others of his kind left the room and returned later with a picture of a baby with brown hair and brown eyes. It appeared to be a small baby.

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Ten could hear the frustration in Rose's voice and chanced once again to look at her. "Oh...what's the use? You're going to have to be made to forget all this anyway......so I might as well explain it to you. Regeneration -- Time Lords have the ability to regenerate. It...it means that when a Time Lord is dying, that current body dies -- old self...every cell, appearance, personality, etc. dies. Not much different than a human death..except...except that the cells then begin to regenerate, and the process produces a different person -- well the same really, but different appearance, different personality. There's a new self or person....and...well, the result is something completely different, although still the Doctor."

Ten looked away and then glanced at her. "It means...it means that he dies and becomes me...."

He searched her face carefully to see how she would take the news.

[Donna Noble/Rose Tyler]

Made to forget this anyways...
...regeneration...
...dying...
...different person...
...appearance, personality...

"It means...it mean that he dies and becomes me..."

"You can't be..." Rose shook her head, her voice a whisper. She looked at him, really looked. He looked nothing like the Doctor, acted nothing like the Doctor, and what he had just told her was hard to swallow. She looked at him darkly. "You're not fooling me...I've seen all sorts of things. Who are you and what have you done with him?"