A Chance Encounter
A loud crack resonated in the small alley as a blonde appeared practically out of nowhere, she looked around wildly for a moment and tried to collect her bearings. Taking a deep breath, she leaned against a nearby wall and pulled a device out of her pocket. It took a few seconds before the location scanner was able to establish where she had ended up but when it did she couldn't stop a small smile creeping across her lips.
Sheffield, Earth, 2019.
Not only was she on earth, she was also back in her own world, in her not so distant future apparently. They had developed the dimension cannon so they were able to lock on to locations that The Doctor had been but it was still in its early stage of reproduction and as a result it didn't always spit her out at the right time. The Doctor may well have been in Sheffield at some point, but whether or not he was still there was debatable. Only one way to find out.
Pocketing her location scanner and the cannon she made her way out of the alley she had arrived in and looked around. She'd never been to Sheffield before so wasn't very familiar with the area, she also couldn't imagine why The Doctor would be there either which made finding him all the more difficult.
Heading off in a random direction she raised a hand to her neck and subconsciously fingered the key hanging from a chain there, she hadn't taken it off since they had parted. She wanted to be ready, just incase.
She had been walking around for what felt like hours, the cannon had long since recharged and if she didn't find some sort of evidence that he was there soon she would have to head back and try again. Letting out a long sigh, she turned a corner and was seriously considering just heading back when a sight ahead stopped her in her tracks. It couldn't be, could it? Her legs moved on their own accord whilst her heart screamed at her mind that it better not be playing tricks on her. It had been two years, give or take since she had last seen The Doctor and the TARDIS. She wondered how long it had been for him, she wondered if he had found new people to travel with, he probably had, and she wouldn't blame him for it, she would have hated to think he would have gone on alone after losing her.
Memories filled her mind as she got closer to the blue box, memories of the crazy adventures she and The Doctor had shared. She could hardly believe what was happening as she stopped in front of the TARDIS, she looked the same for the most part albeit a slightly brighter shade of blue. Her excitement gave way to mild panic as she thought about what was actually happening right now. She had finally found him, after working non stop since her arrival in the parallel world to find a way home, she had finally done it, and she had finally found him too. But what if he had moved on, what if he had new companions now and no longer cared for her? So many thoughts spun through her mind but one thing was for sure, she hadn't come this far to turn back now. With a shaking hand she removed the chain from around her neck and stared at the key for a moment, would it even still fit?
Taking a deep breath she pushed her key into the lock and turned, to her surprise it worked. She pushed the door open after another moment of hesitation and stepped inside. It was different, the coral pillars had been replaced with what looked to be crystals and if she was being honest with herself, it didn't match her Doctor. The thought worried her more than anything else had so far, could it be possible that he had regenerated since they had last seen each other? Her head was filled with so many questions and before she had time to consider the answers to any of them she heard the sound of approaching footsteps. Realising she had come to a stop a few feet from the console, she looked across to the door that led to the rest of the TARDIS and frowned when she saw a man looking back at her.
"Can I help you?" The man asked and she stared back at him in shock.
He looked to be in his late fifties or early sixties. Could this be The Doctor? Her Doctor? She was frozen in shock and could only stare back at the man as he wondered further into the room.
"You ok there love?" He called out again, watching the young woman with a mix of curiosity and worry.
She frowned, did he not recognise her? Had it really been that long that he no longer remembered what she looked like? Or maybe this regeneration had chosen to forget and he had moved on as soon as he changed.
She didn't know what to say, how could she bring herself to explain who she was if he had chosen to forget her? Reaching into her pocket, her fingers curled around the dimension cannon, she could leave right now and just go back home. She took a step back towards the door and considered doing what he had taught her to do best, run.
"Doc? You've got a visitor!" The man called over his shoulder and she stopped.
Doc? He was shouting for Doc? Could that mean? Was it possible.. She looked on in silent panic as she awaited the arrival of whoever this Doc person was.
She didn't have to wait long before a woman appeared in the same doorway the man had come through, she looked to be in her mid thirties, wearing a jumper with a rainbow across the front with yellow braces that clashed but she managed to pull it off at the same time. She had short blonde hair and was looking back at her with an expression she was sure mimicked her own.
"Friend of yours?" The man asked, looking between the two women curiously.
A wide smile stretched across The Doctors face as she stepped further into the room, looking back at Graham she could only nod before looking back at their visitor.
"Oh yes."
"I'll let you two have some privacy." Graham told her and she offered him a grateful smile as he retreated out of the console room.
The Doctor looked at the woman standing a short distance away, it had been probably a thousand or so years give or take but she never forgot a face, especially not that face. She wasn't sure where in their timeline she was but in that moment she didn't care. Taking a few steps towards the young woman who was still looking back at her in shock, The Doctor's smile softened and she gave silent thanks to whatever stars had to align so that one of her oldest friends could be here right now.
"Rose Tyler."
Rose watched the woman with wide eyes as she made her way over, was this him? her? Could this be her Doctor, the person she had spent the last two years trying to get back to. She knew her name, and the man had called her Doc, who was that man? Was he her new companion? Were they? She had so many questions, she had focussed so hard on trying to get back that she hadn't really thought through what she would do if it ever actually happened. She was too lost in her own thoughts that she barely registered the woman's movements until she came to a stop a few feet in front of her.
The Doctor watched Rose nervously, she wasn't sure how long it had been since she had last seen her, or rather her previous incarnation. Rose had been there when she regenerated from her ninth to her tenth incarnation but she had never told her of the possibility that she could become a woman one day, The Doctor herself had never really given it much thought until it had happened. Feelings she had long since suppressed came flooding back and it made her hearts hurt, she clenched her hands into fists at her sides as she fought the urge to reach out and take her hand.
After what felt like an eternity, Rose finally found her voice.
"Doctor?" Her voice was quiet and full of uncertainty.
"Hello." The Doctor said with a smile, raising a hand she gave her a small wave.
Rose felt tears fill her eyes, tears of relief, tears of exhaustion, she had finally found her Doctor after all this time. Closing the remaining distance between herself and The Doctor, she practically fell into her arms. The two women held each other tight, neither quite able to believe what was happening.
The Doctor felt Rose's tears soaking through her jumper whilst her own tears slipped silently down her cheeks, words couldn't explain how much she had missed her. She missed all of her past companions, but Rose was different, she had always been different.
After what could have been hours but neither woman cared, they loosened their grip and both took a small step back so they could look at each other. The Doctor took one of Rose's hands and gave it a gentle squeeze whilst reaching out with her other to wipe away her remaining tears. Rose closed her eyes momentarily at the contact, taking a deep breath she tried to get her emotions in check.
"Oh Rose." The Doctor said softly, offering her friend a smile which she returned tearfully.
"You've redecorated." Rose said after a moment, The Doctor let out a laugh and nodded, glancing around the console room briefly before looking back at her.
"Well y'know, new face, would'a been rude not to give the old girl a bit of a makeover too." She said with a shrug and Rose nodded.
"God, I've missed you." Rose said with a sigh.
"I've missed you too, so much you have no idea." The Doctor told her, shaking her head as she thought about just how long it had been since she had last seen her pink and yellow human.
She knew she had to ask, had to find out where exactly Rose had come from but the potential answer terrified her. The Doctor would love to be able to convince herself that this Rose was post meta crisis but she knew she could never be that lucky.
"How did you get here? Not that for one minute I'm complaining because I'm not, you have no idea how glad I am that you're here." She spoke a mile a minute and Rose smiled, she may look different on the outside but to her she was the exact same person she had said goodbye to on the beach years prior.
Reaching into her pocket, Rose pulled out a small circular device that The Doctor almost instantly recognised.
"This is a dimension cannon, Pete built it, in the parallel world, so we would be able to travel back and forth between worlds, so I'd be able to get back." She explained and The Doctor's hope was quickly dissipating as she continued.
"It didn't work at first, but then the stars started going out and dimensions started collapsing, not just in our world, but the whole of reality and then suddenly it started to work and I knew I had to find you."
The Doctor's face fell when she realised where Rose was from, where she had been trying to get back to, who she had been trying to get back to. A sad smile crossed her face and she gave the hand still in hers another squeeze.
"The stars, that's my past, my distant past, the me you're looking for, I'm, he, he's still as you remember him." She explained and Rose frowned.
She thought she had finally found The Doctor, her Doctor, and in a way she had, just at the wrong time. Knowing the one she was looking for was still pinstripes would have filled her with immense happiness was it not for the woman standing in front of her, she had said that the events happening in Rose's current timeline were her distant past, which meant that not only was Rose no longer travelling with her, but she had probably not done so for a long time.
"How long?" She asked after a moment and a look of pain crossed The Doctor face before she answered.
"A thousand years, give or take." She said quietly.
Rose's eyes grew wide and tears filled them once more, she could hardly fathom such an amount of time passing since she and The Doctor had last seen each other. She wondered how many others there had been in that time, it was a selfish thought but she couldn't help it. She also wondered how many times they had regenerated in that time, how long had it been since she had been her pinstriped self. Her own thoughts were starting to overwhelm her and she was starting to forget why she had come there in the fist place. She would have to go back to the parallel world and try again, but the thought of leaving this Doctor knowing that she would never see her again was something she was having a hard time dealing with.
"I don't wanna go." She whispered, unable to stop a new wave of tears as they fell down her cheeks.
The Doctor sighed, the thought of having to watch Rose leave again and for the final time made her feel like both her hearts were breaking. The sheer chance of Rose stumbling across her TARDIS had been a miracle in itself, and something The Doctor would forever cherish. She had been given the chance to see her pink and yellow human again after so long when she never in a million years would have thought it to be possible.
"You don't have to go just yet." The Doctor said before she could stop herself.
She owned a time machine, and as long as they didn't leave the TARDIS then there wouldn't be any harm in Rose sticking around just a little bit longer before heading back to her own world.
"Stay for tea, you can meet the fam." She continued, smiling as her excitement grew at the thought of introducing her mates to each other.
"The fam?" Rose asked, a slightly amused smile tugging at her lips as she raised a hand to wipe away her tears.
"Yeah, Yaz, Ryan and Graham, you've already met Graham, sort of." She told her with a shrug.
The Doctor temporarily pushed the thoughts of letting Rose go again out of her mind, she intended on making the most out of having her friend back, even if it was just for a short amount of time.
"Ok." Rose said, her own smile growing wide as The Doctor tugged on her hand and began leading her out of the console room and in search of the others.