I do not own Doctor Who - more's the pity, that would mean I was getting paid XD

9xRose fic, though 10xRose also, dedicated to my freind Linds - one of that strange lot who preffers 9 to 10. (Who am I to talk? I love 8 :D)

Anywho, enjoy.

Reviews will get you cookies and good ficcing karma - what's the downside of that? XP

The TARDIS was being ominously quiet as the Doctor carried Rose back inside, laying her gently on the floor – he didn't have the strength to carry her any further. He walked quickly over to the console and leaned on it heavily, his head really, really hurt – Rose hadn't been kidding about that.

'Let's get going.' He muttered to the console, flicking some switches to send them into a general temporal orbit, the TARDIS took off dutifully, but the moan it gave sounded a little despondent.

'Yes I know I'm leaving Jack.' The Doctor said frankly to the moving central column, 'That, is a mess I am going to have to deal with later – I'm not going to have a clear head for a while.' The Doctor gave a sharp look to Rose's prone form on the other side of the console.

'That's another mess she made,' he muttered darkly, and then closed his eyes, rubbing a hand down his face. 'Typical stupid, stupid humans, getting into messes too big for themselves. But the time vortex? Never thought I'd see a mess that big.' The TARDIS seemed to murmur something in response.

'Yes, I know she did it to save me.' He replied, sounding annoyed, 'That doesn't mean that it was a good idea, and since when do I need saving anyway?' Another noise sounded out from under the console surface, and the Doctor rolled his eyes.

'O.k,' he admitted, 'maybe I did need saving. But I sent her home, I told her to stay there! Why didn't she listen to me?' The TARDIS gave a more vocal reply to that - the entire frame of the console shook with the force of it, the Doctor blinked, looking surprised.

'She what?' he asked incredulously, and the noise came again. 'She loves me?' he repeated slowly, and the TARDIS sounded out in agreement. The Doctor frowned.

'And how do you know that?' he asked, and the TARDIS gave a soft groan in response, and the Doctor raised his eyebrows.

'Yes, I remember,' he said thoughtfully, 'she said that she looked into you, and that you looked into…' the Doctor stopped, his face blank for a moment and then burst into laughter, his voice quickly matched by the TARDIS sounding out a protest. The Doctor tried to stop his hysterics;

'You looked into Rose's mind.' He wheezed, his face stuck in a wide grin, 'and now you've got a cockney accent!' the TARDIS gave an indignant groan, but the Doctor wasn't done yet, 'You were grown in the Andrana Temporium in Gallifrey's Sapphire Palace, and you sound like you're from the Powell estate!' the TARDIS let out an annoyed screech, but quickly fell silent as the Doctor stumbled, a hand flying to his throat as a wisp of golden energy fluttered out of his mouth.

'Running out of time here.' He gasped, and the ship whirred sympathetically. 'Thanks.' He muttered, leaning heavily against the console, he looked up at the central column. 'What do you think he'll be like?' he asked, and his normally strong, northern voice sounded a little, small, 'The new me?' The TARDIS made an equally small and rather non-committal sound and the Doctor raised an eyebrow. 'Well that's encouraging.' He muttered, 'Thanks a lot.' A low whine came in response, and the Doctor stuck out his chin indignantly. 'It's not my fault that I have no control over it.' He said crossly, and the TARDIS immediately countered. 'Well Romana was a control freak.' The Doctor snapped, 'I'm not surprised she could force herself into being blonde.' The TARDIS made a more reasonable noise and the Doctor shrugged, 'I don't know what I'd choose if I could.' He said thoughtfully, 'though being ginger would be interesting.' The TARDIS made a stuttering sound that almost sounded like it was tutting.

'Well I'm sorry but I think appearance is just as important – it's half the point of getting a new body after all.' He walked over to where Rose was lying – she should really have woken up by now. He brushed a strand of hair out of her face before turning back to the console. 'She'll care what I look like.' He said simply, and his ship sounded out a reluctant agreement, the Doctor smirked smugly, before letting out a long sigh, looking at the human girl again.

'So she loves me?' he asked, but the TARDIS didn't bother to answer – he'd known for long enough anyway really. 'More fool her.' He murmured sadly, and the TARDIS moaned softly, in what sounded like an attempt to be reassuring. 'Well it's not done her any good has it?' he said pointedly, 'I'm no good to anyone really, not like that - never have been, and ever since the war…' his words trailed off into silence, the TARDIS joining him in the pain of their shared memories. 'Well I'm damaged goods, that's for sure.' He said wistfully, tapping a knuckle against his forehead, and then held it there for a second as his body shuddered again, the change coming closer and closer now. 'Well that's soon to be fixed though,' he said shortly, pushing himself up and stumbling back over to the console. 'Whole new me on the way, hopefully problem free.' The TARDIS groaned its sympathy once more as the Doctor turned to look at Rose again, his face relaxing. 'Maybe that's what I'd choose.' He said, his voice resigned, gentle. 'I'd choose to be good for her.' The TARDIS let out a low sigh of approval, and the Doctor smiled, shutting his eyes.

'Yeah,' he said, imagining it, 'I could stop being all shut in like this, I could be open for her - that would be nice.' He chuckled softly. 'I'd have to be a bit younger looking though,' he mused, and the TARDIS hissed, making him laugh again. 'Well I would be,' he reasoned, 'be a bit, well, maybe a lot, younger – maybe even a little pretty. Do you think she'd like that? A pretty ginger guy?' the TARDIS let out a sound that could have been a grumble but was almost definitely a laugh, and the Doctor just smiled contentedly.

'I'd like that,' he said, 'If I was a little younger, and a little pretty – a little more human. Then I could love her as well.' He opened his eyes, smiling at the central column again. 'It would be nice.' He said, but then cried out as another shock ran through him, making him double over this time – he could see the light starting to dance around his exterior now.

'It would be nice to say goodbye though,' he muttered, straightening up, leaning against the console again, 'just to say goodbye like this, before she gets the new version.' He tried to order his thoughts, but it was getting harder to think – he could feel this body slipping away, feel this person slipping away. The TARDIS let out a strained noise, like it was concentrating on something.

There was a soft groan from Rose, and the Doctor's head snapped around to see the former shop girl slowly sit up. He turned back to the console.

'Thank you.' He whispered, and the TARDIS told him, quietly, that it was no problem.

'What happened?' her voice carried over to him but he didn't look, not yet, it was hard enough just to stay standing now.

'Don't you remember?' he asked, but she wouldn't of course – not straight away anyway, her mind wouldn't be able to handle it.

'It's like,' she started, her brow furrowed, 'there was this singing.'

'That's right,' he interrupted, 'I sang a song and the Daleks ran away.' She pointedly ignored this claim, and sat there a moment, running through what she could recall – but the Doctor didn't pay much attention, the light was more visible now, running up and down the veins in his hand, burning. He turned back to her, his thoughts coming more slowly now, the words harder to remember.

'Rose Tyler.' He said, 'I was going to take you to so many places. Barcelona! Not the city Barcelona, the planet Barcelona. You'd love it – fantastic place – they've got dogs with no noses!' he laughed, unable to control the impulse, control what he was saying, 'Imagine how many times you can say that joke and its still funny!' he laughed again, but Rose looked wary – like he was cracking up. He was cracking up.

'Then why can't we go?' she asked, and the laughter stopped.

'Maybe you will.' He agreed, 'and maybe I will. But not like this.'

'You're not making sense.' She said, standing up, and he had to agree with her there.

'I might never make sense again.' He pointed out, 'I might have two heads,' he hoped not, 'or no head,' he really hoped not, 'imagine me with no head!' he said, his arms clamped across his stomach now – trying to hold himself together for her, 'and don't say that's an improvement.' He added.

He should really explain, he would, he was sure, in a second, but he took just a moment just to look at her, look at the human who'd fallen in love with him. He was trying to think now, to concentrate, so when he changed he could focus on becoming someone who could fall in love with her.

'But it's a bit dodgy, this process.' He said aloud, and the confusion on her face turned to worry. 'You never know what you're gonna end up with.' And then it came again, so much stronger this time, and his doubled over, trying to hold in a shout as the energy wracked his body, hurting this time – pulling him apart. She cried out to him and ran over but he shouted at her to stay away.

'Tell me what's going on.' She said, and he slowly managed to form the words to explain, but it was so hard now, just to stand there, just to exist. It was some other Doctor's time for existing now.

'It means I'm gonna change.' He finished, his words forced, 'and I'm not going to see you again, not like this, not with this daft old face.' He looked down, this was it 'And before I go…'

'Don't say that!' she interrupted, but he looked up at her, pulling this old face into a serious look.

'Rose,' he said seriously, 'before I go I just want to tell you that you were fantastic' she had been so fantastic, he paused for a difficult breath, 'absolutely fantastic.' She didn't say anything, and he felt it rushing in now, a definite end. 'And do you know what?' he asked, feeling the energy build for a final push, she shook her head slowly, 'So was I.' the Doctor pronounced with a grin, and she smiled.

And then it took over, and he was on fire; he was burning, freezing, exploding, twisting, changing and forgetting.

But he remembered Rose Tyler, and he remembered that smile, and it was all he needed.

Because they'd both been fantastic.

But now, starting again, together, they would be incredible.

A quick note at the end, to apologise and beg forgiveness that nearly a third of this was a direct trans of the episode - I wasn't planning on doing it, but if I left it short of where she woke up it just seemed a bit, empty, like horribly pointless as a fic - so I hope noone minded my little interp there. *oh the shame*