Their ways didn't part until doomsday happened. Divided by what some people referred to as the Void, others as Hell or The Howling, two people dreamed.

~o~o~o~

Rose Tyler stood on a crowded street in London, observing two very familiar persons. "I want chips," a blonde girl said, and a tall man in a black leather jacket smiled. "Me, too."

"That was the moment I began to fall in love with you," a dark voice with a Mancunian accent whispered in her ear. She could feel his breath grazing her skin, his arms around her, holding her close. She leant back into the embrace and watched their younger selves on their way to Rose's favourite chippy. She was silent for a long time.

"I don't remember the exact moment," she admitted eventually. "It started sometime between the moment you told me you could feel the turn of the Earth and 'I could save the world but lose you'." She turned in his arms and faced him. "But I knew that I loved you, that I was in love with you, when the reaper took you." She ghosted a kiss over his lips and blinked.

~o~o~o~

They were sitting on a rock in the highlands, Rose next to him, their feet dangling in the air. At some distance they could see two people coming nearer. They looked as if they were having a brilliant time, joking and laughing at Queen Victoria's expense. The Doctor wondered if they had been as happy then as he was now. What was happening at the moment proved something to be true he had wished for but hadn't dared to believe.

She stood on a windswept beach, utterly oblivious to the elements, only concerned about him. "Promise me that you'll find someone to travel with. Promise me."

"Oh, Rose." He didn't care if his desperation showed. He still wondered why she had chosen him, the killer of his own kind. She could have done so much better. But he had given her his hearts and just this once he wouldn't be a coward. She didn't deserve anything less than the truth. And so he told her, with as much conviction as he could muster. "I love you. You are my life and my soul. You saved my life in more ways than you can imagine. Will you bond with me?"

"But..."

"We're gonna see each other again," he told her fiercely. "I know it. One day, we're gonna see each other again. Y... someone told me, eighteen months ago. I love you. So will you bond with me?" he repeated.

Rose wiped her eyes. "I..."

She had agreed, even though she hadn't been able to finish her sentence, and now the first tendrils of the bond were slowly forming. Although the Void separated them physically it could not constrain their minds. If they were very, very lucky they might be able to share a few more moments like this. "You still owe me ten quid," Rose said, apropos of nothing, interrupting his musings.

"No money," he said with a smirk.

"Still a cheap date, then," she grinned back.

"But you love me anyway."

"That I do," she replied, pecking him on the lips.

"Let me see if I can make it up to you," he said. He took her hands. "Close your eyes." She obliged and he concentrated for a moment. "And now open them again."

~o~o~o~

She was aboard a small sailing boat, barely big enough for the two of them, gliding over a windswept ocean. In front of her was a building set on stilts, circled by seagulls. The Doctor swiftly hauled in the sails and their momentum slowed down. They docked directly under the ladder that led to the platform and the building. "Dame Rose?" he asked and took her hand.

"Sir Doctor." She got up and curtsied. For the first time she noticed that she was wearing a black dress held up by thin straps, with a skirt that ended about six inches above her knees and a small velvet bow at the waist. "Probably not the best choice of clothes to climb a ladder," she noted.

"But at least you are wearing sensible shoes," he gave back with a merry twinkle in his eyes.

A quick glance at her feet told Rose that he was right. She was wearing deck shoes.

"And since when exactly do you know how to sail?" she asked, probably sounding a bit disbelievingly.

"Wouldn't you like to know?"

"Well, your piloting skills could definitely use some brushing up. Good thing you're better at sailing or we might be repeating the voyage of the Golden Hind right now," she grinned. "Which reminds me: Where are we?"

He positioned himself under her, holding the ladder stringers. "Brighton. The planet, not the city. There are several of these pavilions built directly at the rim of the continental shelf, about three miles from the shore and about two miles from each other. People rent them for honeymoons or lazy summer holidays. We're completely alone here." His voice was like silk and sent shivers down her spine.

He didn't even touch her, although the hem of her skirt grazed the arms of his leather jacket while she climbed the ladder, but she could almost physically feel his gaze and the thought of what was to come did strange things to her insides. She glanced down over her shoulder, the mild breeze blowing long strands of her hair in her face. He looked like the cat that was about to get the cream. Well, that game could be played by two, she decided.

"Don't tell me you actually made a reservation," she said drily, while she tucked a few of the errant strands behind her ear. Not that they would stay there for long.

The Doctor blinked twice before he managed to answer her question. At least she wasn't the only person around that was slightly distracted. "Not even the President of the Second Great and Bountiful Human Empire could come here without a reservation."

"No slightly psychic paper, then?"

"Nope."

Eventually Rose reached the platform and heard the Doctor climb the ladder. She bent down, opened the laces of her deck shoes and removed them. With impeccable timing she straightened just as he arrived at the platform, giving him an unimpeded view of her bum. A sharp intake of breath told her that he liked what he saw.

She could feel every little unevenness in the warm, wooden planks under her bare feet when she turned around to face him. With two long steps he stood in front of her, cupped her face with his large hands and kissed her leisurely, as if he had all the time in the entire universe. He explored her mouth thoroughly and she melted against him. She'd almost forgotten how easily he could turn her into jelly. Her left arm slid under the hem of his jumper of its own volition, caressing the smooth muscles on his back, while she slung the right around his neck to steady herself. After some time she drew away to catch her breath and discovered that since the moment they had started kissing their surroundings had changed. The sight took her breath away. "Oh, that's gorgeous!" At her exclamation the Doctor turned and took her hand.

The sun was about to set, the fiery ball only just touching the horizon. The ocean reflected the light in myriads of shades ranging from gold to crimson and the white walls of the pavilion looked almost pink, while the blue of the sky had been completely replaced with vivid orange. For the first time this planet looked truly alien.

"It was called Gallifrey, my planet," a voice she barely recognised said next to her. "It was beautiful. The Shining World of the Seven Systems, they called it. The Citadel of the Time Lords stood in the Mountains of Solace and Solitude, protected by a mighty glass dome that mirrored the twin suns and the burnt orange sky. The mountains were covered by large forests of trees with silvery leaves. When the second sun rose in the south and they reflected the light they looked like they were on fire and when a breeze blew through the branches you could almost imagine they were singing. It was like the sound of time, the sound of the always changing forever."

They stood transfixed until the sun vanished and the orange slowly turned dark blue and then black, all the time holding hands.

~o~o~o~

"Let's go inside," the Doctor suggested eventually. He led her to the other side of the building and opened the door. Rose took three steps into the pavilion and took in her surroundings while the Doctor quickly lit the bundle of kindling wood in the fireplace. In the middle of the room a table was set for two persons, with exquisite china, crystal glasses, silver cutlery and white candles.

"A proper dinner? Like, a date?" she asked, sounding only somewhat incredulous.

"Well, I said I'd make it up to you, didn't I?" He lit the candles on the table and returned to her.

"At least there aren't any roses on the table," she said with a cheeky smile. "That would have been too much cliché."

"Are you saying this is domestic, Rose Tyler?" He sounded as if he was mortally offended, but for all his grumbling about domestics she knew he secretly craved them. He would never decorate the galley with a 'Home, Sweet Home' embroidery or buy her a Christmas present, and the only jewellery he'd ever given her was the thin gold chain for her TARDIS key, but she had seen the relaxed look on his face when he argued with Mickey about football and the feeling of contentment he tried to hide whenever he took her to an alien bazaar so she could go shopping. Hell, he even put up with her mum for her, but seeing this was just... She didn't even have the words. She desperately wanted to hug him, but opted for teasing instead, her tongue poking through her teeth. "Maybe a bit."

He laughed and pecked her on the nose. "Oh, I love you."

She slung her arms around his waist and looked him in the eyes. "I love you, too." Then she reached up and pulled him down for a languid kiss.

After a bit of nibbling at his lower lip he opened his mouth and her tongue glided inside, slowly caressing his, seeking out every corner of his mouth. After a while he moved the kiss to her mouth, sliding against her tongue, stroking it with increasing passion. He ran his tongue along her teeth and over the roof of her mouth, only to resume its previous dance with hers. She sighed against him and he pulled her closer, his growing desire evident against her hip. Eventually he pulled away to let her catch her breath and stared at her with a hunger in his eyes that had absolutely nothing to do with food and everything with her feeling like prey under the scrutiny of a falcon. Never one to step back from a challenge, she met his gaze evenly, letting her own desire for him show.

His lips crashed down on hers and with three large steps he walked her back to the door, kicking it shut in the process and pinned her against the wood, all the time kissing her as if he would drown if he had to let her go. She could feel her knickers getting damper by the second. She wiggled a bit until she managed to get her arm between their bodies and stroked him through his jeans. He groaned.

With what looked like a great effort of will he finally stepped back. If she'd been a block of chocolate she would have been molten under the intensity of his gaze. "I'd love to take you right here, Rose, against the door, your dress pulled up to your waist, your legs around me. I wouldn't even bother to remove your knickers." More heat pooled in her belly and she could feel a twinge of anticipation between her legs. She was already ridiculously wet.

Apparently not oblivious to what he was doing to her the Doctor resumed his verbal torment. "Oh, I know you're ready for me, Rose, I can smell it." He smirked and continued, "I'd enter you and set a rhythm, agonisingly slow, and drive into you until you forgot your own name. You'd whimper and beg that I let you come." A soft moan escaped her and he chuckled. "But I'd deny you release, Rose. I'd suck at your pulse point until I'd leave a mark to tell everybody that you belong to me, that you're mine, and even then I'd never stop pounding into you." His tone was indescribably sensuous.

Rose swallowed hard. She'd almost forgotten to breathe. If he kept this up he would manage to talk her into orgasm. Her knickers were completely drenched and all he had done was kiss her senseless and tell her what he would like to do to her. She slowly moved her hand, desperate to lift her skirt, to touch herself, not caring that he was staring at her. She needed some friction against her throbbing clit. With a swift move the Doctor stopped her and held her hands over her head in a vicelike grip, his body nearly covering hers, his erection pressing into her stomach. He definitely wasn't unaffected by the tension lingering between them. "No. You're not touching yourself until I say so." She felt like a butterfly pinned on a corkboard and nodded slowly, the commanding tone of his voice an incredible turn on. If he toyed with her like that much longer she would probably incinerate.

He released her arms and stepped back once again, giving her one of those looks that made her feel like a goddess and a newborn kitten at the same time. She met his gaze and decided that turnabout was fair play. "I'd open your zip ever so slowly," she began. "I'd stroke you through your pants until you couldn't bear the friction any longer and begged me to remove them. After I'd got rid of your clothes I'd kneel down in front of you. My breath would ghost over your cock but the only part of me that touched you would be my hair."

He hadn't moved since she'd begun to speak, captivated by the sound of her voice. She could see that he was digging his nails into his palms, trying not to make a sound. The pictures she was creating in her mind didn't help her state of arousal one bit, but she managed to keep her voice from wavering. "Then I'd take you into my mouth, caressing you with my tongue, finally sucking on you until the only thing you cared about was what I would do next."

His pupils were dilated and he wasn't able to stifle a groan. "Rose..."

She ignored him and went on, "Every once in a while I'd scrape along your cock with my teeth, so gently that you wouldn't even be sure I was touching you at all. Then I'd release you and would lick my way down to the base, cradle your balls in my hands and play with them until you begged me to..."

She could see the very moment he relented. His eyes narrowed and with two quick steps the Doctor was standing right in front of her, his left hand fumbling with the fly of his jeans, his right tangled in her hair, cradling her head against the wooden door while he assaulted her mouth with his tongue. Another wave of heat flashed through her and pooled in her centre. She hadn't thought she could get any more aroused, but he proved her wrong.

Her hands joined his and within seconds they freed his straining erection from its confinements. She began to stroke him, using the liquid at the tip of his penis to lubricate her hand. He pulled her dress up, pushed her knickers aside and entered her first with one, then with two fingers, setting a steady rhythm, stretching her. She moaned, clutched his shoulder with her left to steady herself and realised only now that he was still wearing his leather jacket.

He released her mouth, dropped to a knee and sucked at her left nipple. The friction of her dress and the lace of her bra against the sensitised bud, in combination with his fingers still moving slowly in and out, in and out, drove her further and further towards the precipice. She reached for the hand that had cradled her head at first and was now caressing her other breast. She took the index finger in her mouth, swirled her tongue around it and finally sucked. A growl escaped his throat. Rose released the digit and ran her fingers through his close-cropped hair, slightly scraping his skin with her fingernails. He almost purred and she nearly lost her footing at the sensations the vibration caused on her nipple.

"Doctor, please..." she moaned. He still hadn't touched her clit and she was aching for contact, for friction, anything. She tried to writhe a bit, so her knickers would rub against the little bundle of nerves, but he immediately removed his fingers from her entrance. She nearly sobbed at the loss.

He released her breast and got up again, licking his fingers clean. "You are not to touch yourself until I say so," he repeated his earlier command, his eyes piercing her. Rose shivered. She was so turned on, she almost couldn't bear the tension any longer. Then he kissed her, his straining erection pressing into her body, but still not anywhere near where she needed it. She could taste herself on his lips. "What do you want, Rose?" he asked, his voice tense as if he was clinging to the last shreds of his self-control as well.

"You. Just you," she told him earnestly.

~o~o~o~

It was the absolute honesty of her statement and the unconditional love in her eyes that broke him. The Doctor raised her body. She wrapped her legs around his waist and clutched his shoulders. With the hand that didn't prevent her head from banging into the wood of the door he guided his cock to her entrance. He entered her in one powerful thrust and she moaned. He paused for a moment to give her time to adjust, then he began to drive into her, slow at first but with increasing speed and force.

"Doctor, please."

With sheer force of will he stilled his movements and looked her in the eyes. "What, Rose?" He knew exactly what she wanted and he knew he would probably have to pay for making her beg, but he didn't care. He simply couldn't resist. More specifically, he couldn't resist her, hadn't been able to for a long time. Sometimes he wondered why he'd even tried to fight it for so long.

"Let me touch myself, please."

"Anything you want, Rose," he replied and began to pound into her again, harder and faster than before, while seeking out her mouth for a passionate kiss. She wriggled her arm between their bodies and began to rub her clit in time with his strokes. He abandoned her mouth, which elicited a moan from Rose. His lips trailed down her neck and he tasted her sweaty skin. He kissed her pulse point and rested his lips there for a moment before he began to suck and nibble. She shuddered and he increased his efforts. Eventually he was certain he would leave a mark and soothed it with his tongue, then licked his way up to her earlobe and followed the curve of the shell. Finally he sensed that she was close and his movements grew more erratic. "Come for me, Rose," he whispered, then bit her earlobe lightly.

Suddenly she was clenching around him, nearly deafening him with her scream. In all his lives he had never seen anything as beautiful as Rose Tyler coming undone in his arms. It took him only a few more thrusts and white light exploded behind his eyelids. He emptied himself into her, panting heavily, barely able to stand upright, while she clung to him and caressed his head.

"I love you, Doctor," she murmured and collapsed against him, unable to move a single limb. He had to admit that his own condition was not much better. He took a few staggering steps towards the small regency style sofa in the corner next to the fireplace where he deposited her lovingly and straightened her clothes. Then he readjusted his own garments and sat down on the floor, leaning against the seat cushion, holding her hand. "You know, I had plans for the evening," he said eventually.

"You and a plan? Tell me more," she mocked him.

"Oi! I do plan things. Well, sometimes," he clarified, "but only if it's worth the effort. Anyway, I would have made dinner."

"Dinner? Really?"

"Rose, you know that I can cook, I just choose not to," he replied in a mock offended tone. "And I thought you would have remembered the crème brûlée." She unconsciously licked her lips. He grinned and leaned over to kiss her.

"And what would have happened then?" she asked breathlessly after he had released her.

"We would have eaten, of course." That gained him a swat against his shoulder.

"And what exactly stops us from doing just that now?"

The Doctor laughed. "Are you trying to tell me that you're hungry?"

She grinned mischievously. "Well, all these physical activities burn a lot of energy..."