The Blue Box
Prompt: An angsty Rose/Ten reuinion fic.
OOO
"Put a mysterious blue box slap-bang in the middle of town, what do people do? Walk past it."
And that, they did.
So she sits there, strong, sturdy, but it's been too long. Moss and vines creep across the fading blue, biting into the long crack that runs across the door, the grass beneath her pale and dead.
Kids skip past, running their hands across the gilded surface. People mill across the busy streets, heads bowed over their phones, and most ignore the old curious blue box that's been there for years, the one that no one can get into.
But there was a time, not so far back, when this box, oh, this box was the universe. It's seen dancing storms and molten crusts, hungry forests and shuddering valleys, it's seen the raging blaze of suns, and desolate dark of moons. It's seen planets hundreds of years from being discovered, it's seen the demise of worlds, and the birth of others. It's seen endless pain, and boundless joy, tears and laughter, ends and beginnings.
And there was a man. A man of fire and ice, and rage. A strong, clever, brilliant man. He'd ended planets, created others, and saved so many lives.
And he travelled everywhere in that little box. He travelled so long, so far, the universe's weight in his shoulders. Sometimes, he had a friend or two to share the weight with him. But they're gone now. They always leave.
He was the man who protected worlds. Who fought the monsters no one wanted to see. The man who came from a lost universe far away, yet more human than anyone could ever be.
But of course, also the man who died.
OOO
We ran under the stars
Sometimes a girl comes by, in a shockingly pink hoodie, hazel eyes dark and clouded.
She'll sit on the cold pavement, lean against the box, blonde hair stark against the blue. That's when parents call their children inside, as the girl just sits there quietly, legs folded up beneath her, cheek pressed against the cool surface.
Through cemetery backyards
Sometimes she brings a book, sometimes paperwork marked with a 'T' in the corner. But mostly, she comes alone.
Celebrate the way the night hides scars
And there's a rumor, that just before she leaves, she brushes her fingers against the stained wood that's lost its gleam after one too many rains, and whispers, "thank you."
OOO
Rose should have known better.
Burst into flames
She remembers – God, she doesn't want to, but she does – the way he'd looked at her, that night, in the shadows. It had just been another image, a hologram cast from the TARDIS, but the just the sight of him had been a breath of fresh, cool, revitalizing air.
Scream in the dark
He'd found a way, he said. He'd been searching, and searching, and he'd finally found a way to cross the void.
Really, she had replied, feet edging towards the flickering image, fingers twitching to wrap themselves around him. Won't it cause the end of the world?
He'd blinked, smiled. No, it won't damage the two worlds. But it's still dangerous.
Dangerous? The question died on her lips. She didn't care, not really. The universe could go and screw itself.
It doesn't matter. She'd said. Do it, please.
She should have asked. She should have.
He smiled again, but even as the image faded, she thought something was wrong with that smile, with that look in his eyes.
I'll light up this place
Hang on, dangerous to what? She'd called out, but all that replied was the silence of the dark.
And die in the beautiful stars tonight.
OOO
Burst into flames
She should have known. It wasn't dangerous, not to the universes, not to anyone else. No, he wouldn't have endangered a single soul. Except himself.
What do you do when you're out of time?
It's been a year, exactly a year since Rose had heard the TARDIS wheezing into existence, like glorious, glorious music echoing in her ears.
Scream in the dark
A year since she'd tripped over her feet running over to the box that had haunted her dreams, eyes searching frantically for the man who had haunted with it.
Where do you go when they're right outside?
A year since she'd realised the silly, fantastic man who had shown her the stars wasn't there waving at her.
A year since she'd noticed the crack on the TARDIS, remembered his words, remembered the look in his eyes, remembered how sad his smile had looked.
I'll light up this place
"How are you, old girl?" Rose says. It's faint, but Rose thinks she can hear a sad, faint whirring sound. "You did great. Thank you. For taking care of him. Us."
There was definitely a whirring sound this time. "It's been a year since you showed up here, yeah?" Rose laughs bitterly, the sound biting into the cold night air. A couple of pedestrians walk past briskly, casting her odd looks, but other than that, the busy roads are silent, empty.
How do you scream when there's no one left around?
"Yep, I kept count. How sad is that?" Rose's fingers brushed gingerly across the crack. "What happened while you were trying to get through?"
The whirring grows.
"I-" All words leave her for a second, her throat dry and closed. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have let him, God, I should have known."
Just for a second, lights flicker through the glazed windows.
"I love him, I miss him so much," Rose blinks back the tears, bites back the sob. "And I'm sorr- Ouch!"
We're going tolight up this place
Something was burning white hot in her pocket. She gingerly fished out the small object-
The TARDIS key.
It'd never done that before, not once, not in the hundreds of times she's visited the old blue box.
The TARDIS whirls furiously, lights flickering erratically, pouring out of the little windows.
The key is glowing, a faint, hot shimmer that burns through the dark. Rose grips it, ignoring the way it stings her hand, as she hears footsteps behind her.
And we will be the only light
"Sorry," the silhouette across the street says. "Had a little trouble in the void. All that rocking and bumping, I fell off the TARDIS, can you believe it? Took a little while to climb back out."
We're going to light up this place.
Rose gazes at him. He's striding forward, towards her, a grin on his face. She feels her face go slack as he nears, and somehow she doesn't quite know where all her coherent thoughts've gone off to.
And we'll be the only light.
He's so near now, so very near, and Rose doesn't – can't – believe it. Not after so much has happened.
She slaps him.
He reels back, face a comical mixture of shock and woe. "What was that for?!"
"You're real." She buries her face into that familiar old coat, choking back a sob. "Oh God, you're real."
He eases into the hug and the hand clutching his cheek wraps around her arm. "Time passes a little differently in the void. Am I late?"
Rose looks up into brown eyes, liquid under the moonlight, and her heart soars.
"No," she says. "Oh, maybe a little."
The Doctor is grinning now, holding out a hand to her. "My dear Rose Tyler. Fancy a walk?"
We'll be the only light.
She takes it.
We'll be the only light.
Above them, the stars turn, searing a new path through the night.