You're What?--Chapter Fifty--Complete

[amberfocus]

banner by alizarin_skies

Title: You're What?
Author: amberfocus
Characters/Pairings: Nine/Rose, Jack Harkness, Jackie Tyler, Mickey Smith
Genre: Baby!fic, Romance, Angst, Fluff, Smut, Hurt/Comfort
Rating: Adult
Betas: amyo67, thetesh
Summary: An unexpected pregnancy causes huge emotional upset in the lives of the Doctor and Rose. With Jack the only voice of reason, will this child lead them to happily ever after or tear them apart forever?
A/N: And that's it. That's all she wrote. I have one more big twist up my sleeve. Hope it was worth the wait. Thanks for sticking with this fic for four long years. I'll try to be more prompt in future. Oh, and for those who have asked, my son is recovering quite well from the concussion. He's almost back to his old self.

Previous Chapters: http://amberfocus.livejournal.com/262898.html


Chapter Fifty: Begin as You Plan to Go On

“Martha, is there another way out of this room?” Mickey asked.

“There’s not a door, but there are windows over there,” said Martha pointing to the row of windows up high on the wall.

“That’s out,” said the Doctor. “Rose could never make it in her condition.”

“Well, but you could get out, Doctor, and Mickey could hand you down Charlie,” said Rose. “The two of you could get away. The rest of us are human. We’d be safe.”

“One, I’m not leaving you—.”

“Doctor, if it means getting the baby to safety, you have to!” Rose insisted.

“And two,” the Doctor continued talking as if Rose had not spoken at all, “I’m not sure if you’d pass for human right now, Rose. This pregnancy permanently altered your body and I’m sure you’ve still got lots of the debris from our son’s cells shooting around in your bloodstream. At the very least it’s enough to make them think you’re who they’re looking for.”

“But I’m not,” said Rose looking scared for the first time that day. “Surely they must have a DNA sample or a photograph or something.”

“Half the time all they have is a location,” muttered the Doctor. “And they’ve been known to execute an entire planet if they think they’re harboring a Class X criminal.”

“But that—that’s murderous!” protested Jack.

“Well, as long as they get their man…or woman. Very thick-minded species, the Judoon.”

“Wait,” said Mickey. “It might be simpler than that. Has anyone got a magic marker?”

“What?” asked the Doctor.

“Well, they gave me this, remember?” Mickey said holding up his hand where the black X had been drawn onto the back. “If we can mark the rest of you, maybe that’ll fool them long enough to get Rose and the baby to the ship.”

“But what about the hospital?” said Martha. “You’re not going to just leave us, are you? All these people?”

“Of course not,” answered Mickey before the Doctor could even open his mouth, but he had an indignant look on his face. “Once they’re safe we’ll come back and set things right.” He turned his eyes on the Doctor. “You got a setting on that sonic thingy of yours that’ll make a black mark?”

“Screwdriver,” corrected the Doctor. “And no, I don’t.” He felt rather annoyed by that fact, but of course he’d never needed one in the past. Necessity was the mother of invention, or at least what made him add settings to the screwdriver.

A loud bang rang out. Something had hit the door and it shuddered visibly from the impact. A second later, whatever it was hit again, harder this time. “I think they’ve got a battering ram,” said Jack.

Martha moved decisively to the shelves at the back of the room. “I think there are office supplies over here. There might be some black dry erase markers for the nurses’ whiteboard.” She ripped open a box and Mickey and Jack both moved to help her. The door began to splinter.

“Found it,” said Jack holding a box up triumphantly. Mickey snatched it from him and tore it open. He took one pen and tossed it back to Jack then ran to Rose’s side. He quickly put an X on the back of Charlie’s tiny hand and then Rose’s while Jack marked himself and Martha. The Doctor reached over and took the pen from Mickey and marked his own hand tossing the pen away as the door finally broke open.



“I can’t believe it worked,” said Rose. The Doctor tucked her gently into bed. He had carried her most of the way while Jack had toted Charlie.

“I said they were thick. Jack, can you go fetch a nappy from the nursery? And a gown. We need to get this boy dressed.”

Jack stepped into the next room then reappeared a moment later and handed the items to the Doctor who quickly placed Charlie in his bassinet, took off the t-shirt the baby had been dressed in, and deftly attached the most needed item to the child. He pulled a gown over the baby, slipping his little arms into place like he’d been doing that sort of thing his whole life, then quickly wrapped him in a blanket and handed him to Rose who settled him onto her chest.

“Jack, can you stay with them?” the Doctor said. “They shouldn’t be left alone yet.”

“Of course, if you think you and Mickey and Martha can handle it.”

“Not that I couldn’t use you, but Martha knows the hospital and Mickey needs to try to get into the computers. I’m sure they’ve hacked them looking for their quarry. He might be able to find something useful. I almost wish we’d packed Jackie and Mrs. Madigan into the TARDIS when we left Earth. Jackie would have been sober enough by now to be useful.”

“Yeah, but you’d have had to mind-wipe Mrs. Madigan,” said Rose. “Now go on, get out there, save the hospital.” She made a shooing motion with her hand.

The Doctor leaned down and kissed Charlie’s cheek and then Rose’s mouth. I love you both, he thought to them. He heard a dim echo from Rose’s mind and a louder, almost blaring one from Charlie’s uncontrolled telepath mind. He’d have to work on erecting tiny little barriers when this was over.

“Take care of them,” he instructed Jack and then hurried out to the console room where Mickey and Martha were waiting.

“It’s just this giant room all crammed into that tiny little box,” Martha was saying, staring around in stunned amazement. It was a variation on what she’d said when they’d first come inside and he wondered if she’d been going on for the entire five minutes it had taken to get his family settled.

“Try not to think about it,” said Mickey. “Rose’s mother and I just call it the magic box.”

The Doctor snorted. “Science, not magic, Mickey. Come on. Let’s get this done.” He told them what they needed to do and Martha led them to a room where they could access the hospital’s network.

Mickey sat down and typed rather frantically. “I need to get into the patient files,” he said when the password box flashed up on the screen. Any ideas?”

“Mr. Stoker’s the main administrator. I think he uses his birthdate.”

“Which is?”

“July 7nth.”

“What year?”

“I don’t know. He’s in his sixties.”

Mickey rapidly did the math and entered in a date sixty years previous. It took him until sixty-four years earlier to find the correct numbers. “What exactly am I looking for?”

“Evidence of what they hacked into. Patient files or employee files or admin. Who knows exactly what they know or what they are looking for? You can trace someone else’s hack job, can’t you?” the Doctor asked.

“Of course.” Mickey typed deftly away at the keyboard.

“Start with patient files. That’s the most likely.” He turned to Martha. “Have you noticed any buildup of energy lately?”

“Like what?”

“Flaring around electrical outlets or light fixtures? Static shocks when you touch metal or walk across carpet and touch people?” he asked.

“Static shocks, yeah. It’s been happening for the last twenty-four hours.”

“That’s it then. They used an H20 scoop. It takes a full planetary cycle to charge enough for a heist like this. So they’ve known for at least a couple of days. It takes a day to get the scoop equipment in place and then a day to charge it. Mickey, look for anyone who came into A&E about 3 to 4 days ago and then was admitted for a longer stay,” he instructed. “Someone who is still here.”

Mickey redirected his search. “We have a…John C. Smith.” He looked over at Martha with raised eyebrows, remembering their previous conversation. “He checked in with all over body pain, but we couldn't find the source, and a Florence Finnegan who was complaining of digestive upset. They wanted to run some tests on both of them.”

“Martha, do you know anything about these two?”

“Yes, I saw them both on my rounds. Mr. Smith…there was something off about him. He was in pain but he refused all painkillers. He insisted he was allergic to everything. And there was something wrong with his heart,” she said. “There was sort of an echo. They thought it was some kind of weird murmur. If I didn’t know better, I’d have thought he had two hearts.”

Both the Doctor and Mickey jerked their heads up at that remark. “What else can you remember about this man?” he asked sharply.

“He was young. Maybe twenty. I remember thinking it sad that someone so young might have a heart problem. He was sort of blond with this crazy hair. He dressed, well, sort of like you. Leather jacket, t-shirt, jeans and boots. He fainted when he first arrived.”

“Charlie?” asked Mickey.

“Possibly.”

“How could it be?” said Martha. He’s a baby.”

“Magic box,” said Mickey.

“But it’s out there,” Martha said waving vaguely in the direction of where the TARDIS was parked.

“And maybe it’s somewhere in here, too. That’s a problem we don’t want to have. Hopefully someone taught him how to park well.”

“It wouldn’t have been you,” said Mickey.

“Oi!”

“The problem is, what’s he doing here?” the Doctor asked.

“Helping himself get born?” ventured Mickey.

“Then he’s not the problem. Or not our problem. Whatever he’s doing is probably in our best interests. Who else was on the list?” he asked.

“Mrs. Finnegan,” Martha said before Mickey could. “She’s just a little old lady who was having constant stomach pains. She kept eating salads with no protein or fat. She’s harmless.” Martha paused then said, “Although…”

“Although what?” encouraged the Doctor.

“She kept demanding straws with her juice and gelatin, but then she’d not drink it. She’d not eat anything we brought her. And despite that, she would go from pale and unhealthy looking to robust and strong for a few hours, before returning to her previous state, weak and washed out.”

The Doctor stalked towards Martha who looked unnerved and backed towards the wall. “That sounds like a plasmavore with a salt deficiency. And that is not good. Do you know if she had any visitors?”

Martha thought hard. “Not exactly.”

“What’s that mean?”

“Well, there were these men and they were dressed like motorcycle couriers. Except all leather and they never took off their helmets. Rude, too. They were always going in her room. I thought she was having parcels delivered or something, but…well, it was just weird, the way they kept lurking about.”

The Doctor nodded. “Slabs.”

“What?” asked Mickey.

“Slabs. Sort of a genetically engineered drone clone with the plasmavore as the Queen B.”

“What’s a plasmavore?” asked Mickey.

“Vore means to eat and plasma’s to do with blood,” said Martha. “Are you saying she’s some kind of vampire?”

“Of course he’s not,” said Mickey. At the Doctor’s silence he said, “You’re not, are you, Doctor?”

“It’s no more a vampire than a lupine wavelength haemovariform is a werewolf,” the Doctor said.

Martha looked perplexed. “Alien vampire, then,” said Mickey.

“Oh, far worse than that, Mickey.”

“How?”

“She sucks her blood through a straw.”



Charlie Tyler had cornered the plasmavore in radiology. The evil thing had gotten away from him twice, but this time there was no having that. He’d made sure, from afar, that his mother and his infant self had been safely settled in the TARDIS before going to make his final stand. He knew how the story ended and he was having none of that, either.

“What are you doing?” he demanded. He had his Uncle Jack’s sonic blaster, something it had taken him years to get working again, in his left hand and the sonic screwdriver he’d inherited from his dad in his right.

“Those won’t work on me,” she said as she continued programming something into the computer.

“That machine is going to overload.”

“Yes, and take this whole hospital and all of those Judoon with it. But I’ll be long gone.”

“Oh, I don’t think you’ll have the time. The Judoon are just outside the door. And I think, judging by the pallor of your skin, you’ll need to feed again soon. And there’re no humans on this floor for you to feed on. They’ll catch you.”

“Then we’ll all die.”

“Not if I can help it.” He moved toward the machine and used the sonic to bring up the control files. He managed to reprogram it and then “accidentally” set down the blaster. The woman leapt on him as he knew she would and attacked him with her straw. He allowed her to drink from him, but she stopped before the point of death.

“Something’s wrong. There’s not enough salt in your blood. You taste wrong.”

He smiled as she knelt above him and she shivered at the menace in it. The Judoon burst in and behind them a man he’d only seen in photos and he barely recognized as his father, followed by his Uncle Mickey and his Aunt Martha. “I’m an alien,” he whispered. “You lose.”

His head fell back weakly. “It’s him,” the plasmavore said as she rose to her feet. “You want him. He’s the alien. He’s the criminal.”

“No,” said a strong voice with a Northern accent. “It’s her.”

“But I’ve been catalogued,” she said holding up her hand. “He hasn’t.” She pointed at the empty skin on the backside of his hand. The Judoon turned on him, weapons drawn.

“She drank my blood,” Charlie said, staring up at his father, hoping the man would know what to do with that.

“Scan her again,” the Doctor insisted. “She’s futzed the scans. Scan her again.”

The Judoon did. “She is our criminal. You are under arrest for murder. Sentence is immediate execution.”

“But it wasn’t meeeeee!” she screeched as they fired upon her and she disintegrated before their eyes.

The Judoon began to withdraw. Martha scrambled to the floor, checking the man’s pulse. “How much blood did she get? Do you need a transfusion?”

He smiled at her. “Not from an Earth hospital. Hello, Dad,” he said. He turned his eyes to the Doctor.

“You’re wearing my jacket.”

“Always,” he said softly. He paused, and then said, “You better take me to the TARDIS. I’m going to need your help.” He lost consciousness.




The Doctor and Mickey helped the young man to his feet and sort of dragged him between them. Martha trailed them to the TARDIS, taking in all the unconscious and semi-conscious people in the hallways. They watched the Judoon take off as they staggered into the ship.

The fresh air revitalized Charlie, who regained his senses. “Hello, old girl,” he said tiredly. The TARDIS hummed.

“Wait, what about the hospital?” said Martha. “If they’re leaving…are they going to put it back?”

“I don’t know,” the Doctor said, “but I’ve got to take care of him.”

“But the oxygen is running out.”

“They should reverse it. Look for rain falling up.”

“I don’t see anything,” said Martha.

“Charlie, do you know where the infirmary is?”

“Yeah.”

“Mickey, help him get there.” He pulled a panel off the side of the central console and a large hose end was revealed. He pressed a few buttons and the pressure of fresh air flowing hit Martha hard. “Take this hose back to the hospital. The TARDIS can share her air until they reverse the H20 scoop. I’ve got to save my boy.”

Martha nodded and began pulling the hose towards the hospital. A moment later Mickey joined her and the thing moved much more easily. They got it through the doors and slowly the people inside began to revive. A few minutes later it started to rain.

“We’re going to live!” Martha shouted. She laughed and threw her arms around Mickey who hugged her back tightly.

“Living is always good. You never know for sure what the outcome is going to be after an adventure with the Doctor.”

They pulled apart. Martha looked at Mickey. Mickey looked at Martha. “So there’s this birthday party tonight for my brother. He’s turning 21 and I don’t have a date.”

Mickey smiled at her. “You do now.”



“This was very stupid of you,” the Doctor said. He didn’t look at his future son. Instead he kept his eyes firmly on the little tube that was draining blood from his arm and depositing it into his child.

“I know,” he said quietly.

“Then why’d you do it?”

“Because I needed to change what happened.”

The Doctor turned startled eyes on him. “You can’t just go around changing history. I know I’ve taught you better than that.”

“No,” he said firmly. “You didn’t, Dad, but now you will.”

“What?”

“I know you can’t see your own timeline, but I lived it. You died today. So did Mum. Without me there, the plasmavore killed you. She killed everyone in the hospital except Martha and Mickey who she forced back here. She used the ship to flee. Uncle Mickey and Aunt Martha fled into the ship. They warned Uncle Jack who took me and hid. Mum...Mum sacrificed herself so the others could get away. The plasmavore used emergency program one to return to Earth. Those three raised me and we have been working every day since to change things.”

He smiled again, his eyes becoming unfocused. “And we did.”

Charlie looked back at his father. “I can feel the new timeline being written.”

“But you’ll always remember the old,” his father said. “You were a part of events and you’re a Time Lord.”

“It’s worth it. I get to grow up with you and Mom now. It’s worth everything.”

The TARDIS rocked suddenly and Mickey and Martha came into the room. “We’re back on Earth. That scoop thing worked,” Mickey said. He noticed Charlie looking at him funny. “What?” he said.

“Thank you. To you and Martha both.”

“For what?”

“For bringing me up and helping me change the future.”

Mickey swallowed hard. “You mean…?”

“This was not the original outcome,” said the Doctor abruptly. “That should be enough.” He stopped the transfusion with some help from Martha.

“Is there anywhere I should drop you?” the Doctor said.

“Nah. I’ve got my own transportation. Just let me out. The hospital’s landed in your current Earth timeline and I’ll find my way to where I’m supposed to be from there.”

They walked out to the console room and the Doctor said, “I’d let you meet your mother, but—.”

“No need. Now I’ve grown up with her. And I don’t need to be in the same room with baby me. It was…an experience.” He looked uncertain for a moment, but then reached over and hugged his father. The Doctor’s arms tightened almost painfully around the boy.

“Take care of yourself.”

“You need to follow that advice more than me,” he said. He pulled away and then strode out of the TARDIS without a backwards glance.

“What about you two?” he said to Martha and Mickey. “Out to the hospital, or back to see the grandmother with us?”

“I think I’ll leave you and Rose to face that alone,” he said with a laugh. “Martha?” he gestured to the doors and she preceded him out.

“All right, old girl. Time to face the music with Jackie. Take us there.”



As it turned out, Jackie had fallen asleep and slept through almost the entire experience. She had just started to get anxious when the ship had appeared in Rose’s old bedroom. She flew through the doors and the Doctor quickly escorted her to Rose and the baby.

With glee and joy she scooped up the infant and held him in her arms, settling into a rocking chair in the center of the bedroom. “Of course your child was born on the moon,” Jackie said shaking her head as she heard the story. She couldn’t get much fussed about it with the snuggly, content newborn safe in her arms.

“You’ll be more careful in future,” was all she said when the story ended.

“Of course, Mum,” said Rose tiredly. She yawned loudly as the baby started to whimper. “He’s getting hungry.”

“All right,” Jackie said with a sigh. “I’ll leave the three of you to get acquainted. Jack? Why don’t we give them some time? Rose, I’ll order in Chinese. It’ll be in the fridge when you’re hungry.” She handed the baby to his father and linked her arm with Jack’s, escorting him out.

“Well, that went better than expected,” the Doctor said as he handed the baby to Rose. She put the child to her breast to nurse.

“You’ve got that down already?” he asked.

“Jack showed me how.” She gave him an even look, daring him to show any sign of jealousy.

“That’s good,” he said. “You two are so beautiful.” He watched as she fed him and then took the sleepy, happy child from her arms. He quickly changed him and then settled the baby back in Rose’s arms. He pressed a button on the side of the nightstand and a light hum began to buzz.

“What’s that?” Rose asked sleepily.

“Force field, so the baby can’t fall out of bed while we sleep. And it’s also got a warning system in case either of us start to roll over.”

“Clever.”

“I can be.”

He leaned in and kissed her. “You did good today,” he said, swallowing hard and trying not to think about all that could have happened, all that could have gone wrong if future Charlie hadn’t come back to change it. “You both did.”

Rose laughed. “Saved the world, or the hospital anyway, gave birth on the moon, and we all lived happily ever after. What more could we ask for? And that’s one whopper of a story for Charlie to grow up with, how he entered this universe.”

The Doctor smiled. It was a bigger story than he’d ever tell her. “I love you both so much. You know that.”

“I do know that. And we love you, too, Doctor. Now go to sleep.” She smiled and her eyes slid shut. Her hand rested on the baby’s back. The Doctor added his own hand beneath hers, his thumb resting against her little finger.

He was, he thought, the happiest man alive. Charlie’s eyes opened for just a moment and he felt the contented mind tone of his son. And then just a hint of mischief underneath it as if the baby was asking him what sort of trouble they were going to get into next. He almost heard the words lingering in the air between them…Now what?

“Everything,” whispered the Doctor. “Now I give you everything.” And he did.

~The End~