Hunger Moon: Chapter Two

[amberfocus]

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Meeting Jackie Tyler

 

Rose and the Doctor, well, Rose really, had decided they should shower separately when the sounds of imminent materialization filled the ship.  Taking one together would just delay matters for far too long, even if the Doctor had just entered fully into his refractory period.  Even totally sated he liked to use his hands and tongue in unique and interesting ways and was quite good at distracting her with them, so Rose rather had to insist.

 

She went to her old room, stripping down in the freezing cold bathroom and stepping into the lukewarm shower in relief.  It might not be hot but it was better than the rest of the ship.  “It bothered you, didn’t it?” she said resting her forehead against the wall.  “That’s why it’s so cold in here.  You’re punishing us because we shagged on the console?”

 

The ship didn’t answer her, didn’t even give her the change in her humming that usually accompanied a non-verbal answer.  Rose felt a pang in her heart.  “We hurt your feelings.  I hurt your feelings.  I’m sorry.  I let myself get carried away and I didn’t stop to think and I’m sorry.”  Again there was no response from the TARDIS.

 

“Please forgive me,” said Rose placing both hands against the shower wall.  “It won’t happen again.  I promise.  I…”  Rose broke off.  She swallowed hard, amazed at how sad the non-communicative ship was making her feel.  “Please don’t shut me out.  I need you, too.  You’re a part of my new family.”

 

The water in the shower slowly warmed to the temperature Rose liked it at.  “I loved the old ship,” Rose continued.  “She wasn’t as responsive as you though and I don’t think she could be offended.  Irritated and annoyed, protective and fierce, even loving, but not offended.  It’s taking me some time to adjust, that’s all.  You, you’re a regular person, aren’t you?”

 

The dim lights in the bathroom brightened.  “I promise that I’ll try very hard to never take you for granted again,” Rose said.  “And we won’t make love where you can’t turn off your sensors again.”

 

Finally the ship spoke reluctantly.  “Then you need to avoid the infirmary, too.”

 

Rose groaned and blushed from head to toe.  “I didn’t think!  Of course, you’d need to monitor patients and injuries…I’m so sorry!”

 

“Apology accepted, Rose.”  The faint chimes of the TARDIS’ laughter were on the edges of her speech.  “Now you best get dressed.  We’ve landed.”

 

 

 

Jackie Tyler picked herself up off the ground and approached the pink TARDIS with a silly grin on her face.  “Never thought I’d be so happy to see you in my life,” she told the ship.  “You always took my Rose away from me.  Guess I never thought about how you always brought her back to me, too.”

 

Rose had told her the TARDIS was sentient.  She wasn’t sure she believed that but she’d been inside enough to know that anything was possible with the Doctor’s ship.  Besides, she talked to the dishwasher and the fridge and various other small appliances around the house when they annoyed her, so it wasn’t much of a stretch to speak to a possibly animate time ship that hadn’t annoyed her.

 

“I have to say, I love the paint job,” she continued.  “You look utterly gorgeous.”  She felt a bit silly as she reached out to touch the door and ran her hand down it.  A wave of welcoming emotion shot out at her and Jackie jumped back in shock and surprise.  Not one to let surprise keep her back, especially after all the things she’d seen in the past decade or so, she stepped forward and touched the ship again.

 

“You really are alive, aren’t you?  I never knew, what with some of the things that came out of that man’s mouth, how much was true and how much wasn’t.  Well, I’m Jackie Tyler.  I’m Rose’s mum, if you don’t remember.”  She shrugged.  “Don’t know how much you understand, do I?  Hope I’m not talking down to you, but you’ll have to forgive me if I am, sweetheart.”

 

The TARDIS preened under Jackie’s words and she felt a wave of affection hit her in the face.  It rather reminded her of being licked by an overly friendly puppy, only without the saliva.  The doors to the ship opened and Jackie heard the voice of her daughter echoing from inside.

 

“Well, you should have thought of that before you shagged me on the console!  And in the infirmary!  Of course, she’s angry.  Did you bother to apologize?   I did and she gave me back my hot water and warmed up my room.  And no, I won’t ask her to give you back your dancing bananas shower curtain!  I think you’re going to have to earn it back again.  Now apologize.”

 

“But she turned the bedroom pink again, Rose!” came a voice that Jackie had never expected to hear again her life.  It was a voice with a strong Northern accent all full of bluster and pride.  “How are we supposed to make love in a hot pink bedroom?”

 

“I’m sure it won’t stop you,” Rose responded cheekily.  “If it wasn’t for your refractory period I’m not sure I’d ever see the outside of the bedroom!”

 

“I didn’t hear you complaining before.”

 

“And I’m not complaining now, just stating a fact.”  Rose’s voice dropped down to a sensual huskiness Jackie had never heard before.  “I wouldn’t actually mind staying in bed for the rest of our lives, pink room or not…”

 

“Oh, come here, you,” the Doctor growled lustily.

 

“Nope.  We’re not even kissing in the console room, you randy old man.  And before you say anything to that, yes, tonight you can show me the definition of old man once again.”  Rose laughed.  “Now come on, we need to go find my mother.  We’re going to have a lot of explaining to do and I want you to make a good first impression on her.”

 

“A little late for that,” said Jackie from just inside the doorway.  Her arms were folded across her chest and she was staring at the Doctor in shock.

 

“Mum!” said Rose.  She flew across the control room and into her mother’s arms.  “It’s so good to see you,” she said.

 

Jackie’s arms tightened reflexively around her daughter.  Over her shoulder she looked around the console room with wide eyes.  “Nice decorating,” she said taking in all the ruffles, frills, and extremely shocking pink walls.

 

“It’s not usually like this,” Rose responded.  “The TARDIS is paying us back for, well…”

 

“I heard why,” said Jackie tartly.  She didn’t exactly glare at the Doctor but her look made him shift under her stare.  “And that’s not the least of it.  Have you seen the outside of the ship?”

 

“What?  It’s a police public call box, isn’t it?” asked the Doctor.

 

“Oh, it is,” Jackie responded, “but it’s not exactly blue.”

 

The Doctor pushed past the two women and left the ship.  “Oh, bloody hell, you’ve gone too far!” the Doctor roared.

 

Rose disengaged herself from her mother’s arms and hurried outside to see what was upsetting the Doctor.  As she took in the gorgeous hot pink TARDIS she started to giggle.  “Well, you can’t say you don’t deserve it.”

 

“Rose, it’s hardly inconspicuous.  How are we going to save the universe in a pink time ship?” he asked.

 

“She’ll change back.  I bet if you apologize to her, she’ll change back.”

 

“I’m sorry,” the Doctor shouted.

 

“Maybe when you actually mean it,” Rose said dryly.  “Besides, I think she looks pretty.  Maybe she should keep it for a while.”  Rose giggled again.

 

“Oh, just what I need, my ship and my wife ganging up on me,” he shot back.

 

“Your what?” shrieked Jackie.  “Rose Tyler, so help me if you got married without me I’ll--.”

 

“Mum, calm down.  It’s not what you think,” she said.

 

“He just called you his wife.  How is that not what I think?  Are you or aren’t you?” she demanded.

 

“That’s kind of a difficult question to answer,” said the Doctor, sheepish at having let the word wife slip out of his mouth in the first place.

 

“I think it’s fairly straight-forward,” said Jackie putting her hands on her hips and glaring fiercely at him.  “You answer it with either a yes or a no.”  She tapped her foot.  “Well?  I’m waiting.”

 

“It’s complicated, Mum,” Rose said.  “We haven’t had an actual wedding but according to the laws of the Doctor’s people we are husband and wife.”  Jackie swelled up like a cat and opened her mouth but her daughter cut her off.  “But that was only for us.  We came back here to plan an Earth wedding and I’d like you to be in charge of it.”

 

Slowly Jackie felt the tension leave her body.  “You’ll be staying in this universe then?  Not going back to the other one?”

 

“Mum, this man, he’s not exactly the same one I travelled with before.”

 

“I can see that.  He’s regenerated.  Or degenerated as the case might be.”

 

“No, he hasn’t, Mum.  This version of the Doctor, he never met me before last month…he’s…”

 

“Like Pete,” said Jackie.

 

“He’s not.  It’s more complicated than that.  Look, can we go in the house?” Rose asked.   “I’ll tell you everything, but it’s been a long journey and I’d like to do it in comfort.”

 

“Yes, yes,” said Jackie hastily shooing them ahead of her and into the Tyler Manse.  “Wait a minute,” she said whirling on them as they sat down at the kitchen table.  “He’s not the man you knew before and you’ve only known him for a month and you’re already married to him?  Rose.  What on Earth are you thinking?”

 

She watched as Rose’s hand sought the Doctor’s.  This was nothing new, Rose and the Doctor, the other Doctor, had always been holding hands.  Even in the beginning when he’d looked like the man before her, they’d frequently been connected.  But this was somehow different.  She watched as the Doctor stroked the webbing of her daughter’s hand and saw her turn a gentle smile on him that was so tender and loving that she felt she was intruding on the most intimate of moments.

 

Rose leaned into the Doctor, kissed his shoulder, looked like she was about to reach up and kiss his mouth when she suddenly recalled herself and looked sheepishly back at her mother.  Jackie had always thought Rose was in love with the Doctor and had been sure of the Doctor’s feelings from the time she’d slapped him and he hadn’t abandoned Rose to her “domestics.”  But this…it was almost like the very air crackled with electricity and…she frowned and looked at the Doctor.  Was that pineapples?  Had he always been this attractive of a man?

 

She had hit on him the first time she’d seen him, when he’d stood in the doorway to her bedroom, she in her dressing gown and he in his leather jacket, all lanky and attractive, but now…  Without the leather jacket she could see the definition of his arms and…oh, hell.  What was she thinking?  She was a married woman.  A happily married woman.  And this man was married to her daughter.  But…he was delicious, really…no wonder Rose had jumped into a relationship with him.

 

“Mum?” said Rose.  “Mum?  Are you okay?”  Jackie couldn’t tear her eyes off of the Doctor.   “Mum!”

 

“What?”

 

“I said are you okay?  You’ve gone quiet, and you know that’s a near impossibility for you,” Rose teased.

 

“Is it warm in here?” Jackie asked.  Her skin was starting to prickle and she felt a light sweat break out on her body.

 

“Nope.  It feels normal to me,” said Rose.  Jackie rose from the table.  She walked to the counter and took a swipe at the surface with a sponge.  “Mum, what are you doing?”

 

“Your brother spilt some pineapple juice this afternoon.  He must have missed cleaning some up and it dried sticky on the counter.  Can’t you smell it?  It permeates the whole room.  It’s…you sure it isn’t hot in here?” she asked tugging at her collar.  She turned around to see a startled look on Rose’s face and then shifted her gaze to meet the gorgeous steel blue ones regarding her steadily.

 

“She’s reacting to your pheromones,” Rose said quietly.

 

“Well, she does share half your DNA.  It’s an unfortunate circumstance but we should be able to correct it easily enough,” he murmured back.  Jackie’s eyes focused on his lips as he spoke.

 

“She won’t have the same kind of reaction I did, will she?” Rose asked horrified at the thought.

 

“Shouldn’t do.  She wasn’t altered by the Time Vortex like you were.  But since you share some of the same building blocks, some of the things that call out to your DNA also will call out to hers,” he explained.

 

“What are you two going on about?” Jackie asked shaking her head furiously to clear it of her unreasonable thoughts.

 

“Mum, I think you’re having a reaction to the Doctor’s biochemistry.  You smell his pheromones and you shouldn’t be able to do that unless you’re me,” Rose said.

 

“I can take you back to the Med Bay, take a blood sample and correct the problem.  It shouldn’t take more than an hour.  Then Rose and I can answer all your questions,” the Doctor said.

 

The Doctor rose and held out his hand for Jackie to follow him.  When their skin touched the effect on Rose’s mum was instantaneous.  She grabbed hold of his head, pulled it down and laid an enormous kiss right on his mouth.  The Doctor reacted rather violently, hurling himself across the room to the sink and heaving.  Rose moved to him instantly, laying a soothing hand on his arm.

 

“Reacting…to the…bonding link,” he said trying not to retch.  “Other women…make me ill…”

 

Rose turned to look at her mother.  There was no accusation in her eyes though Jackie felt there should have been.  “I’m sorry, Rose.  I don’t…I don’t know what came over me.”  There were tears in her eyes at the thought of betraying Pete and her own daughter like that.  Despite this, her eyes were drawn to the bum of the man leaning over the sink.

 

“It’s okay, Mum.  It’s part of what we need to talk to you about.  Just let the Doctor get his biochemistry back under control and then we’ll make sure this never happens again.  I don’t blame you.  It’s not your fault,” Rose said.

 

“What’s not your fault?”  Mother and daughter’s eyes flew to the kitchen door, similarly startled.  Pete Tyler had just entered the room.

Ch. 3:  http://amberfocus.livejournal.com/29463.html