I think I’m going to try to really come back to Tumblr—be here like I used to. I need a place to share writing updates and other projects I’m working on.
(Like, I’m getting into bullet journaling!! I’m having loads of fun designing pages and stuff.)
I know I have asks in my inbox and I’m sorry for not answering them. I’m having a really bad day and I do not have the spoons to be social right now. :(
honestly the best thing i’ve done in the past year was replacing “i wanna die” with “i wanna commit a crime.” same humor and sentiment without the suicidal ideation
thank you SO much for this tag
#same #i would commit crimes for you #is much more badass than i would die for you #be the clyde to my bonnie
it’s okay if you are not feeling hopeful for the new year
ahead; it’s okay if you are worried, tired, or scared. you don’t need to brush
it all off and try to start fresh if you’re not ready or if you’re unable to do
so; taking time to process and heal is completely okay, and i wish you all the
best on that journey.
#yes #this last year was hard #you don’t need to be super hopeful that things will get better #i would say try to say at least one hopeful thing a day #because it literally rewires your brain to be more positive #but you don’t have to start off all rose coloured glasses #self help#mental health
After he dreamed of Rose’s death, the Doctor thought her light was gone forever. When he went to see her one last time, he learned how wrong he was.
Ten x Rose, implied Tentoo x Rose, mentioned character death
This is a sequel to Lisa’s Wrap the Night Around Me, which is beautiful and heartbreaking. I tagged that saying I write fic to make the Doctor feel better, and then got permission to do so.
It had been weeks since the Doctor last dreamed. Weeks since Mars, weeks since he saw the Ood and knew his time was running out.
Weeks since he dreamed of Rose dying in the arms of his half-human self.
And now it was almost over. The four knocks came, as he had been warned—though he’d never imagined Wilf would be the one knocking. The old man’s selfless offer to die so the Doctor could live had scared him, scared him because he had been tempted to take him up on it.
That was when he stepped into the radiation chamber, when he realised he was willing to let another man die. How had he fallen so far from the man he used to be?
In his hearts, he knew the answer. Knew he was telling the brutal truth when he told Rose on that beach that he needed her. He couldn’t be the Doctor without her. She made him better.
Summary: Two months after the Dalek Crucible, the Doctor and Rose are getting used to having the biggest family on Earth. As they visit Leadworth in 1996, Victorian England, a mysterious desert planet, and Elizabethan England, those family and friends often help in unexpected ways. But no matter where they go or who they’re with, it’s always the Doctor in the TARDIS with Rose Tyler–just as it should be.
Three weeks later, Rose was looking at the fairy lights on the Christmas tree and thinking about taking the decorations down soon, when she remembered their holiday celebrations weren’t over yet.
“We need to get started on planning the family Christmas,” she reminded the Doctor. “I want to make sure we get a place Mum will love.”
The Doctor nodded. “That is coming up, isn’t it?”
“Yeah.” Rose looked up at him. “Do you have any idea of where you’d like to go?”
A giddy smile stretched across his face. “Oh, I have the perfect location,” he promised her. “The North Pole!”
Rose blinked. “I’m assuming you don’t actually mean the polar region.”
“No, although that does become a holiday resort sometime during the Second Great and Bountiful Human Empire.”
Rose nodded, making a note. That sounded like a fun visit for the future. “All right then, so there’s a planet called The North Pole?” she guessed.
“Oh yes! It’s a massive holiday industry. Santa’s workshop, Christmas tree forests, sleigh rides, ice skating…”
“And since it’s such a favourite holiday destination, there are houses to rent.”
The Doctor nodded and reached for the tablet sitting on the table in front of him. “Absolutely. Houses completely kitted out with everything you could need for a winter holiday, by the way. Sleds, cross-country skis, snow shoes, an axe to cut down a tree from the Christmas tree forest…”
He tapped his fingers against the side of the device. “Now, what’s the name of the booking site…”
Summary: Two months after the Dalek Crucible, the Doctor and Rose are getting used to having the biggest family on Earth. As they visit Leadworth in 1996, Victorian England, a mysterious desert planet, and Elizabethan England, those family and friends often help in unexpected ways. But no matter where they go or who they’re with, it’s always the Doctor in the TARDIS with Rose Tyler–just as it should be.
Three weeks later, Rose was looking at the fairy lights on the Christmas tree and thinking about taking the decorations down soon, when she remembered their holiday celebrations weren’t over yet.
“We need to get started on planning the family Christmas,” she reminded the Doctor. “I want to make sure we get a place Mum will love.”
The Doctor nodded. “That is coming up, isn’t it?”
“Yeah.” Rose looked up at him. “Do you have any idea of where you’d like to go?”
A giddy smile stretched across his face. “Oh, I have the perfect location,” he promised her. “The North Pole!”
Rose blinked. “I’m assuming you don’t actually mean the polar region.”
“No, although that does become a holiday resort sometime during the Second Great and Bountiful Human Empire.”
Rose nodded, making a note. That sounded like a fun visit for the future. “All right then, so there’s a planet called The North Pole?” she guessed.
“Oh yes! It’s a massive holiday industry. Santa’s workshop, Christmas tree forests, sleigh rides, ice skating…”
“And since it’s such a favourite holiday destination, there are houses to rent.”
The Doctor nodded and reached for the tablet sitting on the table in front of him. “Absolutely. Houses completely kitted out with everything you could need for a winter holiday, by the way. Sleds, cross-country skis, snow shoes, an axe to cut down a tree from the Christmas tree forest…”
He tapped his fingers against the side of the device. “Now, what’s the name of the booking site…”
Summary: Two months after the Dalek Crucible, the Doctor and Rose are getting used to having the biggest family on Earth. As they visit Leadworth in 1996, Victorian England, a mysterious desert planet, and Elizabethan England, those family and friends often help in unexpected ways. But no matter where they go or who they’re with, it’s always the Doctor in the TARDIS with Rose Tyler–just as it should be.
Three weeks later, Rose was looking at the fairy lights on the Christmas tree and thinking about taking the decorations down soon, when she remembered their holiday celebrations weren’t over yet.
“We need to get started on planning the family Christmas,” she reminded the Doctor. “I want to make sure we get a place Mum will love.”
The Doctor nodded. “That is coming up, isn’t it?”
“Yeah.” Rose looked up at him. “Do you have any idea of where you’d like to go?”
A giddy smile stretched across his face. “Oh, I have the perfect location,” he promised her. “The North Pole!”
Rose blinked. “I’m assuming you don’t actually mean the polar region.”
“No, although that does become a holiday resort sometime during the Second Great and Bountiful Human Empire.”
Rose nodded, making a note. That sounded like a fun visit for the future. “All right then, so there’s a planet called The North Pole?” she guessed.
“Oh yes! It’s a massive holiday industry. Santa’s workshop, Christmas tree forests, sleigh rides, ice skating…”
“And since it’s such a favourite holiday destination, there are houses to rent.”
The Doctor nodded and reached for the tablet sitting on the table in front of him. “Absolutely. Houses completely kitted out with everything you could need for a winter holiday, by the way. Sleds, cross-country skis, snow shoes, an axe to cut down a tree from the Christmas tree forest…”
He tapped his fingers against the side of the device. “Now, what’s the name of the booking site…”
Three hours later, they’d found the perfect house. There hadn’t been many available with enough bedrooms for their group, but they’d found one not far from the heart of the tourist district. After stopping to pick up the keys, they sent everyone a text, reminding them to be ready on the morning of the 23rd.
Rose grinned at the Doctor as they returned to the TARDIS. “But we’re not gonna wait three weeks, are we?” she guessed.
He spun a dial and shook his head. “Nope! What’s the point of living in a time machine if you don’t skip ahead now and again? Next stop, Lee McAvoy’s house.”
Only it wasn’t Lee’s house. And it wasn’t the 51st century either, though that didn’t really matter. Instead of taking them to Lee’s, the TARDIS landed them right in the middle of a palace coup.
Rose looked at the Doctor as they led the royal family to safety. “Well, at least living in a time machine means we can still be on time to pick everyone up,” she said, giving him a wink.
In the end, the same three weeks passed for them that had passed for everyone else. They picked up Donna and Lee, and then Mickey and Martha. Rose had to bite her lip to hold back her questions when the latter couple only brought one suitcase with them.
Something to ask Martha about later.
With the console room already fuller than it usually was, Rose looked around at everyone. “Ready to go to Cardiff?” she asked.
“You’d better hurry,” Mickey said. “Your mum has been going on about this trip for weeks. You don’t want to be late picking her up.”
The Doctor ducked his head so no one would see him rolling his eyes. People kept forgetting the TARDIS was a time machine. Even when they were travelling specifically to be in a different time line.
Rose bumped him out of the way with her hip and when he looked up he realised she’d set most of the coordinates already.
Yeah, while you were sulking, she teased him.
I wasn’t sulking. He tugged on his ear. Just… thinking.
She rolled her eyes and threw the dematerialisation lever. “I think Mum will be pleased with how punctual we are,” she told everyone. “But… just in case, he was the one driving.”
“Oi!”
As soon as the ship landed, they heard a knocking at the door. Donna beat everyone to it, darting up the ramp to throw the door open.
“You got here exactly when you said you would!” Jackie exclaimed as she entered the TARDIS, followed by Tony and Jenny, and then Pete, carrying their bags.
“Mickey, could you help me get the groceries?” Pete asked. Mickey nodded, and the two men stepped outside and reentered with bags of groceries.
The interruption didn’t derail Jackie one bit. “I didn’t know this ship could be so precise.”
“Rose was driving,” Donna explained.
“Oh, well that explains it.”
The Doctor crossed his arms over his chest and looked at his mother-in-law and Donna. “So if we’re on time, it’s because Rose was driving, but if we’re late, I must have been?”
The two women exchanged a look, then looked back at him. “Yeah, basically,” Jackie said.
“Pretty much,” Donna agreed.
“Twelve months,” Jackie reminded him.
“Pompeii,” Donna added.
The Doctor rolled his eyes. “Fine. Are we…” He paused and counted the people in the console room. “Hang on, where’s Jack?”
“There was a bit of activity that needed to be checked out,” Pete explained. “He took his team, but they should be back in Cardiff by tomorrow evening.” He looked at Rose. “He said he’d text you for coordinates when he was ready to join us.”
“Of course,” Rose said easily. Then she smiled at the Doctor. “Why don’t you take us on this magnificent holiday trip, Doctor?”
What remained of his indignation fled as he imagined how awed everyone would be by The North Pole. “Absolutely, Rose Tyler.” He spun around the console and set the coordinates.
Before throwing the lever, he looked at their passengers. Jackie and Pete were on the jump seat, with Tony in her lap. Jenny had joined Donna and Lee up on the gangway, looking down at them. Martha and Mickey leaned against a strut.
And Rose was right beside him. Rose, who had brought this family into his life.
“Allons-y!” he said, throwing the lever.
The TARDIS shifted into the Vortex with a wheezing groan. Jackie looked up at the time rotor, moving up and down in its glass casing.
“I will never be used to this,” she admitted.
Privately, the Doctor rather thought he’d like to keep it that way.
The ship rocked as they hit a bit of temporal turbulence. Rose ran her hands over the console and the pitch evened out again. A moment later, they both felt the change as they shifted out of the Vortex, preparing to land.
Instead of a thud, they heard sleigh bells when they landed. The Doctor laughed and looked up at the ceiling. Thanks, old girl, he told her. Sleigh bells rang in his mind too, and he laughed again.
“Well, Spaceman, are we going on holiday or are we just going to stay in the TARDIS until it’s time to leave?”
The Doctor blinked and looked at Donna. “Right, yes. Come on, everyone. You won’t believe this.”
He jogged up the ramp and pulled the door open. A few snowflakes swirled into the TARDIS on a gust of wind, and Tony shrieked in excitement.
“Snow, Mummy!” He squirmed in her lap, but Jackie didn’t let go of his hand as they stood up and walked out of the TARDIS.
“Welcome to the North Pole,” the Doctor said grandly. “The planet, not the polar region. An ice planet discovered during the Third Great and Bountiful Human Empire—venture capitalists quickly decided that it would be the ideal location for a winter themed resort.”
“And is that our house?” Jackie pointed at the huge Victorian style house in front of them, complete with a turret and a wrap-around veranda.
The Doctor rocked back on his heels. “Yep!”
“There’s no decorations,” she noted. “All the other houses have lights and things up.”
Rose stepped in. “We thought it would be fun to decorate tonight, as a family. Yeah?”
Jackie smiled. “You’re right, sweetheart.” She looked up at Pete. “Well, come on. We need to get everything inside.”
It took twenty minutes to get all the luggage and food inside, and then another twenty to sort out the room assignments. But finally, they were all gathered in the large main room again. The Doctor clapped his hands to get everyone’s attention.
“Thank you! Now, as nice as this room is, it seems to me that it’s missing something. Tony, do you think we need something else to make this feel like Christmas?”
“A tree!”
“That’s right! And there’s a Christmas tree forest just down the road. It’ll be cold, so make sure you put on your coats and hats and boots, etc.”
“I’m going to stay here,” Jackie said. “Someone needs to have lunch ready for you when you get back.”
“You don’t have to do that, Mum,” Rose protested. “We can manage to put something together when we’re done.”
Jackie rolled her eyes. “I’m not interested in getting cold and wet, ta. You have fun getting a tree, and I’ll make sure there’s something hot to warm you up when you get back.”
She glanced around, then leaned closer to Rose. “I need to get the presents hidden. Tony has been a terror, sneaking around trying to find them.”
Rose laughed. “Yeah, all right. Hot soup would be great.” She winked at Jackie.
The group dispersed back to their rooms and returned in five minutes, decked out in winter gear. Everyone, that is, but Rose. The Doctor raised an eyebrow at Jenny, but she just laughed.
“Mum said she’ll be right behind us,” she promised. “Let’s go.”
The Doctor glanced up at the staircase in the direction of their bedroom, but Rose nudged him to go. He shrugged and opened the front door, letting everyone else spill out onto the lawn ahead of him.
The bobsled service runs from the town centre, he told Rose. We won’t leave without you.
He needn’t have worried. They’d hardly gotten to the end of the street when he heard footsteps tramping through the snow behind him. He turned around and groaned immediately.
“Why did you bring that monstrosity with you?” he asked, tugging on the end of his old scarf.
Rose grabbed it and tossed it around her neck one more time. “I like it,” she defended. “Plus, you said it would be cold, and this is the warmest scarf we’ve got.”
“And…” He raised his eyebrows.
She grinned, letting her tongue peek out. “And maybe I have other plans that I will inform you of later,” she said pertly. “Now, I think everyone is probably waiting for us by the shuttle.”
The Doctor blinked, but took off after her. The rest of their family was indeed already loaded into the bobsleds.
Which thankfully means they might not notice that scarf, the Doctor thought as he and Rose got into the last sled.
The drivers shook the reins and got the sleds moving, and twenty minutes later, they were slowing down at the edge of the Christmas tree forest.
A large, burly man hustled out of the booth at the gate. “Excellent, excellent, a new group. What are you in the market for?” he asked. “Just a tree, or the whole package? Tree, greenery, mistletoe, everything?”
“Oh, we want everything!” Jenny said. “We’ve got a whole house to decorate.”
The man beamed, probably excited by the sale he was soon to make. “Absolutely,” he agreed. “And I see you brought your own axes, very good.” He reached into the booth and pulled out a stack of maps. “Right here is the best place to find a tree,” he said, marking a spot on the map. “And the older trees are all the way at the middle of the forest—that’s where we prefer you to cut your greenery.”
“And mistletoe?” Mickey asked.
He nodded. “There are some ash and sycamore trees at the centre of the forest as well, and also along the perimeter of the forest. That’s the best place to find mistletoe.”
Pete took one copy of a map. “I think Tony and I will look for a tree,” he said. “It sounds like that will be the fastest part of the day, and involve the least amount of walking for little legs.”
“I’ll come with you, Granddad,” Jenny said.
Pete smiled at her in thanks, and the Doctor could only imagine trying to keep Tony corralled and cut down a tree all by himself.
Donna snagged another copy. “We’ll go for mistletoe, I think.” She hooked her arm through Lee’s. “Come on, sweetheart.”
Oh, that makes me happy, Rose said as she took the Doctor’s hand.
Definitely.
He looked at Mickey and Martha. “Which leaves us to explore the dark centre of the forest,” he said, lowering the timbre of his voice. “Are you ready for that adventure?”
Martha rolled her eyes, but Mickey just laughed. “You bet, Boss.” All four of them took copies of the map and they set off towards the heart of the forest.
“So, how is UNIT these days?” the Doctor asked Mickey. “I only hear from them in the middle of an emergency—what are they like on a day-to-day basis?”
Rose watched as the Doctor and Mickey veered off the path, making their way through a foot of snow to reach the centre of the forest. She wasn’t sure if they were too engrossed in conversation to notice what they were doing, or if they had decided the direct route would be fastest.
She looked over at Martha. “We can follow, or…” She pointed at the snow-packed path they were on.
Martha laughed. “If they want to get soaked, let them. I think we can collect some greenery without forging a path through a snowbank.”
Rose cast her a sidelong glance as they continued down the path. “So…”
Martha glanced over at her, a smile on her face, but she didn’t say anything.
The smile gave Rose permission to ask her question. “One suitcase?”
The words hung in the air for a moment, and Rose nearly demanded that Martha tell her everything. But finally, her friend smirked and said, “Well, it makes sense, since we practically live together.”
Rose squealed, then slapped her hand over her mouth before the Doctor and Mickey came over to ask what was going on. Martha shook her head and laughed.
“I knew you were together,” she said. “But I didn’t know things were going that fast.”
The path curved, and Rose realised they were now walking towards the same stand of trees the Doctor and Mickey had taken off for.
Martha shrugged. “Well, we both know how valuable time is. There’s no point in wasting it, is there?” She craned her neck and Rose knew she was looking for a glimpse of the men. “And Mickey is amazing. He’s so calm and steady. He’s there for me when I wake up from nightmares about that year.”
“And you can tell him what the nightmares are about,” Rose added. “That was the big thing that ended your relationship with Tom, wasn’t it?”
Martha nodded. “Yeah. I mean, Mickey and I work at the same place and we have the same security clearance. Sometimes we might be working on projects that we can’t share, but there’s still that comfort of knowing what the other is up to, in general.”
Rose hugged her. “I’m happy for you,” she said. “And for him. Mickey is a great bloke. We weren’t a good match, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t deserve happiness.”
Martha grinned. “Thanks, Rose.”
They reached tall evergreen trees with massive sweeping branches, without having to make a path through the snow drift. Rose glanced around to see where the Doctor and Mickey were. She smirked when she realised they’d split up. Mickey was stretching up into an oak tree for a sprig of mistletoe, and the Doctor was a little farther down the path cutting evergreen boughs.
“Yeah, let’s rejoin them,” Martha agreed, correctly interpreting her look.
“See you back at the sleds,” Rose said, then set off after the Doctor.
The Doctor smiled when he felt Rose finally coming to join him. He finished cutting down the branch he was working at, then set the axe down on the ground.
Before he could turn around, he felt a loop of fabric wrap around his waist, and then a tug. He looked down and started laughing; Rose was using his scarf to pull him in.
“Trying to reel me in?” He turned quickly, yanking one end of the scarf out of her hands as he did. “Two can play at that game, Rose Tyler,” he said, slowly pulling it hand over hand.
Rose smiled at him, her tongue peeking out. “You’ll have to work harder than that to catch me.” She winked, then spun and started running.
The Doctor laughed and took chase. As he ran, he slowly wound the scarf around his arm until there was only ten feet between them.
Rose looked over her shoulder, then made a quick course correction, going under a huge sycamore tree. Just as quickly, she wheeled around the tree trunk, circling it before he realised what her plan was.
A moment later, the Doctor found himself bound to the tree with his own scarf. “Is this what you had in mind when you grabbed my scarf this morning?”
Rose dropped the scarf and put her hands on his chest. “Maybe,” she said, a coy smile on her face. “It depends. Do you like it?”
His hearts raced as her hands slid slowly over his shoulders. “You know I do.”
She tugged gently on his shoulder to push herself up on her toes, and he willingly met her halfway. Rose’s lips were cold and chapped, but the kiss was still perfect.
She tilted her head and caught his lower lip between her teeth. Thousands of ways you want to kiss me. That’s what you said the first time I wore the scarf, wasn’t it?
Oh, yes. Captured by my scarf wasn’t necessarily on my list, but I like it.
The Doctor tried to pull her close, groaning when he found he was still tied to the tree. Rose managed to move closer on her own, carding her hand through his hair as the kiss deepened.
“I thought we were supposed to be gathering mistletoe, not testing it out.”
Mickey’s voice broke into their private moment. The Doctor sighed as Rose pulled away and unwrapped the scarf to free him.
“What mistletoe?” he asked, slightly put out with Mickey for interrupting.
Mickey smirked and pointed at the tree. The Doctor and Rose both looked up and started laughing when the realised they were right under a large bunch of mistletoe.
The Doctor tugged on his ear. “Welllll… It would be a bit rubbish to bring in mistletoe that doesn’t work,” he said casually.
Mickey shook his head. “You’d better cut that bit down then, because it definitely worked.” Then he gestured back down the path. “Pete just texted. They’ve got the tree and everyone is ready to head back.”
The Doctor did cut down that bunch of mistletoe, then each of them gathered a bundle of evergreen boughs and they set off down the path.
“It’s about time you got here,” Donna called out as they reached the front gate. “We’ve been sitting here for half an hour. I thought I was going to freeze my bum off.”
“Just making sure we got enough to decorate the house,” the Doctor replied. He dropped his pile of greenery and mistletoe next to the tree.
“Right,” Mickey said. “That’s what you were doing. Gathering all the evergreen branches.”
Donna narrowed her eyes. “Were they snogging under the mistletoe?” she deduced.
The Doctor huffed. “I don’t know why everyone is so surprised that a married couple actually enjoys kissing,” he muttered.
Pete cut in before Donna could respond. “We can continue this debate back at the house,” he said firmly. “Jackie has lunch ready for us, and I have a tired, cold three-year-old boy.”
“I’m almost four, Daddy!” Tony held up his mittened hand, presumably with four fingers up.
Pete laughed. “Almost,” he said. “You’re still three for two more weeks.”
Rose unlooped the scarf from around her neck and bent down to wrap it around Tony’s. “There you go, Tony. All snug and warm.”
The only part of Tony’s face they could see were his eyes. He nodded his head quickly, sending one of the loops falling to the ground. Pete picked it up and wrapped it around him again.
“What do you say, Tony?” Pete prompted.
“Thank you, Rose!”
“You’re welcome, Tony. That scarf used to belong to the Doctor.”
Tony’s eyes lit up, and he wrapped his arms around the Doctor’s legs in an awkward hug. “Thank you, Doctor!”
Pete hoisted Tony up into a sled, then got in and waved at everyone. “We’ll see you back at the house.”
oOoOo
Their tree and all the greenery were delivered just as they finished lunch. The Doctor, Jenny, and Pete immediately got to work getting the tree in the stand, while Jackie took a yawning Tony upstairs for a nap.
“Let’s see if we can’t get the lights up and all the greenery hung before he wakes up,” Rose suggested. “He won’t be able to help with those, so he’ll be bored watching.”
“And a bored Tony is a dangerous Tony,” Pete agreed. “Mickey and I can put up the outside lights. Does anyone else want to help?”
Lee raised his hand, and the three of them bundled up and went outside with the lights, a hammer, some nails, and a ladder.
After they were gone, it took Rose, the Doctor, Donna, and Martha twenty minutes to get the tree set up in the holder. Rose had never put a real tree up before, and by the time they were done, she wasn’t sure she wanted to do another.
“At least artificial trees don’t try to tip over and kill you,” she said, brushing pine needles out of her hair.
“No, they just go whirling through your flat, breaking down doors trying to kill you.”
“Yeah, true,” Rose told Jackie, who had just rejoined them.
“Come on, let’s get the lights on before Tony wakes up. He only naps for about half an hour.”
Jenny went upstairs when the lights were almost finished. With all the activity, her jumper was a little warm, and she wanted to change into something more comfortable.
To her surprise, her room wasn’t empty. The duvet was flipped up onto the bed, and she could see a little bum and two feet sticking out from under the bed.
“Tony?”
He squeaked and she heard the bed shake. Then he slowly emerged from under the bed, rubbing at his head.
“Hi Jenny.”
Jenny crossed her arms over her chest and raised an eyebrow. “Were you trying to find where Gran hid your presents?”
“Uh… no?”
“Want to try that again?” Jenny offered.
Tony looked up at her with big eyes. “I just need to see,” he insisted.
“And you will. On Christmas morning, just like everyone else.”
Tony pouted and looked away, and Jenny played her last card. “You know there are still the presents from Santa,” she said. “Do you think Santa brings presents to kids who try to sneak a look at gifts before they’re supposed to be opened?”
Tony shook his head slowly.
“And do you think Gran will let you open your gifts if she knows you snuck in here looking for them?”
He shook his head again.
“Okay. I won’t tell her, if you promise not to do it again.”
He heaved a sigh. “Okay.”
Jenny squatted down and hugged him. “Good boy,” she praised him. “Now, go on downstairs. I’ll be right behind you.”
oOoOo
The Doctor snuck away when they were decorating the tree, and when he came back, he had a smug twinkle in his eye. Rose raised an eyebrow at him.
What are you up to?
Just wait and see.
Rose narrowed her eyes for a moment, then shrugged. It was Christmas—there were bound to be surprises everywhere.
“Do you want to put the tinsel on the tree?” she asked Tony, holding out a package of red and silver tinsel.
“Yeah!” He grabbed a big handful out of the package and threw it at the tree. Half of it landed in a clump about three feet up from the ground, and the rest floated to the floor.
“Oh lord,” Jackie moaned. “Why would you give him that?”
Rose looked at the floor. “Yeah… I didn’t think that one through,” she admitted.
Pete took the tinsel from Tony, and everyone else bent down and started picking up what had landed on the floor. It didn’t take long to clean up and redistribute the tinsel more evenly over the tree.
The box of decorations was almost empty. “Just this left,” Martha said, holding up the star.
“Doctor, I think you get to put that up,” Pete said. “You’re the tallest one here.”
The Doctor eyed the tree, then shook his head and got a chair from the kitchen. “This tree is at least seven feet tall,” he said. Standing on the chair, he took the star from Mickey and carefully placed it on top of the tree. Then he plugged it into the strand of lights and it lit up.
Rose turned the overhead light off once he’d climbed off the chair. The multi-coloured fairy lights cast a warm glow, illuminating the nearby ornaments. The bright white light of the star at the top of the tree reflected off the tinsel and sparkly ornaments, casting little dots of light around the room.
For a moment, the room was silent while they all enjoyed the tree. Then Tony said, “I’m hungry. When are we eating again?”
Rose blinked. She hadn’t thought about supper at all. She turned on the light and looked at her mum, and it was obvious Jackie hadn’t either.
Before anyone could get too worked up, the doorbell rang. The Doctor held his hand out to Tony. “I think you’ll want to see who that is.”
They walked to the door hand in hand, and Tony reached up to turn the knob. Rose peeked over his head and gasped along with him when she saw who was standing there.
A young man dressed in an elf suit held five pizzas out. Behind him, a sleigh was parked in the middle of the garden.
“Oh wow!” Tony said. “Are these pizzas from Santa?”
The delivery boy let the Doctor take the pizzas, then he grinned and leaned down to talk to Tony. “You bet they are,” he said. “He says this is for being good so far, but you have to keep it up if you want your presents on Christmas Day.”
“I will!” Tony bounced a few times, and then Jackie reached forward and took his hand.
“Come on, let’s clean up before we eat Santa’s pizza.”
After waving goodbye to the delivery man and shutting the door, Rose looked up at the Doctor. You are very good.
oOoOo
Rose got up first the next morning and snuck downstairs to set up the surprise she and the Doctor had planned for Jenny. They’d visited her favourite bakery on Kalfon and picked up a box of pastries. Rose also had two rolls of streamers, and she decorated one of the chairs at the table.
When everyone else came downstairs, Jenny’s place at the table was completely decked out. Jenny stopped in the doorway and looked at it. “Mum?” She turned around and looked at the Doctor. “Dad? What’s going on?”
The Doctor wrapped his arms around her and hugged her. “Happy birthday, Jenny,” he said.
Jenny squealed and spun away from him, running around the table to hug Rose. “Oh my god,” she said. “I didn’t know… I wasn’t even thinking. But you’ve been keeping track?”
Rose hugged her, then let her go with a smile. “Of course we have. You were born two days before Valentine’s Day. So, exactly a year ago in our timeline.”
“What’s this?” A new voice joined the clamour, and Rose realised her mum had only just woken up.
“It’s my birthday, Gran,” Jenny called out.
“Oh, happy birthday sweetheart!” Jackie glared at the Doctor and Rose in turn. “We didn’t know your birthday was Christmas Eve, or we would have had presents for you.”
Rose sighed. “Not Christmas Eve for us, Mum,” she said.
But Jackie had already moved into the kitchen to start the coffee and tea. Rose had a strong suspicion that they would never convince her that Jenny’s birthday did not fall on Christmas Eve.
She shrugged. “Come on, let’s sit down. Jenny gets first choice of the pastries, but there’s plenty to go around.”
oOoOo
“So what’s on the agenda for today?” Martha asked as they finished breakfast.
“Well Tony wants to decorate cookies tonight, so first we have to bake them,” Jackie said. “After that, I figure himself over there probably has some kind of plan.”
The Doctor rolled his eyes. “Yes, thank you Jackie. I do in fact have a plan.” He ate the last bite of the pastry, then wiped his fingers on his napkin. “Today being Christmas Eve, the festivities are at their height. We could see Santa’s workshop, or go ice skating on the pond. There are Christmas shops to browse, hot chocolate stands to visit… It’s several days worth of fun, actually.”
“Well, what does everyone want to do?” Pete asked.
“Santa’s workshop!” Tony shouted.
“Indoor voice, Tony,” Pete chided.
“Sorry Daddy.” The boy dropped his voice to a whisper. “Santa’s workshop.”
Pete hid a smile. “All right. If you brush your teeth and don’t argue with Mummy while we make the cookies, we’ll take you to Santa’s workshop.”
Donna tried to smile at Tony’s antics, but it was hard. Lee rested his hand on her knee, and she knew he felt it, too.
“I think we’ll go for a walk while the rest of you bake cookies,” she said as everyone started to leave the breakfast table.
The Doctor tilted his head and looked at her, and a moment later, understanding flashed in his eyes. “All right. There’s a beautiful path through the woods that’s lined with fairy lights.”
Donna nodded. “Thanks.”
Ten minutes later, she and Lee were bundled up and leaving the house. Lee’s hand took hers immediately, and Donna held it tight.
Fresh snow had fallen overnight, and walking through the pristine whiteness felt almost sacred—the perfect atmosphere for what she was feeling.
They found the path right where the Doctor had said they would. A breath caught in Donna’s throat; the lights made the fresh snow sparkle, like someone had just sprinkled glitter.
“P-pretty,” Lee said.
Donna nodded and reached up to touch the closest tree. Snow fluttered down around them, and she sighed.
“Do you remember?” she asked quietly.
Lee’s hand tightened around hers. “Yes.”
“They would have loved this planet,” she said, finally bringing the thought out into the open.
He sucked in a breath. “Yes,” he said. This time, the tremble in his voice wasn’t from his stutter.
Donna looked out at the snow-covered world. “They would have played hide and seek in those trees, and had a snowball fight.”
“Joshua loved snowmen.”
Donna hadn’t said their names since she’d told the Doctor about the children she’d had in the Library. Hearing it now made the first tear well up.
“And Ella…” She sniffed. “Ella would’ve loved to bake cookies with Jackie and Tony.”
A cold finger brushed a tear off her cheek, and she finally looked up at Lee. “Why couldn’t they be real?”
His Adam’s apple bobbed a few times, and finally he shook his head. “I don’t know,” he answered hoarsely.
He tugged gently on her hand, and Donna went willingly into his embrace. “I miss them,” she whispered. “God, I miss them.”
They stood like that for several minutes, but finally, they heard voices coming their way. “We should get out of the way,” Donna said.
Lee took her hand again. “Hot chocolate?” he suggested.
“Yeah. With lots of marshmallows.”
They shared a poignant smile and walked back into town. Joyful, childish laughter reached their ears as they got closer to the town square. For a moment, Donna’s heart squeezed. Loss was so hard, and it hurt to be reminded…
Lee wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pressed a kiss to her temple. “Someday,” he whispered in her ear.
And the first thrill of anticipation shot through her. They had lost so much in the Library, but they’d also found each other. And as long as they had each other, they could always start over.
She turned her head and caught Lee’s mouth in a soft kiss. “Yeah, someday,” she agreed after pulling back.
Part 2 of a Tyler Family Christmas will be up next week. The chapter was going to be over 12K, so I split it.
#ficandchips #ten x rose #fic by Nancy #doctorroseprompts #31 days of ficmas #donna x lee #tony tyler #the whole fam in this one #cutting down a christmas tree #decorating it#snow #and pizza delivered by... well i guess you'll have to read to find out #cq's fic: forever timeless #series: being to timelessness
Rose ran alongside the Doctor, trying to match his stride with her much shorter legs. It wasn’t easy to do that while she also watched out for slick patches of ice or snow on the pavement.
“Where are we going again?” she asked as they turned a corner. The only thing he’d told her before he’d pulled her out of the TARDIS was to put a warm coat on over her short-sleeved shirt.
“The Venusian Frost Fair!”
Rose scanned the street, taking in the festive banners hanging from the lampposts and the lights in the shop windows. “Like the ones they had on the Thames back in the 1800s?”
“Bigger! Oh, you won’t believe this winter festival—it covers multiple holidays and lasts all winter long. Cocoa and cider and wine and the best biscuits in the universe.”
“In the universe?” Rose laughed.
The Doctor stopped walking and looked down at her, his expression completely serious. “In the universe, Rose,” he said solemnly. “And I should know. I’ve checked.”
She laughed again. “All right, the best biscuits in the universe, according to the expert.”
“That’s right.”
As they got closer to the festival grounds, Rose noticed that more and more people seemed to be wearing… She blinked. “Doctor?”
R. If you had to rewrite one of your stories from scratch, which one would it be? What would you do to it?
If I had to? One of this year’s stories, or any of my stories overall?
I think… Redefining Forever. I wrote it planning to do a big babyfic arc, and then discovered I don’t really want to write a big babyfic arc. So it leaves the series sitting in an awkward place.
Honestly, I’d probably just undo it if I could. Ah well.
(So why am I linking it? I have no idea.)
I don’t have much meta for things I’ve written this year.
Prompt-based fandom events are when you really learn everyone’s colors like you’ll find the people who take the prompt “death” and come up with some smarmy ship-art of character A and character B walking over dead leaves while wearing scarves and drinking hot cider and then you’ll find the people who take the prompt “sunshine” and write how a bright glint of sunshine reflected off the barrel of a gun is the absolute last thing character A sees before taking a bullet to the chest
you can lead a content creator to water but you sure as fuck can’t make him drink
content creators, much like the elder gods, must not be given requests that can be left to interpretation, for the results bring madness upon the unwary
#i am 100% the first type #and I'm sure it drives some people crazy #fandom life#fanfic rambles #life as a fanfic author
E. Write anything e-rated this year? ; ) What’s your target audience for any given story?
Nope, I never write anything explicit.
I’m trying to figure out what target audience means… It’s connected to the rating question, which makes me think they mean age? Or “people who read certain ratings?”
Eh. I think my target audience is people who love the Doctor and Rose and wish we could have seen them actually having a romantic relationship–a long-lasting, healthy romantic relationship.
G. Where do you think you grew the most this year?
I’m not sure I wrote enough this year to answer this. Maybe… just in being less hard on myself? Like, if fic isn’t ready when I want it to be ready, that is not the end of the world, you know? I don’t need to work myself to the bone to produce fic. It’s supposed to be fun.
Q. Quote three bits of writing from this year that stuck with you!
The faint light of the nearby stars was all they had to see by. But whereas just ten minutes ago he had only seen the darkness, Rose had taken his hand and gently pointed out the beauty. The beauty in sorrow, the incredible majesty of this tragedy.
The Doctor’s gaze traveled up the columns to where they appeared to disappear into midnight blue. He could only see a glimpse of the starry sky, so he took a step inside to see exactly what the TARDIS had created.
The columns surrounded a swimming pool, but it wasn’t the way the stars glittered on the water that made his breath catch in his throat.
Rose was swimming laps down the middle of the pool, gliding easily through the water. The Doctor watched, entranced, as she moved in and out of shadow, her body bathed in shimmering starlight.
She rubbed her cheek against the jumper again and shook her head.
“That’s not why I wore it,” she said quietly.
The Doctor set the decanter down and turned to face Rose. Her playful attitude had faded into something softer and warmer. “Then why did you wear it?” he asked, genuinely curious. “To turn me on?”
Her eyes twinkled. “A little. But mostly…” She reached for his hand. “This jumper is something from who you were when I met you. Today’s our anniversary and…” She brushed her thumb over his pulse points. “And I married that Doctor, too.”
The Doctor opened his mouth, but he couldn’t push words past the lump in his throat. Instead, he slid closer to Rose on the sofa and reached for her over the bond at the same time.
I love you. He brushed his fingers over her cheek, and when Rose tipped her face upwards, he took the invitation and pressed a kiss to her lips. I love you now and I loved you then. You are my forever, both past and future.
Rose sighed and scraped her fingernails over his scalp. I loved that you, with your leather jacket and jumpers. I love this you, with your suits and Chucks. You have always been my Doctor.
Ignore that last ask! Its’s your favorite B plot I want!
Answer:
Favourite B plot of this year… That has to be reuniting Donna and Lee in Forever Timeless. I loved repurposing Eleventh Hour as a vehicle to bring Lee back, and I loved her response when she saw him again for the first time.
And they’ve got a conversation coming up in today’s chapter that I love even more.
Five years from now, where do you see yourself as a writer?
Oh boy. I would really like to write another book. I have two (very different) series planned out. It would be nice to actually make progress on one of them, to the point that I could publish.
#that's got to be one of the most romantic things anyone has ever said #come on #he found a super nova and used the energy to power the connection through the void #that dedication is romantic enough #but then he told her 'i'm burning up a sun just to say goodbye' #like wow #that's next level romance #that's 'i gave up my inheritance because my family wouldn't let me be with you' kinds of romance #i will never be over this #ten x rose #bloody doomsday#c queue
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