“How long will you stay with me?”

“Doctor…” He stood, watching and waiting for the answer. His voice had been low, where hers hadn’t wanted to reply. “Forever.”

“Forever?”

“Yes. Now really, are you just going to stand there, or are you going to come here and kiss me?”

Grinning widely, the Doctor pulled her closer, gently brushing his lips against hers. “Might,” he teased. He didn’t know that they were being watched.

---

On the parallel Earth, Rose and the Meta-Crisis Doctor had been left alone. After the original Doctor handing over a piece of TARDIS coral and the Doctor-Donna explaining how to speed up the growing process, the pair had been lost for a while. Eventually, they worked out how to live, how to rely on each other, and how to say those three words out loud. And they did love each other. Just like in the original universe, Rose and this version of the Doctor had travelled back and forward in time, exploring strange new worlds and fighting for the ones that needed them. With the time that they spent together, the Meta-Crisis Doctor had even taught Rose the basics of piloting a TARDIS. After a few attempts, she was able to figure out exactly where and when she wanted to go, even if the Gallifreyan marks were impossible to read. It was her TARDIS too, after all.

---

“Doctor, I hate it when you have to go away. I wish I could travel with you, instead of you coming back every so often. I miss you.”

“I miss you, too, but I already told you… you have to live your own life.”

“Don’t you understand? I love you!”

He never thought he’d hear it. Never thought he’d say it. “I… love you too.” But he did.

---

Seven years passed, relatively speaking. It was exactly seven years, three months and fourteen days after Rose Tyler was left once more on a parallel world… that she buried her Doctor. The Meta-Crisis Doctor died. Just like that. He only had one life to live, and seven years down the line, he lost it. Rose was heartbroken, and so was the TARDIS. His immune system wasn’t as strong as Rose’s, and on an adventure, he had been poisoned. It had taken three days for him to die, three days of pain, and three days of telling his love just how sorry he was. And on that third, final day, he knew he was going to die. So he told Rose the only thing that he thought would help her. A way to override the TARDIS’ machinery to pound it through the membrane of the universe… back to the original Doctor.

Once that Doctor had drawn his last breath, the TARDIS’ control panel’s signs all transformed into English. Like Rose, the TARDIS knew what had to be done.

---

“I have what you need, if you can give me what I need.”

“Yeah? How long will it take?”

“Until the plans are completed. Stage Four should suffice.”

“But…”

“If you do not want our extended lifespan, then leave now, Miss Tyler. I am a busy woman.”

Rose sighed, nodding her head in defeat. “I just don’t understand how you got here so fast, with so many. How come Torchwood or UNIT didn’t see you?”

The other, older looking blonde laughed. Her voice tinkled the air, golden sparks in her eyes. “The Taem’in are a dying race, and this is the only safe haven. But, no matter. Once you give me the access I need, we can hide ourselves and blend peacefully into humanity. You will stay loyal to me until we are hidden on this world. Then, Miss Tyler, then you may go, and tell no one of our species. We are hunted, and need no more enemies.

Rose thought that she understood. “Yeah. I know."

“Come, now. You are helping us escape from our deaths, Miss Tyler. And I always reward those that aid our cause.”

---

Back on her home planet, Rose Tyler lost the Meta-Crisis Doctor, and hoped to find her original. That she did, the Time Lord regenerating since she last saw him seven years ago. He also had a new companion, another woman, but that wasn’t serious. Until, of course, she saw the pair holding hands, then kissing passionately. Rose was too late. Heartbroken, she returned to her own TARDIS before being contacted by one Ms Evelyn Scarlett, an alien masquerading as a strong moral figure in Britain. She and others of her kind, the Taem’in, had broken away from the politics of their home planet to create a new kingdom of their own. She told Rose that they were dying, and needed her help to live secretly on Earth, so Torchwood and UNIT wouldn’t find or capture them.

The proposition?

Watching the affairs of humanity closely, Taem’in spies found the heartbreak of the infamous Rose Tyler about her dear Doctor, and struck a deal. To help them save their species, the Taem’in Empress – Evelyn Scarlett – would give Rose the secret to a much longer lifespan. With that, she could go and be with the Doctor forever, just like she wanted.

Her job had always been to help those like her, but there was no denying that she had her own selfish reasons, this time. Will Rose give the Taem’in all of the passcodes and information they ask for? The Taem’in are now biding their time, slowly moving in, ready to destroy anyone and anything in their way. Nothing can stand in their way. Tricking Rose into doing what they need to gain more power. Rose is too busy watching her love in the arms of another woman to realise how well she was played. After all, the Doctor can’t really love River Song, can he?