Scotland's Mist

Chapter 1

Here's our first story! If you're here from "Run and Hide for Your Life" just know that this will be just as shippy because I am a very shippy human being. And welcome back, my friends!

If you're new, I've got several other stories, and if you're into it, they're under my profile.

Also I'm telling pretty much everyone to find me at Philly Comicon. Find a really awkward Idiot's Lantern Rose, that's me!

On to a new misadventure!

PS, this is a universe after Canary Warf where everything was fine. This plays in later.

The Doctor had promised to go see Jackie with Rose this week. For a whole week, because Rose probably wanted to spite him for landing them in that swamp the other day.

It honestly wasn't his fault.

But, he'd promised, and by promised, he meant Rose had crossed her arms and furrowed her brows, but she had asked very nicely, and it had confused him so much that he said yes, but it came out as more of a question.

"Fine," he groaned, pressing a button that he had saved for present day London (To speed up travel. Certainly not because he liked going there with Rose.) "Since you're insisting."

She broke out into a grin and hugged his arm. "Thank you," she said. "She called the other day, you know. She's missin' us."

"She's missing you," The Doctor corrected, shaking a finger at her. "Your mother has made it very clear that she does not want me around the flat."

Rose lifted a shoulder. "In some weird way, you're a part of our family. She just doesn't want you to know she doesn't hate you." She checked her phone. "And she says you're not sleeping in the TARDIS when we've got a completely serviceable guest room."

The Doctor blew out his cheeks at her last comment. He froze at the console and turned to her. "What do you mean, 'in some weird way'?"

She laughed and shook her head, refusing to answer him.

He huffed and turned back to the console just as the TARIDS made an exceptionally heavy landing. The blow threw Rose into the Doctor's side, and he shot an arm around her waist to hold her up.

She tried not to think of the proximity. Whenever his arm was around her, it was always around the shoulders, never the waist, or the hip. The waist seemed to be off-limits as far as Rose was concerned. She wished it weren't.

"Think I heard my knees crack," she muttered, trying to distract herself.

"Actually, it was these two vertebrae," the Doctor said, touching her spine near her lower back, and she did her best to repress a shiver.

"I'm very impressive," he continued, drawing his arm away from her to stabilize the TARDIS. "Your bones actually do crack quite a lot. Sometimes when you fall." He shot her a wary look, "Makes me nervous, actually. You should stop doing that."

Her lip twitched. "Yes, sir."

He threw her a smile over his shoulder as he headed for the door. He stuck his hand out after he exited the TARDIS, and she slipped her hand in his without even thinking.

"London, 2007," he said cheerily, swinging their hands. He had parked them farther from the Powell Estate today, and she suspected it was because it was October, and the Doctor was very comfortable in the chill.

Rose fumbled with her jacket with one hand, rather impressed with the fact that she had gotten so used to holding hands with the Doctor that she could do it effectively with her free hand.

"You aren't cold?" She asked for probably the one thousandth time since she had met him.

"No, not at all," he said. "Are you?"

She shrugged. "it's just October."

"We'll park closer next time," he promised.

"Nah, this is nice," she said, smiling up at him. he returned her grin and rubbed his thumb over the back of her hand.

"It is, isn't it?"

"Rose!" A shout from down the street came with the heavy footfalls of someone running towards the two of them.

The Doctor sighed and pulled Rose so her arm was pressed against his. "Is that the Idiot?" He asked, sounding completely exasperated.

Rose smiled. "Still can't tell if that's a term of endearment or not."

"It's not," he said immediately, throwing her a rather frustrated glance. "If we were going to do endearment terms, I'd have one for you, not him."

She smiled at the notion. "And what would you call me?"

He smiled. "Probably jeopardy friendly," he teased, and she rolled her eyes.

Mickey rounded the corner, nearly slamming into the both of them. "Rose!" he shouted again, hugging her. The Doctor was pleased to note that Rose only reciprocated the embrace with one arm, since she was still holding his hand.

He pulled away from Rose and gave her the once-over. "Haven't seen you two since Canary Warf," he said, sounding a little surprised, "Where you been, babe?"

"Busy," Rose said nonchalantly, "Never stop travellin', thought I told you that."

They continued walking towards the Estate, and Mickey shook his head. "Thought you'd at least take a break after something that traumatic," he sent Rose a rather 'kicked puppy' look, "Or at least stay for a day."

"We just needed to regroup," the Doctor cut in. "Hello by the way. We went to a leisure planet that day."

Mickey arched a brow. "A what?"

The Doctor made a disgusted sound. "Would you get your filthy mind out the gutter? A spa planet, relaxation, food, drinks, swimming pools."

Rose had to wonder why the Doctor was getting so specific. She knew that the Doctor got rather jealous of Mickey, and she could never figure out why. Sure, he was her ex, but that wasn't cause to be jealous. Maybe it was just because Mickey had known Rose longer than the Doctor had.

"Let's go see Jackie," The Doctor said hastily, pulling Rose along and forcing Mickey to make his strides wider to keep up.

"Yeah, you can tell her why you haven't come back since Canary Warf," Mickey shot back.

"She knows we leave without warning," Rose replied evenly. "Not as big a deal to her."

"Maybe she doesn't tell you that," Mickey muttered under his breath, and Rose chose to ignore him. "We just miss you, that's all."

"Well, glad I've got people to come back to, then," She sent a grin Mickey's way.

They reached the Estate and the Doctor tugged Rose with him up the steps, refusing to let go of her hand. He had been loath to do so since Canary Warf, and he had almost lost her.

One second more and she would've been sucked into the void, and he couldn't stop thinking about that. Her palm against his was often the only consolation he had, and a hug now and then never hurt either. And sometimes he sort of just wanted to pin her against a wall, plunge his hands into her hair and kiss her breathless, but that was something he couldn't do.

They reached the door to Jackie Tyler's flat and after he knocked Rose heard him sigh and mutter, "I haven't decided which is the less of two evils yet."