Doctor Who:The Fate of the Jedi (Doctor Who x Star Wars)

Father's Day Pt. 2

Rose, Tiaalen, and the Doctor leaned against a wall. Rose had tears in her eyes. The ambulance sirens sounded. "It's too late now,"

The Doctor looked at her.

"By the time the ambulance got there, he was dead," Rose's voice faltered, choked up with tears. Tia looked away in silence. Rose turned to the Doctor. "He can't die on his own,"

The Doctor looked back at her.

"Can I try again?"

Tiaalen knew it would be a bad idea, but who was the Doctor to deny Rose.

***

Rose, the Doctor, and Tiaalen stood out of sight around the corner, watching the first set of themselves standing on the curb.

"Right. That's the first you and me. It's a very bad idea, two sets of us being here at the same time. Just be careful they don't see us. Wait 'til she runs off and they follow, then go to your dad," the Doctor explained.

For the second time, Rose's father's car drew up.

"Oh, God." the First Rose said "This is it,"

Pete picked up the vase from the passenger seat.

"I can't do this," Rose said

"You don't have to do anything you don't want to, but this is the last time we can be here," The Doctor explained.

Rose stared at her father getting out of the car, breathing heavily. Then, she ran out.

"Rose! No!" Tiaalen shouted.

The car rounded the corner. Rose ran past the first set of the Doctor, Rose, and Tiaalen, and knocked her father out of the way of the oncoming car. They tumbled onto the floor. The first set of the Doctor, Rose, and Tia looked bewildered for a few seconds, then disappeared. The Doctor looked on in horror. Rose stared at her father as he got to his feet.

"I did it!" Rose said. "I saved your life!"

"Blimey, did you see the speed of it?" Pete asked. "Did you get his number?"

Rose stared at him "I really did it. Oh, my god, look at you! You're alive! That car was gonna kill ya!"

"Well, give me some credit, I did see it coming. I wasn't gonna walk under it, was I?"

"I'm Rose," she looked at him expectantly.

"That's a coincidence. That's my daughter's name,"

Rose smiled in delight "That's a great name. Good choice, well done,"

There was a few seconds silence as Rose smiled at him, unable to take her eyes off him, and he looked as though he didn't quite know what to say next.

"Right, I'd better shift." Pete finally said. "I've got a wedding to go to,"

"Is that Sarah Clarke's wedding?"

"Yeah, are you going?"

"...Yeah,"

"You and your friends need a lift?" Pete gestured to the Doctor and Tiaalen who were standing watching them darkly by the corner.

***

Pete entered his flat, followed by Rose, the Doctor, and Tiaalen. Pete put the vase down next to the door. "There we go. Sorry about the mess. If you want a cup of tea, the kitchen's just down there, milk's in the fridge...well, it would be, wouldn't it? Where else would you put the milk? Mind you, there's always the window sill outside. I always thought if someone invented a window sill with special compartments, you know, one for milk, one for yogurt...make a lot of money out of that,"

Rose still couldn't tear her eyes away from him. She smiled at him in delight as he spoke. The Doctor nodded politely behind her.

"Sell it to students and things..." Pete pondered "I should write that down. Anyway, never mind that, excuse me..." he pushed past them and disappeared through a door. Rose looked around.

"All the stuff mum kept. His stuff. She kept it all packed away in boxes in the cupboard, she used to show me when she'd had a bit to drink," Rose explained.

Tiaalen leaned against the doorframe, saying nothing.

"Here it is." Rose continued "On display. Where it should be,"

Tia still said nothing. She watched Rose with her arms folded. She looked angry. Rose picked up a trophy and showed it to the Doctor.

"Third prize at the bowling...first two got to go to Didcot," Rose examined it for a few more seconds, then replaced it. Her eye was drawn by the large bottles in the corner of the room. She bent down to look at it. "Health drinks. Tonics, mum used to call them. He made his money selling this Vitex stuff. He had all sorts of jobs. He's so clever,"

Still, Tiaalen said nothing. Rose looked around and spotted some plans on the table.

"Solar power. Mum said he was gonna do this. Now he can," Rose looked at the Doctor, smiling. He did not smile back. "Okay, look...I'll tell him you're not my boyfriend,"

"When we met, the Doctor said 'travel with us in space'," Tiaalen finally spoke. "You said no. Then he said 'time machine',"

"It wasn't some big plan. I just saw it happening and I thought...I can stop it,"

"I did again." The Doctor sighed "I picked another stupid ape. I should've known. It's not about showing you the universe-it never is. It's about the universe doing something for you,"

"So it's okay when you go to other times, and you save people's lives, but not when it's me saving my dad,"

"He knows what he's doing, you don't," Tia argued

"Two sets of us being there made that a vulnerable point," The Doctor added

"But he's alive!"

"And the Jedi are dead!" Tiaalen shouted, causing some of the papers to flutter off the table "My master, my friends that I trained alongside, massacred by the very man we trusted to save us all and balance the force. Do you think it never occurred to me to go back and save them?"

"But it's not like I've changed history. Not much, I mean...he's never gonna be a world leader, he's not gonna start World War Three or anything..."

Tia took a few steps towards her but the Doctor stopped her.

"Rose, there's a man alive in the world who wasn't alive before." The Doctor said "An ordinary man, that's the most important thing in creation. The whole world's different because he's alive,"

"What, would you rather him dead?"

"I'm not saying that..." The Doctor said exasperated.

"No, I get it! For once, you're not the most important man in my life,"

"Let's see how you get on without me, then, give me the key," The Doctor held his hand out. Rose stared at him.

"The TARDIS key. If I'm so insignificant, give it back to me,"

Rose got it out of her pocket "All right then, I will," she slapped it down into his hand, hard.

"Well, you've got what you wanted so that's goodbye then." The Doctor turned on her and walked down the hallway to the door, Tiaalen following behind. Rose pursued them.

"You don't scare me," Rose said unconvincingly. She stood in front of them, between them and the door. "I know how sad you are. You'll be back in a minute. Or you'll hang around outside the TARDIS waiting for me,"

Tia looked at her for a few moments, then pushed past her, opening the door. Rose's voice rose.

"And I'll make you wait a long time!"

Tiaalen clenched her fists, causing the door to slam shut after them.

"Tia..." The Doctor said softly, but the young Jedi just continued walking back down the road.