Tate and Mickey were in some room of the Tardis, getting better acquainted with one another. Both of them were happy that there was another male travelling. Rose was in the console room, sitting on the bench, reading a magazine.
The Doctor and Nova both stood at the console. He was letting her pick their next destination. Nova thought hard about where they were going to. Considering the fact that this was Mickey's first time travelling with them, she wanted to go somewhere he might actually like.
While Nova was pressing buttons, The Doctor kept his gaze on her. He smiled at the adorable sight of her eyebrows furrowing in concentration and the way her tongue would slightly stick out of her mouth.
The way he felt about her, was a way he never felt about anybody before. He thought about what Sarah Jane said to him. He did need Nova in his life.
She was like him. As much as The Doctor has come to care deeply about both Rose and Tate, he knew that they couldn't travel with him forever. But Nova could.
At least, he hoped she would want to travel with him forever. He knew that he could never let her go now. Not after how deeply in love he had fallen for her.
"You keep staring at me, Doctor" Nova said. She looked up from the console and towards her fellow Time Lord. "Is everything alright?"
"Yes" The Doctor said. He took a step closer to her and brushed a strand of hair out of her face. "Everything is perfect"
"Oh, just kiss already!" Rose said. The both of them forgot she was even in the room. "I can feel the sexual tension between you two"
"Sexual tension?" Nova repeated, a deep blush appearing on her face. "I don't know what you're talking about, Rose"
Rose rolled her eyes. "Just admit that you two are in love with each other!"
"We are not!" Nova quickly denied.
"That is not true!" The Doctor denied at the same time.
Rose groaned and put her head in her hands. "Seriously, you two. There's nothing wrong with being in love. Is there some kind of rule that says two Time Lords can't fall in love?"
Nova huffed. "Even if there was, I hardly think it would matter now considering we're the last two"
"Then just say the magic words to each other!"
"First," The Doctor said as he crossed his arms. He leaned against the console. "You need to admit you're in love with Tate"
A deep blush appeared on Rose's face. "I am not..."
Nova smirked. "Hmm" she hummed. "Sure you're not"
"Okay, I'll drop the subject" Something else came to Rose's mind. She remembered something that Finch said to Nova back at the school. "I have been wondering something though"
"What is it?" Nova asked.
"Back at the school, when Finch was trying to tempt you two, he said something about stones to you. Something about the fate of the universe depending on you finding these stones"
Now The Doctor had become interested in knowing about these stones. "What exactly would these stones be?" He asked and then raised an eyebrow. "And why would they be so dangerous?"
"Rose, could you find Tate and Mickey?" Nova requested of her other best friend. "I suppose it's time to tell you about my very important task"
______
The Doctor, Rose and Mickey all sat on the bench while Nova and Tate stood together. "What's so important that you've got us all gathered?" Mickey wondered. Not that he was complaining. It felt nice to be included.
"It's about a very important task given to Tate and I by a group of friends we have" Nova began. "Our friends are a group of superheroes known as The Avengers"
"The Avengers?" Rose repeated. "How come I've never heard of them?"
"Because in 2012, an invasion in New York happens. Right now, it's only 2006"
"Nova and I were going a trip and we just so happened to stumble upon the invasion" Tate added.
"What was invading?" The Doctor wondered.
"It was, or should I say will be, a Chitauri invasion" Nova said. "Anyways, Tate and I helped put a stop to the invasion"
"Did you ever find out why they were invading?" Mickey asked.
"It turns out the Chitauri didn't just invade New York by random. Someone had sent them to invade to retrieve one of the six Infinity Stones"
Rose quirked an eyebrow. "Infinity stones?" She looked at The Doctor. "Have you heard of these before?"
"This is my first time hearing about them" The Doctor admitted. Nevertheless, he was intrigued. "Please, continue"
"Like Nova said, there are six of these Infinity stones. There's the Space Stone, Reality Stone, Power Stone, Soul Stone, Mind Stone, and Time Stone" Tate listed off.
"One is dangerous enough on it's own, but if all six end up in the wrong hands, the universe as we know it is doomed"
"And that's why you need to find them all before someone else does" The Doctor concluded. Nova nodded. If this was important to her, he wanted to help her find the Infinity Stones. "Do you know the locations?"
"I only know the Time Stone is in the possession of Dr. Stephen Strange. He's some kind of sorcerer or something"
"The Sorcerer Supreme" Tate corrected her.
"Yeah, that. The Time Stone is safe with him for now. As for the others, it's a challenge looking for them. They're all in different places and in different times"
"Well then," Rose said, standing up on her feet. "I suppose we should get to work on finding these stones right away"
Nova shook her head. "You guys really don't need to worry about it too much. This is my responsibility"
The Doctor also stood up. He walked over to Nova, and placed his hands on her shoulders. "Supernova, you're not gonna stop me from helping you save the universe, and if it's really this important to you, I want to help"
Nova smiled at him. "Thanks Doctor"
Finally, Mickey stood up as well. "Saving the universe?" He rubbed his hands together and smiled. "Sign me up"
Nova's phone began to ring. She looked at it and noticed that Tony Stark was calling her. "If you guys will excuse me, I have to take this call" She pressed answer and went into another room.
______
"How's my favourite space lady these days?" Tony asked.
"I'm fine, Stark. Why are you calling? I said I'd call you if I made any progress" Nova said.
"I'm offended that I'm not even allowed to call and ask how you and Tate are doing"
"We're fine, Tony" Nova assured him. The Avengers knew that Nova and Tate travelled throughout space and time, and they also knew that sometimes, they came across dangerous threats. The Avengers couldn't help but worry sometimes. "How's everyone?"
"Nothing has tried to invade in awhile, so that's good. The kid keeps asking about you, and so does the old man"
Nova's two hearts leapt. "Really? I can understand Peter's curiosity, but why would Steve be asking about me?"
"You really don't need me to answer that for you, right?" She could hear Tony smirk. "You've got the smartest brain in the universe. I'm sure you could figure it out. Anyways, I'm calling because I'm throwing a party, and you and Tate have VIP invitations"
Nova pondered it over. "Could we bring some friends?"
"The more there merrier. I'll send the details to your phone. Oh, and happy adventuring or whatever" That was the last thing Tony said before the line went dead.
______
She went back to the console room. Rose, Mickey and Tate weren't there, but The Doctor was and he had his nose deep in a book. He was also wearing his glasses, which Nova thought made him even more handsome.
"I was in the Tardis library," The Doctor started when he sensed Nova's presence. "And I found this book on ancient artifacts found throughout the universe. Maybe it'll have something on the Infinity Stones"
"You're really serious about helping me, aren't you?" Nova smiled. The Doctor looked up from the book and at her. He returned the smile.
"Of course I am. Like I said earlier, if it's important to you, it's important to me"
Nova brought him into a hug. The Doctor wrapped his arms around her, and nuzzled his nose into the crook of her neck. He could smell her hair. It had an aroma of vanilla and lavender.
Something about being embraced in The Doctor's arms just felt so right to Nova. It's like they were two puzzles pieces that fit each other perfectly. He also smelt very good. Pine and cinnamon danced at her nostrils.
Rose was right. The two Time Lords were in love. They were both just scared to admit it.