Don't Change

"Come on! We're almost there!"

The alien city was in ruins. Buildings were smoking and crumbling around them, and screams echoed from every direction, accompanied by the fear-inducing sounds of Dalek lasers. Rose trudged through the alleys, slowed down by the Doctor, whose weight she was almost entirely supporting.

"Please, Doctor, you have to help me out here." she pleaded, stopping at a divide. The unfamiliar buildings all looked the same to her, especially with the smoke and tears blurring her vision.

"L-left. Go left." the Time Lord answered hoarsely, and she obeyed, awkwardly turning and continuing on through the alley until the TARDIS came into her line of vision. 'Finally,' she thought in relief, their sanctuary now only steps away. Hope surged through her, but she did her best to stifle it. She couldn't dare lose the calm focus that she had built up, not until they were safely inside the blue box.

Just as they reached the wooden doors, electronic cries for death got louder, and it was all Rose could do not to panic. She fumbled in her jean pocket for the key, trying to block out the Daleks' shouts as she frantically searched. Her stomach dropped in horror when her fingers slipped through a tear in the fabric, a tear large enough for a key to fit through. A squeak of fright escaped her mouth.

"Here." the Doctor's voice was barely heard over the war cries as he slipped his hand into his coat pocket and pulled out his own key. Rose took it and fit it into the lock, pushing through the doors and sealing them inside just as the Daleks rounded the corner.

As soon as the door shut, Rose let out a cry of relief and placed her hand over her heart, which was beating rapidly. The Doctor's weight left her shoulders and she watched him stumble to the console, using whatever strength he could muster to push buttons and pull levers until the familiar sound of takeoff filled the room. Then, with pained gasp, he fell to the floor, landing loudly on his back.

"Doctor!" Rose cried, forgetting her relief. She rushed to him and knelt at his side. "What can I do? There must be something around here that ca-"

"No, Rose," he cut her off, the pain clear in his voice, "There's nothing that we can do."

"What do you mean? There's always something to do. There's always a backup plan." she replied, voice catching as panic rose in her chest.  

"I mean that I'm dying, Rose." he said, grimacing at the change in the human girl's expression. There was no reason to sugarcoat the situation. "There's nothing we can do but let it happen."

"No, no, you can't leave me." she said softly, a lump forming in her throat. "Not again."

"Oh, Rose," the Doctor whispered, his old age visible in his eyes. He reached up weakly to touch her cheek, and she was quick to hold his hand there with her own. "My brilliant, brilliant Rose. I'll still be me. Just not...well, me."

"I know. And that's what scares me the most. Please don't change." Tears fell with those words, which the Doctor wiped away with the pad of his thumb. The touch felt strange on her cheek though, and when she removed his hand she saw why. His skin was beginning to glow brightly, and what was about to happen completely sank in. She dropped his hand and backed up with a small sob. The Time Lord managed a reassuring smile as the energy that flowed through him grew stronger.

"Be brave, Rose. Be brave and...and.." Before the Doctor could finish, the regeneration began, blasting the golden energy throughout the room. Rose took shelter beneath the console, shut her eyes, and covered her ears, trying desperately to shut out the world around her as all Hell broke loose. Wires snapped around her, sparks flew, and small explosions came from all directions, but Rose stayed curled up, praying to whatever was listening that it would end.

After what seemed like an eternity of utter chaos, the process finished and the room went still. Rose knew that it was over, but she couldn't find the courage to open her eyes until a familiar voice broken the silence.

"Oi, what're you doing in my TARDIS?"

She stared up into the face of a middle-aged man, who was looking back down at her in confusion. "Well? Are you going to answer me or sit and stare at me all day?" he asked, hands on his hips. Slowly, she crawled out from underneath the console and got to her feet.

"D-doctor?" she asked. He looked nothing like either of her Doctors, but he was wearing the trench coat and Converse that she had grown accustomed to. It couldn't be anyone else.

"Well, of course. I did say my TARDIS, didn't I?" he replied with an eyeroll. "Who are you, anyway?"

The question made her give a nervous laugh. "You can't be serious." she said, but the look on his face suggested otherwise.

"I'm quite serious, and-" the Doctor paused as he finally realized the state that his time machine was in, "Oh, bloody Hell!" He went to the controls, assessing the damage for a few moments before turning back to her. "Look, I don't know how you got in here, but you're going to have to go." He looked at the monitor that hung half-attached over his head. "Cardiff? When did I land in Cardiff?"  he mumbled to himself.

"Go? What do you mean go?!" Rose asked, going pale. He ignored her, instead fiddling with a stuck lever. She approached him and put a hand on his arm, bringing him to finally look at her. "It's me. Rose." He continued to give her a blank stare. "Your companion." she finished, desperation in her voice.

"I don't even know who you are." He shrugged off the hand that was still on his arm.

Rose's mouth dropped and she took a step back, a shattered look on her face. "Doctor, please." she begged, reaching out to him again. He swatted her hand away, and she broke, letting out a strangled sob.

"Oh, for goodness sake." the Doctor muttered, rolling his eyes. He placed his hands on her shoulders and turned her to face the doors, guiding her toward them. "I'm sorry, I really am, but I have repairs to make, and I can't have a blubbering mess keep me from doing them." He opened the door and pushed her out, slamming the door behind her.

"No!" Rose cried, turning back and grasping the door handle. "Don't leave! Doctor!" She pushed with all her strength, but the door was locked and slowly disappearing. After a moment, the TARDIS vanished completely, leaving Rose standing and staring at the spot it had just been in. She sank to her knees and let out another anguished cry.

"No! No...NO!"

She sat straight up, scream echoing in the dark room. Confused, she looked around, blinking as her eyes adjusted. She was in her bedroom on the TARDIS, clutching her sheets in both hands. Her heart was beating loudly in her chest, and a cold sweat had broken out on her forehead. She couldn't believe that all of that had only been a dream. It had seemed so real.

Just then, the door to her room slowly opened, and the Doctor's face appeared, the concern in his eyes visible from where she sat. "Rose, is everything okay?" he whispered, squinting a bit to try and find her in the dark.

She opened her mouth to answer, but a sob came out instead, and that was all the Doctor needed to enter the room and sit on the side of her bed. "Ssh, it's alright." he soothed, taking her into his arms.

"It was horrible." Rose said after a few moments of composing herself, "We ran into Daleks, and everything was burning, and you...you regenerated." New tears sprung to her eyes as memories of the dream came back to her. "You regenerated, and you were different."

"What do you mean?" he asked, brushing a lock of hair out of her tear-streaked face.

"You didn't remember who I was." She sniffed, wiping her eyes, "And you made me leave."

The Doctor tightened his embrace and planted a kiss to the top of her head. "But it was only a dream. How could I ever forget you?"

Rose smiled and rested her head on his shoulder. He held her like that for a while before she broke the silence again.

"Don't change." she whispered sleepily. The Doctor looked down at her and saw that she had finally closed her eyes and drifted off. He sighed, glad that he wouldn't have to lie to her, because he knew that he couldn't completely keep that promise.