The Green Soul

Chapter 5

"Thank you," Marie Glasser breathed out what seemed to be a sigh of relief.  "Matthew will show you to your room, and we do hope you'll join us for supper," She said, "And we can discuss how to... Further treat whatever is in this house."

"I think that's a brilliant idea," the Doctor smiled reassuringly at her. 

Marie nodded and stood, and everyone else stood at the same moment she did.  Matthew took both Rose's and the Doctor's suitcases and nodded towards the door.  The Doctor stuck out his arm and Rose looped hers through as they exited the room. 

Matthew led them up the giant staircase, and Rose felt so regal she could barely keep from slapping the Doctor's arm and squealing.  Somehow, she managed it, only gripping his bicep and grinning, earning her a giddy smile from him. 

The hallways were even beautiful, every pattern on the carpet completely gorgeous, and the lamps that were lit on the wall were even spectacular.  Rose was very tempted to touch the velvet curtains, but remembered her role several times on the way to the room where they would be staying.  The room which was certain to be beautiful and she wasn't sure she'd be able to stand it.

Matthew set down a suitcase and opened a large, cherrywood door before bringing the suitcases into the room.  Rose and the Doctor followed behind him, and both of them were in awe of what they saw once they crossed the threshold.

The room in itself was rather Victorian Gothic, clearly each guest room would've looked like this, based on the rich colors of the whole house.  The walls were a light maroon, the wooden floors deep colored and only mildly scratched, telling Rose at some point the Glassers must of had guests before.  With as rich as they were, Rose assumed they would've had visitors a lot.

And as Rose had assumed there would be, one bed.  It was a queen sized one with a huge decorative headboard and had white covers and pillowcases with red trimmings.  Overall, it was completely beautiful, but Rose was having a little trouble keeping her thoughts innocent in such a pristine and perfect honeymoon setting.

"Thank you, Matthew," the Doctor replied, interrupting her thoughts.  "Tell us, what's the date?  And when supper is, if you please."

"The date is July the First," Matthew replied, looking confused as to why that information needed to be given.  "I will retrieve you for supper in twenty minutes.  Please make yourselves comfortable."  He gave them a curt bow and left them there, shutting the door behind him. 

"So, we've got thirteen days to figure out what's going on around here," the Doctor said as he pulled their suitcases over to the giant wardrobe.  "And keep everybody safe."

"We'll be fine," she said, sounding very sure.  She moved to help him with the suitcases but he batted her away.  Huffing in response she walked over to the bed and flopped down onto her back,adjusting to keep her skirt from getting wrinkled underneath her before laying her hands on her stomach, her fingers laced.

The Doctor made short work of hanging up and folding all of their clothes, and Rose pretended not to listen to all of the little movements she could hear him making from across the room.  She shut her eyes and wondered if she'd be able to catch a nap before Matthew came to get them for dinner. 

"You think we'll be able to fix things up here, right?" Rose asked from her spot on the (frankly magnificent) bed. 

"I don't see why not," the Doctor said casually.  "We fix everything else, don't we?"

Rose hummed in the back of her throat and smiled a bit to herself.  "You know, usually.  After trial and error."

"Oi!" The Doctor replied indignantly from the wardrobe.

She snorted out a laugh.  "Sorry, sorry, but tell me I'm wrong and I won't say stuff like that."

The Doctor laughed with her.  "Yes, but that's half the fun, isn't it?  A random grab of the hand and off we go, running for our lives.  It's exhilarating, don't you think?"  His voice sounding pleading, like he desperately wanted her to agree with him, to love all the running as much as he did, which she really did.  Maybe she didn't tell him that enough.

She heaved a sigh and burrowed back farther into the pillows.  "Yeah, I do think it is.  Much more interesting than working at the shop, or doing anything back on Earth, honestly.  And look where we are now?  The one place in history that's always fascinated me.  I don't think I'll ever be able to thank you enough for that."

"You don't have to thank me," the Doctor replied.  "I love showing you the universe, experiencing it as something new!"  His voice sounded so excited and it made her smile happily at the picture of the smile that she knew was on his face.

She let out a little laugh at the thought of his eyebrows shooting up to his hairline in excitement.  It took her about a minute to realize there was a presence above her, and she opened her eyes, honestly expecting for there to be a spirit over her head, just based on what the Glassers had been saying.  What she wasn't expecting was to stare straight into the Doctor's eyes as he sat next to her hip on the bed, his arm over her waist and hand planted on the bed.

"Hello," she said shakily, not knowing exactly what he was doing or why he hadn't spoken, but finding it hard to concentrate on her questions while her heart was pounding wildly in her chest. 

"Hello," he replied, his voice once again low.  "Do you remember how you said you felt like you were disrupting something beautiful here?"

She nodded slowly, wondering where this could possibly be heading.  "Yeah," she said quietly, "I remember."

"And I said you weren't disrupting anything?" The Doctor pressed. 

Rose nodded again, her fingers growing fidgety on her stomach.  She laughed nervously.  "It wasn't that long ago, Doctor."

He gave her a soft smile and stroked her cheek with his free hand.  "You're not disrupting it because you fit into it so wonderfully."

Rose's breath hitched, not sure what was going on or why she liked it so much, but she knew that whatever it was she had to reciprocate it, because she wanted it.  She lifted one of her hands off of her stomach and stroked his cheek, mirroring his movements, wanting the excuse to touch him. 

She should've felt vulnerable, laying there with one of his arms over her body but not touching it, trapping her to the bed, and the other caressing her face, but somehow she was very comfortable.  His eyes bored into hers and she watched as his pupils dilated, almost making her forget how to breathe. 

"That's really kind of you," she whispered.

He smiled at her.  "Rose," her name fell from his lips on a breath and he leaned forward as she strained up to meet him.

A harsh knock at the door separated them, snapping the moment in two.  "Mr. and Mrs. Smith, if you will, I shall lead you to the dining hall."

The Doctor's eyes were back to normal and he was suddenly standing three feet from the bed, ruffling his hair with his other hand jammed in his pocket.  "Well, let's get something to eat, hm?  I'm starving."

Rose forced a smile and sat up, mourning the loss of his touch on her cheek and the breath that had been so close to her lips.  "Yeah, let's go."