Torchwood (Entry Two of The Diaries of a Teenage Time Lady)

Family

Well, I got this up rather quickly! I'm already back on a roll. :)

Enjoy this short little interlude before the next episode!

***

Rose stared looking at Anna, hoping to whatever god existed that the tiny girl was lying. But Anna couldn't lie to save her life; she was horrid at it. "I kissed him?" she asked to make sure.

"Mmhmm," Anna nodded with a grin. "It was funny."

"I'm glad you think so," Rose sighed, rubbing her temples. Anna had been catching her up on what had happened while Cassandra had been in her head. She knew she had turned into a flirter, judging by how her shirt had been unbuttoned, and now she knew she had kissed the Doctor.

In front of his daughter.

Who thought it was absolutely hilarious, if the giggling she was still doing was anything to go by.

"I think he liked it, too," Anna said thoughtfully, not noticing Rose blink rapidly. "That might have been when he noticed something was wrong, though."

"I would, too," Rose couldn't help but mumble.

"Oh, well," Anna shrugged before hugging her. "I'm glad you're back!"

Rose chuckled, patting her back. "I'm glad to know you were worried about me."

"'Course I was," Anna shrugged, bouncing towards the fridge to get another juice box. "What kind of family would I be if I wasn't?"

Rose nearly choked on her glass of lemonade. "Family?" she finally managed to get out.

"Well, yeah," Anna said in a "duh" voice. "Why wouldn't we be?"

Rose stared at Anna, still stunned. "Right," she said slowly, but inside, she was really touched. And trying hard not to cry, since being called family by Anna really was important to her. She didn't want to be a stranger, that was for sure, but family . . . well, that was big.

In fact, she almost missed Anna saying goodnight to her. "Night!" Rose called back as Anna left the kitchen.

"Goodnight, Daddy!" Anna grinned.

"Night, Kara," the Doctor responded as he watched Anna go with a raised eyebrow, then looked at Rose, who had a very sudden interest in her glass. "What got her that energized?"

Rose blushed. "She thought it was very amusing that I kissed you when Cassandra was in my head."

"Ah," the Doctor coughed, scratching the back of his head. "That would do it."

"Yeah," Rose cleared her throat. "That was not me."

"No, I know that," the Doctor assured her. "You had a head full of Cassandra."

Rose giggled. "Did you know, that strip of skin was from her behind?"

The Doctor gawked at her. "No."

"Oh, yes," Rose nodded, now laughing as the Doctor, too, started to laugh. "She stopped me from asking further. I got the gist of it."

"That is funny," the Doctor admitted. "I was actually coming to look for Mara; she was alone most of that adventure."

"Wasn't as bad as the Game Station, though," Rose mumbled, still feeling horrible about Anna being left alone and battling for her life on a game show.

"There wasn't anything we could've done differently," the Doctor shook his head. "The transmat picked who it picked. And if you had been standing where she was, you might've been on that game and gotten none of the answers. No offense, Rose, but you don't know much about universal history in the year 200,100. Mara's had it drilled into her for almost a century."

Rose conceded the point with a sigh and a hanging of her head. "I was scared," she said in a whisper.

"If you were scared, I was bloody terrified," the Doctor put a hand on her shoulder. "You care, Rose. That's all that I'm asking of you. Just keep caring about her, and you know Mara - she'll return it so much you'll be sick of it all."

"From her?" The corners of Rose's mouth lifted in a smile. "Never ever."

***

Anna is so cute. :) "Tooth and Claw" will be up in a minute!