#finally borrowed a small enough screwdriver and opened it up only to remember i have no fucking idea what i was doing
Text
i keep having tech issues where the solution seems to be to like wait and stare at it and poke at it a little and be annoyed and then it spontaneously resolves itself
#my laptop was only booting into BIOS mode or w/e and giving me a 'no bootable devices' error#i eliminated all possible causes besides a hardware issue but didnt have a small enough screwdriver to open up the back#waited about a week and would repeatedly try to restart it to see if anything changes#(it didnt)#finally borrowed a small enough screwdriver and opened it up only to remember i have no fucking idea what i was doing#poked at the interior parts a little but did nothing that would change anything#booted up the computer again expecting it to go into BIOS as it had been up to 15 minutes prior (so i could get the right errors to search)#my laptop boots up normally with zero issue whatsoever
58 notes
·
View notes
Text
in another life
part two
Stiles assures Theo answers for all of their questions -god knows they have so many- tomorrow. Theo's reluctant at first, doesn't intend to let go of Stiles's words hanging in between them: "You think she's alive?" Eventually, Theo nods, finding something in Stiles's eyes and placing his trust in him. An odd feeling of protectiveness settles in Stiles's stomach at the vulnerability that Theo freely displays - in the past, he used to act guarded like everyone was out to get him. Granted, Theo had conned most of them before with charm and fake tears, and it's not above him to try it again if Theo could gain something worthy from it. But Stiles doesn't feel the usual tingle in his bones when he meets some shady criminal mastermind. His instincts have gotten him this far, so he gives it credit.
Stiles sighs. Innocent until proven guilty. He hopes Deaton has answers that expose the truth.
In the meantime, they have saddled him with more responsibility: bringing Theo home with him. Theo refuses to be stuck with either Liam or Mason any longer, it is unwise to put Theo alone with Melissa, and stupid to leave him unattended. So Stiles is the only viable choice. Plus, Theo thinks they're together. It only makes sense. Maybe.
It probably won't to his dad initially, but hey, after a while of normalcy, even he will acknowledge the need for something to go down - even dressed as Theo Raeken.
•••
They're in Stiles's Jeep, driving home to the Stilinski's, and it is a little disconcerting how Theo seems to be accustomed to his car. Theo had seen and been in the Jeep before, but this is different. He's too comfortable in the cramped space, even knows how to operate Stiles's defective radio. And the way he leans against the seat on the passenger's side and knows where to keep the screwdriver Stiles uses to manipulate the ignition is boggling his head worse than the snow outside.
Stiles draws in a breath, glancing sideways to his quiet company. "So, um, Deaton," he says, "we're going to Dr. Deaton tomorrow."
Theo turns to him, frowning. "What kind of doctor? Are you taking me to a shrink? Babe, I'm not crazy. What happened is freaky, but you have to believe me."
Okay, the babe thing, they're going to have to iron that wrinkle as soon as possible. Not even Lydia called him babe when they dated, and certainly not Malia. It's a cosmic joke that the once bane of his existence gets to call him that first. "No, he's not a shrink," Stiles promises him. "He's a veterinarian. But he knows about these things."
Theo arches a brow, "He knows about teleportation?"
"Telepor-" Stiles creases his forehead, jerking his head to Theo. The latter is expectant when he looks back. Stiles blinks, disbelieving and a little horrified. There's also a small bubble of hysteria beginning to form in his stomach. Somehow, this takes the cake in the weirdness of the situation. Because, of course, Theo also doesn't remember he's a chimera, does he? Blowing a heavy breath, he turns back to the road. He rubs the side of his temple, where it's starting to hurt, and purses his lips. "Yeah, sure. Teleportation."
Silence hangs in between them for a moment, Stiles sighing when he takes the last turn to his street. He can feel the burn of Theo's stare at the side of his face.
"You really don't remember we're together?" Theo sounds genuinely small when he speaks. "Then why are you here, if not to take me home? The two -Liam and Mason- are accusing me of having amnesia. But it's you who can't remember."
Stiles opens his mouth, but he doesn't know what to say. He knows that if he tells Theo that he remembers an illusory life, it's only going to invite more questions Stiles has no answers yet. In honesty, he's still reeling until now, and he's too tired to consider diving into research mode immediately, much less form a cohesive plan other than to bring Theo to Deaton first. And the best thing for them both to do before then is rest. They can't do that if Stiles stays up all night convincing Theo that they're not even friends, that he was a lying, conniving chimera asshole that tried to break his pack once, before turning a new leaf and helping them, and then disappearing on them like a bubble one day. Oh, and yeah, that it's so twisted for him to think his sister was alive when he had allowed her to die when he was nine.
No. Rest, Deaton, and then fuck up some shit - Stiles is doing this in that order.
"Hm," is what he ends up saying. Stiles pulls in the driveway, noting the blue truck already parked there. He's relieved to find a change of topic. He clears his throat, pointing at the vehicle. "That's your truck. Corey, Mason's boyfriend, drove it here."
Theo doesn't look away from him for the entire minute it takes Stiles to turn the engine off and gather his belongings. When he looks at Theo, that's only when the other man lowers his head and breathes. Theo nods and gets out of the car, moving towards the truck. Stiles silently prays for more strength if this is how awkward it is going to be for the whole evening until the morning.
Theo is studying his blue truck, eyeing it with trepidation. Stiles slings his messenger bag and stands beside him. Theo turns to him, shaking his head. "This isn't my car."
Stiles moves to the bed of Theo's pickup. "It is," he tells Theo.
Stiles is, unfortunately, familiar enough with this car, and not with pleasant memories. Stiles lifts the haphazardly strewn cloth covering most of the space of the truck bed and makes a noise of disgust with what he finds underneath. It was definitely tidier before.
Theo also peeks under the cloth and pulls his face in a similar reaction. An alarming amount of empty plastic noodle cups and take-out boxes litter the covered area. "It can't be mine because I'm not crazy for instant ramen."
Stiles drops the cloth and walks to the driver's seat. He cups his hands on either side of his eyes and looks inside through the window. He finds a folded blanket at the backseat and a pink sweater on top of the pile of clothes. The chimera wore the hell out of those, Stiles remembers grudgingly. Transferring his scrutiny on the passenger side, he sees empty water bottles and coke cans, and old receipts. What the hell has Theo been up to that he can't even throw his trash out or attempt to be less sloppy?
One thing is sure, though. The car is where Theo lives; the pizza in the backseat looks stale but not molded. He faces Theo and gives him a grim nod, "Let's discuss the condition of your car and your unhealthy lifestyle tomorrow, yeah?"
Theo huffs, wanting to protest and eyeing his car in disgust, but shrugs in agreement.
•••
His father is working the night shift, so explaining Theo is a problem for future Stiles, which makes him sag in relief under the hot spray of his shower. When he's finished, he changes into clean sweatpants and an old Christmas ugly sweater and goes back to his room.
Theo is already sitting on his temporary bed on the floor. Stiles refuses to make him sleep on the couch where the kitchen and knives are near. At least, inside his room, he can fight him should Theo attempt anything at all. Stiles has gotten better at hand-to-hand combat since the FBI, and also a very light sleeper and sometimes prone to insomnia, especially on stressful occasions like this. Any minor shuffling from Theo will alert him. Not that he thinks Theo will do anything. His impulses tell him that Theo's memory dilemma is not made-up, and he's truthful this time, but it's always better to be safe than sorry.
Theo looks up when he enters, offering a small smile. Stiles's eyes catch sight of the outline of a necklace hidden underneath the collar of Theo's borrowed shirt. Stiles's clothes look a bit tight on him but otherwise, more comfortable than the dirty jeans he was wearing earlier.
"It's so weird to see your old bed," Theo says, looking at the said bed. "Noah brought you a bigger one so that we can share when we visit. I wonder what happened to it?"
Stiles drops onto his bed with a small bounce. He didn't expect that. "Oh, um,"
Theo meets his eyes, "And Roscoe," a shadow crosses his face. "You took down all of the polaroid pictures we put of us. You even replaced the screwdriver that I gave you with an old one."
He sounds so betrayed that Stiles is stunned by what he's hearing. What startles him most, though, is: "You know my Jeep's name?"
At this question, Theo looks downright affronted. But Stiles has every reason to be surprised. His mom, his dad, and Scott are the only people apart from him who knows his Jeep's name -not another soul. Not even Lydia.
"Of course, I know your Jeep's name," Theo responds with a deepening scowl. "We've been together for four years, Stiles."
Stiles raises a hand to halt Theo as his cogs turn in his head. A swell of panic takes root in him. This memory thing is more serious than he initially thought. Theo's not only hallucinating a different life but he also somehow knows things he shouldn't. The screwdriver compartment, his broken radio, his Jeep's name -what else does he know that he isn't supposed to?
"Okay," Stiles finally says, lowering his hand and barrier from Theo, who's still glowering. It seems he has lost his patience with Stiles, as well. If this continues, Stiles might snap, too. So he says as appeasing as he could. "Let's say that whatever happened to you affected our memories of each other. But we'll go to Dr. Deaton for answers tomorrow, and then we can go back to our normal lives. Yes? Do you trust me?"
As soon as he says it, Stiles wants to take it back. It seems like a strange concept to ask Theo, of all people, to trust Stiles after everything. As crazy as Stiles actually trusting Theo. But here they are.
Theo doesn't reply for a long time, but he looks pensive and considering as he glares. In the end, he huffs in surrender, shoulders drooping in defeat. For the first time, the bags under his eyes become more prominent in his features. He looks so weary, hurt, and confused. Stiles is well acquainted with that look. It's the look of someone who hasn't been sleeping well. With the state of Theo's truck, Stiles has no problem picturing the man twist-and-turning to find a good position and not finding any.
Theo dips his head, replying with a rough voice, "Yeah. I trust you."
Before Stiles can say any more, Theo gives him his back and reclines on his mattress. He pulls the covers on himself, like a shield, and mumbles good night to Stiles.
Sighing, Stiles turns the desk lamp off and lays on his bed, staring at the ceiling for who knows how long. After a while, he exhales and rubs the bridge of his nose. His body is exhausted, and so is his mind, but they're not shutting off like they're supposed to. He almost wishes he is back in his dorm room in Virginia, staying up to piece the puzzles of a case. He has dealt with mundane human crises for so long that coaxing the supernatural mojo back appears to be an impossibly draining affair.
When he glances back at Theo on the floor, he pauses as he notices it. There's a blank inked mark on Theo's nape: a tattoo that Stiles knows for sure he didn't have the last time they saw each other. He turns to his side to look closely at it.
The tattoo is of a circle interlaced with three interconnected ovals. It reminds him closely of Derek's triskelion tattoo. But unlike Derek's, Theo's mark gives him an ominous feeling.
Because Stiles is sure, it isn't an optical illusion when it glowed in the darkness of his room for a second.
~•~
#steo#steo fic#steo ficlet#teen wolf#stiles stilinski#theo raeken#stiles x theo#parallel universe au#in another life#part 2#fics tag#well the christmas prompts may have been lost#lmao#but well I guess I'll just continue with this#omg this is going to be a disaster fic#i can just feel it lmao
33 notes
·
View notes
Text
A Year of Bittersweet Capstone
This school year has been extra challenging for us. Not just because it is our last year in high school but because of our capstone subject. Every time I hear that word, it seems very daunting and bothering at some point. Knowing that I have a few knowledge about wirings and how it works, I have already prepared myself on the amount of stress capstone may bring. As I am writing this personal blog, it amazes me on how I can look back at some of the hardest part of this school year and how I can finally say 'Salamat God kay tapos na'. My biggest achievement is finally relating to Aristotle's 'The roots of education are bitter, but the fruit is sweet.' This is truly hard yet rewarding task for all of us. I am very glad we are able to make our project as we have envisioned it to be.
Imagine if we were given the whole school year just to work on this project without other tasks, it would be the ultimate dream. Flying agricultural drones and robots equipped with artificial intelligence? If only we were given enough time for it, it would not be impossible. Of course, in reality, there are a lot more to do and accomplish in school. We had to juggle our time between doing school works for the whole day and going to a group activity for this project after school.
To be honest, I think our school is not ready for this subject and so are the students. The school is introducing robotics in the subject but there are only few teachers who are knowledgeable on programming. We cannot just solely rely on those Indian people on YouTube to teach us all of these things. Programming is new to us, especially we haven't had any computer-related subjects. We only had ICT subject when we were in 7th grade and nothing else. I also know some students in previous school years having the same subject who had the same struggle. However, since this is part of the new curriculum of K to 12, we cannot do anything but to bear with it. Also, as a student, we also wanted to do our best for the project but we lack support. It is ironic that the school is not even initiating a seminar or a workshop for programming but is having a subject for robotics. This is our struggle. I would not be shocked if other students would encounter this problem too in the next coming years. Unless the school would really take it seriously in coming up with ways on how to make students be ready and equipped for this subject and the so-called 'Industry 4.0', everything would be fine.
I salute all those programmers in YouTube who are very willing to share their innovative ideas to their subscribers. This allowed us to at least have an overview on how to properly connect and wire all the sensors. Following the instructions in YouTube was somewhat easy but programming was the hardest part since some were not willing to share their codes for the Arduino. Although they also film their codes but sometimes it is just 2 seconds of the whole instructional video. It's funny how we were so desperate to know the code that we had to screenshot some clips of the video and zoom in just to get an idea of it. We were totally clueless at the start of the year.
During our second semester, we were thankful that we had the subject Empowerment Technology. This subject was not a burden to us like how other subjects would feel like. It even made things easier for us by guiding us what to do in our projects. Calling it a blessing in disguise? I'd say yes. Our subject teacher, Sir Rae John Arango, was very willing to help us finish our project. He even set a target date for the project. I can clearly remember when he said 'Dapat before kayo magbakasyon tapos na 'yang mga projects niyo para pag Christmas wala nang problema'. Who would not want to enjoy the holidays, right? But of course, knowing that we are procrastinators, we did not meet that target date. Sir Arango still helped us program our projects despite being busy with his Continuous Improvement Project. Even if there were 11 groups for Capstone, he managed to help us all. I truly admire how he was very passionate in helping us one group at a time. To be honest, our capstone subject was only making us knowledgeable on the proper ways in conducting the research but not on how to do the actual project itself, on how to program and build the actual robot. I bet we are all very grateful that the Empowerment Technology subject are able to do this. Doing the project was somehow a lot easier for us by since our teacher was guided us on what we need to download, search for and other sensors to buy. Sir Arango is an angel sent from heaven to us struggling students or what I prefer to call 'frustrated programmers'. We owe the success of our projects to you Sir. (Sir Arango, if by any chance you are reading this, beke nemen)
We were on our track, fully confident that we are going to be able to at least start programming our project, AgriCop. When we thought everything is going in our favor, Typhoon Tisoy came. There was a blackout in our whole province. When we thought things couldn't get any worse, we were all wrong. There was no signal for us to communicate with other groupmates and to even just search in YouTube for the project. The scariest part of it is that I even had to charge our laptop using the generator while knowing the risks of the fluctuating current. I just needed to start doing the codes but then there was no internet to search for reference. We ended up doing nothing for the whole month of December. A month away from Capstone and a month before cramming and stress because of it.
Working in a group of five made it a lot easier. Although other groups have more members in their team, I mostly prefer to work in small groups. We are the only group with all girls which made it quite difficult since when need to immerse ourselves in mechanical and electronics. We are quite good in making arts and crafts, designing things, doing calligraphies and other artworks. However, this is the complete opposite of what we are used of doing. We had to let go of the paint brushes, scissors and color palettes. Instead, we learned how to properly handle screwdrivers, how to use a grinder and most especially how to solder. It was an intimidating task for all of us but we were open to learning new things. I am also grateful to my brother who taught us how to do all of these things. We did not know what tools to use but he was there to let us borrow all of the things that we needed for the project which allowed us to save a lot of money instead of buying new tools. I am so proud of what we have learned and achieved.
We were already warned by our teacher at the start of the school year that this capstone project would really be worth a lot of money. We had to save money from what my parents give as our allowance in school because sometimes it is quite embarrassing to ask extra money from my parents for this. Also, we had to buy the most basic parts first since our group did not have enough money to buy all things at once. Capstone even tested our negotiating skills since we have figured out that some of the things we have ordered were not useful for the mechatronic system of AgriCop. So, we had to sell it to other groups who needed extra relay drivers and arduino board. We were also lucky since one of our groupmates have vouchers and her shipping fee for her orders is always 50 pesos only. We also had to wait for Shopee's promo such as during 11.11 and 12.12 Christmas sale for us to get discounts. We also asked for scrap materials like aluminum tubes to reduce our expenses. Overall, we spent about 6 thousand for this robot. For me, that is already a large amount of money since it is like the salary of a normal government employee for a month of work. I am very thankful that our parents were very supportive and would understand us if sometimes we go home late just for this project. Seeing how the AgriCop works and operates is worth the amount of money that we have invested for it.
Last week has been the most tiring week in my entire existence. It was the very first time that I have experienced studying the whole day in school, going straight to our classmate's house, eating at around 8:30 or 9:00 in the evening, losing track of time, staying awake until 4 o' clock in the morning and going to school at 7:30 AM. We have gone through this cycle every day last week. It was physically and mentally draining. We also had different summative tests and projects to pass aside from the AgriCop. We did not even have the time to review or even do requirements in other subjects. Staying up late was the most challenging part of it. My father would always remind us to get enough hours of sleep but at that time we just cannot. We were deprived of sleep. The schedule of final defense was moved a week earlier than the planned date. Every single day we were required to pass different outputs in capstone. At that time there was no room for 8 hours of sleep but more space for eye bags and eye strain. We already divided the tasks for each of us. I was assigned to work on the write-up. There was this one time that I can't really handle my sleepiness anymore that I took a nap for an hour not minding how many mosquitoes were already buzzing in my ears and biting my arm. Four o' clock in the morning is our usual 'dismissal' in the group activity. We are so blessed that the father of one of our groupmates would drive each us to our houses even if it is already early in the morning. My father also does the same thing when we decided to do group activity for the last few days in our house. We are very grateful and blessed.
We have invested so much in this project, our effort, money, sleep and sacrificing time for other subjects. At some point, we felt like we were the underdog out of all the groups but I am glad that each of us did not let go of that little hope that we can pull this through. We were all tired. I saw it in the eyes of my classmates and even in my own groupmates' as we go to school in the morning after probably not getting enough rest at all. I heard their voices saying 'Di ko na aram ang uunahon', 'Papano na ini', 'Di pa ngani ako nangarigo nan nagmahaw'. We were all going through the toughest part of our life as graduating students. I always believe that the only way to overcome a situation is not to run away from it but to get through it with high hope. I am very thankful that I have groupmates who would always lift each other up and still laugh at the dumbest things that we would do at 2 AM. The perfect term to describe all of us is 'sabaw'.
We were nervous and at the same time excited during the poster presentation of our project. This was the time that we did not have any practice of our script. We just had the time to read the lines once and then the first judge already stood in front of us. We were glad that they get to appreciate our projects and made suggestions for the design of AgriCop. There was this one science teacher which was part of the judges who made me teary-eyed. Not because I was scared or intimated but because she understands what we have gone through and she was really listening and paying attention to every detail that we are saying. She told us that she really appreciates the Mechatronic System of AgriCop that is not complicated compared to other groups. She also mentioned about how it could help farmers to easily replicate our study using mechatronics. She appreciates how we put into consideration the situation of the farmers and the knowledge that they have when it comes to programming. In every word that she mentioned, I could sincerely feel her genuine appreciation to our project and how we, girls, are able to come up with AgriCop. Finally, there was at least this one teacher who can relate to all of our struggles and how hard research is. She understands our situation and acknowledges all the efforts that we have put in this project. We needed that extra boost of support at those moments. I would forever cherish all the kind words that she said to us.
The day of the final defense came. At this same day, we were also preparing for the awards in school so it made it extra hassle for us. We were practicing the script at around 10 AM and also writing down all the possible questions of the panel. I remember how nervous we were entering the STEM B room to present our project. We weren't able to finish our presentation since we exceeded the time limit and the panel already told us to show the remaining slides. The teachers were very kind to us which is the complete opposite of what we were expecting. I guess they already knew the amount of effort, money and sleepless nights we have invested for this. They commended and congratulated us for the project. They also mentioned that they witnessed how our research studies have evolved from simple studies in junior high to a research product with quality. We feel blessed that the AgriCop functioned properly and cooperated well with us. Leaving that room made us all sigh in relief. Finally, our capstone project is done. After a whole school year of working on it, it is already finished. I remember how we were all jumping around outside the room saying 'Tapos na!'. We also had a mini celebration and ate sotanghon and puto which was the food left for the panels. I can still feel that relief we all felt at that moment. A truly rewarding moment.
Capstone has been a very tough subject for all of us. We weren't prepared for it, especially in programming but we are thankful that our Empowerment Technology teacher guided us all the way. Being in a group of all girls did not became our weakness, instead Capstone allowed us to work even harder and build stronger friendship. I will leave all of the stress, rants, negative emotions, will and hopes that I have had doing this project here in my blog. As I venture more on robotics in college or in my future job, I'll look back at this and remember how we all started. I'd remind myself of a struggling student without any idea of robotics but manages to overcome it and finish strong.
1 note
·
View note
Text
By Any Other Name
Fandom: Doctor Who
Rating: G
Pairing: The Doctor/Rose Tyler, Eleventh Doctor/Rose Tyler (The Doctor/Clara Oswald, Eleventh Doctor/Clara Oswald)
Chapters: 8/26
Read on AO3 here.
“Rose Tyler was dying - or, at least, she was relatively certain that that’s what was happening …”
A Season 7 AU where Rose returns to her home universe only to find that 100 years have passed and nothing is quite the way that she remembers it. She wakes up with a new body, a new life, and a new Doctor. What has the Bad Wolf gotten her into this time?
Rating may go up as the story continues
But no trip with the Doctor (however seemingly-innocent it may be) ever really went according to plan, did it? Rose realized that she had forgotten, during the decades spent living her normal, human life - she had forgotten the lives that were sometimes lost in the disasters that the Doctor jumped into. She wondered if he was ever truly able to make himself forget the many names and faces that were lost while he fought so hard to put the universe back in order. She wondered if he ever went back and counted them.
Rose had been beside herself when she had been forced to sit back and watch as Merry Gejelh, the Queen of Years, had been carried away screaming - but the Doctor had quickly taken on a familiar look of determination, so Rose followed him without question as he immediately started carrying out a plan for her rescue.
"I need something precious!" the Doctor cried out as he ran up to a stand in the bazaar that seemed to be renting some sort of alien mopeds.
"Well, you must have something!" Rose called back, gesturing lamely to his coat pockets and barely biting back the urge to dig into his bigger-on-the-inside pockets herself. "All the places you've seen, there must be something!"
"This," the Doctor admitted, sheepishly waving his new sonic screwdriver between them before returning it to his breast pocket once more, "and I don't want to give it away, because it comes in handy."
Rose gritted her teeth in silence for a moment as she stared deep into his eyes, desperately trying to puzzle out a better option. The Doctor simply stared back at her, his nervous energy making her feel as fidgety as he was. She knew that he was testing her, waiting for her to come to the same conclusion that he had already made before he had even turned to ask her.
Finally, without breaking eye contact with him, Rose bit the inside of her cheek and wrenched the thin, brass-colored ring from her third finger. She shoved it into the Doctor's hand without a word and turned away before she could convince herself otherwise.
It's not even real, she silently scolded herself. It's just a fake - a stupid, useless imitation. But no amount of assurances could ease the deep, bitter sensation of loss that Rose could feel deep in her gut as she crossed her arms tight over her chest and determinedly stared at her own boots. She felt as though she were somehow betraying her husband by throwing away the last memento of his that she had left. She hated the Doctor for asking her to do it, and she hated herself even more for going along with it.
She could see the Doctor out of the corner of her eye slowly twisting the small ring about in his fingers before he finally stepped forward and handed it to the female alien renting out mopeds. The two of them didn't speak again until they got to the pyramid and they fell back into their usual routine of teamwork in an attempt to save the young, innocent Merry Gejelh.
However, neither of them had quite been prepared for that rescue to include facing off against a giant, soul-eating sun.
"You're going to fight it, aren't you?" Rose asked as she stood at the Doctor's side and squared off against the impending alien threat before them.
"Regrettably, yes. I think I may be about to do that," he murmured sardonically.
"It's really big," she commented idly.
"I've seen bigger."
"Really?" she asked, finally breaking her gaze away from the deadly sun and whirling to look at him with a doubtful expression.
"Are you joking? It's massive!" he hissed, turning to meet her eye as well.
"I'm staying with you," she informed him simply.
"No you're not."
"Yes I am. I can ... assist," she insisted stubbornly.
"No you can't!"
"I'm not leaving you, Doctor." Rose locked her jaw as she stared up at him, but his expression was completely unwavering - just as it always was when he was determined to play the martyr.
"Listen, you've got something precious, there," he murmured, his tone low and serious as he glanced sideways at Merry. "And when you're holding onto something precious, you run - always, always run."
He was looking deep into her eyes now and Rose felt as though her knees might buckle with the sheer weight of emotion that she could see lurking behind his green gaze. "You run and run as fast as you can and you don't stop running until you're out from under the shadow. Now," the Doctor paused to flash Merry a small, encouraging smile as he continued, "off you pop. Take the moped. I'll walk."
He turned away without a backwards glance and the familiar routine of their adventures quickly came rushing back to Rose, reminding her that there was always an order to things. Make sure that the civilians were safe, first - save as many as you could - and then go back and save the Doctor.
"Isn't he frightened?" Merry asked nervously as Rose set her back down in the amphitheater a safe distance away form the glowing golden pyramid.
"I think he is," Rose admitted, already preparing the moped so that she could retrace her steps and get back to him. "I think he's very frightened."
"I want to help," the young girl insisted.
"So do I," Rose agreed, giving her an encouraging nod before punching the accelerator on her borrowed vehicle and racing back to the Doctor's side.
She found him hunched over before the massive sun, his limbs shaking weakly and his head hung in defeat. The image sent a shock of pain straight to Rose's heart, but before she could move any closer to comfort him or assess his injuries, she blinked and a familiar flash of gold caught and drew her attention away.
The Bad Wolf appeared this time as nothing more than a humanoid shape with long, glowing hair and bright golden eyes. She stood over the Doctor like a sentinel, keeping herself between him and the imminent threat before him, but her eyes were trained on Rose.
"He has sacrificed his own memories to sate the hunger of the beast," the otherworldly creature informed her. "But it is still not enough."
"What do we do?" Rose asked breathlessly, glancing in terror between the glowing woman and the ravenous star.
"The only thing that will satisfy that being's hunger is the infinity of time," the Bad Wolf explained simply. "I am the sun and the moon, the day and the night. I can out-burn the monster."
"So do it, then!" Rose demanded impatiently.
The Bad Wolf didn't say another word, she simply raised her hand towards Rose, silently beckoning her forward. Rose felt ice cold fear clutching at her heart, but the Doctor was still bent down in the dirt at her feet and she couldn't turn down the offer to end all of this and save his life. Rose Tyler would always be there to protect her Doctor, no matter what the consequences.
The second that her fingertips touched the glowing gold light of the Wolf's, Rose gasped as the energy of time quickly flooded her veins. It wasn't the raw, unrestrained power of the time vortex this time - the energy was focused and had a dangerous intent. Rose could feel the Bad Wolf in her head as a separate entity, channeling through her as the soul-eating star greedily tried to drain the life out of her.
She was distantly aware of the Doctor shifting near her feet once more, but Rose shut her eyes tight as the eternal song of time rang through her head and forced herself to focus on feeding as much energy into the hungry alien sun as possible.
Keep him safe, a feminine voice whispered as the golden light pulsed brighter and brighter. Then, with a sudden burst of energy, the Bad Wolf was gone as though she never was.
Rose gasped as she instantly returned to her own mind and her eyes snapped open to watch in fascination as the sun before her imploded in on itself until its light completely dissipated into darkness.
"What ... did you do ...?" The Doctor's weak voice drifted up to her and immediately demanded all of Rose's attention. She fell to her knees at his side and put her arms around him in an attempt to steady him.
"Are you alright?" she asked breathlessly.
"Right as rain," he murmured wearily. "Never better. A-okay, that's me." He turned to glance at her out of the corner of his eye as he asked again, "What just happened?"
"You did it," Rose lied, smiling as confidently as she could and squeezing his shoulders reassuringly. "Great big carnivorous sun - easy. The people of this star system won't have to worry about sacrificing innocent souls ever again."
"No, but ... you ... there was a light ..." he insisted haltingly, his brows screwing together in confusion as the Doctor stared at her with hazy, unfocused eyes.
"Yes, there was," Rose agreed quietly. "But now it's gone. All sorted, thanks to you, Doctor."
He was muttering more questions, but his words were slurred together so Rose wasn't quite able to catch them.
"How about we get you back to the TARDIS, eh?" she asked encouragingly, pulling at his arms in an attempt to get him to stand once more.
Rose was half-bent over him when he suddenly grabbed her left hand and pressed something small and warm against her palm. Once he released his hold on her, she slowly drew back her fingers to reveal the small, brass-colored ring that she had been certain that she would never see again. She gasped out loud in shock and couldn't even bring herself to feel the slightest bit of annoyance at the smug grin that the Doctor was leveling at her.
"But how did you ...?" she asked breathlessly.
"Nicked it after we got the moped," the Doctor replied matter-of-factly. He narrowed his eyes on her in a mildly indignant look as he added, "You didn't really think I'd ask you to give up your wedding ring, did you?"
It certainly wasn't outside of the realm of possibilities that Rose could imagine concerning the Doctor - he had never really been overly-sentimental about material objects, after all (even the sonic had been burned and left behind before in pursuit of bigger and better things). But she decided not to mention that fact as she rewarded him instead with a winning smile and thanked him profusely for thinking of her.
She slipped the ring quickly back onto her finger and helped the Doctor to his feet, where he wobbled unevenly for a few moments and stared out into the vacuum of space where the soul-eating sun had been just a few minutes ago. Finally, he turned his hard, assessing look back on her.
"Clara, that light ..." he murmured quietly.
"It was just the sun, Doctor," she lied again, making her face as flat and unreadable as possible. Rose could see his jaw tense as he narrowed his eyes on her in thought. "Why do you keep looking at me like that, Doctor?" she asked, already knowing full well, but wanting to see what information he was willing to reveal on his end before she opened her mouth and said something irreversibly foolish.
"I don't know," he replied slowly. "You remind me of someone."
"Who?"
"Someone who died."
That didn't really answer her question - Rose knew that the Doctor had been forced to watch many of his past companions come and go over the years. So the question was - which one was he referring to now? Was he talking about the Clara that the Bad Wolf had set on his path twice already? Or was he talking about her?
The Doctor was watching her intently as Rose looped her arm under his shoulders and let him lean his weight on her as they stumbled unsteadily back to the moped that she had driven to his rescue.
Finally, she murmured quietly under her breath, "Yeah, I think I know the feeling ..."
"Eh?" the Doctor asked, his focused interest dulled somewhat by his exhaustion.
"You remind me of someone, too," Rose admitted, smiling and glancing up at him quickly out of the corner of her eye. "Someone I lost a while ago."
The Doctor furrowed his brows at her as he asked again, "You're sure we've never met before?"
Rose chuckled and patted his side reassuringly from where she kept her grip on him, making sure that he didn't stumble or sway too far away from her. "I don't know," she muttered teasingly, "maybe we did, once - in another life."
#doctor who#dw#fanfiction#fanfic#doctor who fanfiction#doctor who fanfic#dw fanfiction#dw fanfic#the doctor#rose tyler#eleventh doctor#eleven/rose#elevenxrose#the doctor/rose#the doctorxrose
0 notes
Last Seen Blogs
secretwastelandfox
secretwastelandfox
siyahlisiir
"Şiir olacak kızsın "
atsababy
Untitled
workitboys
Work It Boys~
somsomany
sab