Title: over the edge
Author: Mary (
stillxmyxheart)
Rating: R
Genre: Romance
Word Count: 2,345
Characters: Rose/Ten
Disclaimer: Anything you recognize? Ain't mine.
Summary: Even in familiar places you can sometimes get lost.
A/N: For Challenge 19 at
then_theres_us :D
"Will you just admit that you're lost?" Rose said as she shoved a long vine away from her face.
"I'm not lost," the Doctor replied stubbornly, "this is just a new path that I'm not familiar with."
Rose smirked and shook her head at his back, sidestepping a large bush covered with tiny purple flowers.
The TARDIS was miles behind them, parked in an open field which the Doctor had assured her wasn't far from an absolutely fantastic restaurant in which the beef was unlike anything Rose had ever had before and which didn't actually come from cows and therefore couldn't technically be called beef but it was a suitable word for conversation. All of this he'd rattled off in his normal fashion until Rose had laughed and told him to shut it and just take her there.
That had been several hours ago and now they were quite lost, even though he refused to admit it.
"Has it occurred to you that you might have the wrong planet?" Rose asked, slowing to allow a small rabbit-looking creature with three legs to cross in front of her. "Or maybe the wrong time? It wouldn't be the first time, you know."
"Rose, I'm 100 percent positive... well, 95 percent... well." He stopped walking and Rose nearly ran into him as he turned around to look at her. "I think we might be lost."
He grinned sheepishly at her, his hands jammed in his pockets, and Rose smiled up at him.
"The first step is admitting it. So what do we do now? Back to the TARDIS?" she said, turning to stare down the path they'd come.
"Well, we could," the Doctor said and Rose immediately recognized his tone.
"You want to go on, don't you?" she said, the corner of her mouth curving upward in a knowing grin.
"I've not been this way before, Rose, it's a new adventure!" he replied, bouncing on the balls of his feet, his face eager.
"All right then," Rose said, laughing, "but you owe me a proper meal after all of this."
The Doctor grinned and turned to continue down the path.
They walked on, the Doctor yammering on about the plant and animal life, while Rose listened and kept him from straying too far off the path.
By midday Rose was lifting her hair off her neck and fanning herself against the heat of the sun beating down on her.
"D'you think we could turn back now?" she asked as she leaned against a tree, pulling her shirt away from her torso in an effort to bring a breeze over her skin. "I'm boiling."
"I think there's a stream just ahead," the Doctor said, glancing back at her.
"How do you know? You've never been this way before."
"I can hear it," he replied, bemused.
"Oh, right, you and your superhero senses."
The Doctor laughed, his eyes drawn to the small bit of stomach that was revealed to him with every flap of Rose's shirt.
"You'll be able to hear it soon, it's not far. C'mon," he said, stepping forward and grabbing her hand to pull her along.
It was another half hour by Rose's watch before they reached the stream and Rose squinted pensively at the water.
"D'you think it's safe to drink?" she asked.
The Doctor pulled out the sonic screwdriver and adjusted the settings, aiming it at the water.
"Two parts hydrogen, one part oxygen, no parts of any other kind. Drink away."
Rose grinned at him and knelt beside the stream, cupping her hand in the cold water and bringing it to her mouth. She drank a few handfuls and straightened, feeling better as she stared along the stream, first in one direction and then in the other.
She headed to her left, hearing the sound of the water change the further she went. She pushed aside a low-hanging branch and gasped, delighted at the sight before her.
The Doctor came up behind her a few moments later, scolding her before he'd even reached her.
"How many times have I told you, Rose, don't wander off!" he said, his tone irritated and relieved at the same time.
Rose ignored him and pointed in front of her. "Look."
He moved to stand beside her and they both stared at the waterfall streaming down into the lagoon several feet below them. The water was a clear and vibrant blue, frothing gently where the waterfall hit.
"Isn't it beautiful?" Rose said, looking up at the Doctor.
"It is. This planet is just full of surprises," he mused, staring down at the water with his hands in his pockets.
He glanced over at Rose and then gave her a harder look when he noticed a familiar gleam in her eyes.
"Rose, whatever you're thinking, don't you dare."
Her shoes were already off and she wrinkled her nose at him, grinning with her tongue between her teeth. She dropped her shoes over the edge of the cliff where they landed on the ground beside the small pond.
"Don't do it," the Doctor said, a warning tone in his voice.
"C'mon, Doctor, where's your sense of adventure?" she said, her voice muffled as she pulled her shirt off over her head. Her jeans followed while the Doctor sputtered beside her, his eyes on the curve of her spine as she bent and picked up her clothes, wrapping her watch in her shirt before sending the whole bundle down to land beside her shoes.
"Rose, it's lunacy!" he said, making a determined effort to keep his eyes on her face.
"There's the fun," she said and gave him a bright smile before she leaped off the edge of the cliff, her body straight and her hair streaming above her head as she fell towards the water. Just before she hit she pulled her legs in tight and wrapped her arms around them, hitting the water with a great splash.
The Doctor watched anxiously, unable to see her in the water for the sudden flurry of little bubbles stirred up by her entrance. He let out his breath a moment later as her head popped above the surface. He could hear her laughing and watched as she pushed her hair back and looked up.
"C'mon! The water's great!" she called up to him.
The Doctor crossed his arms over his chest and shook his head. "I'm not jumping in there," he called back down.
Rose ducked back under the water and he could see her, tinted blue as she swam around a bit.
"I'm not," he said to himself and then before he knew it he was pulling off his coat and kicking off his shoes, stripping down to his underwear and tossing his clothes down where they landed on top of Rose's.
She came to the surface as he jumped and he heard her laugh just before he hit the water. He sank like a stone and his toes touched the bottom of the lagoon before he rose to the surface, his eyes on Rose's legs lazily treading water just before he emerged from the water.
He grinned at her as he shook his hair out of his eyes and she giggled.
"Knew you couldn't resist."
She placed her hands on his head and ducked him back under the water. He grabbed her around the waist and could hear her shriek as she fell back in the water, her toes brushing his thighs as she kicked her legs. She swam away from him, splashing him as she went and he followed her, grabbing at her feet as she laughed.
She ducked through the waterfall and he followed her.
There was an a hollowed out area in the rock face behind the waterfall and here the sound of the water echoed all around them, the walls dancing blue from the light reflecting off the water.
Rose's face glowed blue, illuminating her smile as she floated over to the ledge and pulled herself out of the water. The Doctor climbed up as well and stood beside her. It felt like they were inside an aquarium and the Doctor grinned, turning towards Rose to mention this to her.
She was shivering, her arms crossed tightly just under her breasts, which the Doctor couldn't help noticing were clearly visible through the thin material of her bra.
"Bit cold in here," she murmured, shivering.
The Doctor stepped towards her, placing his hands on her arms and rubbing them quickly.
"Better?" he asked and she laughed, shaking her head.
"Well, my arms are warm now." She smiled up at him the way she did when he missed some subtle human trait. "Let's go back."
She started to move away and he tightened his grip on her arms, pulling her back to him. She gasped slightly and looked up at him. Both of his hearts thudded at this burst of impulsivity and she placed a hand on his chest, a slow smile spreading over her face as she glanced back up at him.
He smiled at her hopefully and pressed his lips to hers, his hands slipping from her arms and around to her back, holding her tightly against him. Goosebumps rose on her flesh and his fingers moved lightly over the tiny bumps, feeling as though he could discover all of her secrets just by touching her skin.
His fingers moved up to the hooks of her bra, fumbling with the wet fabric a moment before finally undoing the clasps and pulling the bit of clothing away from her body. He kissed her again and pulled her to him, feeling her nipples hard against his chest. He ducked his head, taking one nipple into his mouth and she moaned, the sound echoing throughout the cavern as she ran her fingers through his hair.
His lips moved to her neck and his hands down to her knickers and with a bit of coaxing the fabric peeled away from her skin, slipping down her legs to be kicked out of the way.
She shivered again, though this time with anticipation as his hands lingered around her hips, holding her against him as he pushed her slowly back toward a raised bit of rock.
She sat and her fingers fluttered around the band of his underwear, pushing them down around his hips before he gently pushed her back, using one hand to nudge his shorts down the rest of the way while his other hand supported him against the rock, surprisingly smooth beneath his palm.
Rose reached up rather abruptly and pulled him to her. His foot slipped on the wet stone and he fell forward, catching himself with both hands to keep from crashing fully into Rose. Their heads bumped together and she cried out, her hand flying to her forehead before she started giggling. He grinned, apologizing against her lips as he kissed her, and she pulled him close again, slower this time.
Her legs circled his waist as he slid inside of her and her thighs were cold against his hips but her mouth was hot against his neck and the sensation sent a thrill through him, like swimming in warm water and suddenly hitting a cold pocket.
Their breathing echoed around the cavern, creating a sort of musical harmony with the sound of the waterfall, punctuated every now and then with a moan or a gasp until Rose cried out as she came, pulling him even closer as she arched against him. He shuddered with her as his climax followed and the harmony of their breathing fell into unison as he moved to lie beside her.
"Do you think we should head back now?" Rose murmured, threading her fingers through his.
"I think," he said, his face serious, "we should get lost more often."
There was silence a moment and then Rose burst out laughing, the sound ringing through the cavern as she turned to him, hiding her face against his arm.
"C'mon," she said, sitting up, "it's too cold in here."
She stood, gathering up her knickers in her hands and slipping naked into the water, disappearing under the waterfall.
The Doctor emerged on the other side a moment later to Rose sprawled on the grass beside the lagoon, drying off in the sun. She practically glowed in the light and the Doctor would've been more than happy to stand and watch her but she patted the grass beside her and so he stretched out next to her, closing his eyes against the bright sunlight. Her hand found his again and their fingers knotted together as they lay in the warm sunshine.
He opened his eyes sometime later to find the world around them dark and Rose curled against his side. He felt a bit disoriented until he heard the waterfall and realized they must have fallen asleep beside the lagoon.
Rose moved beside him and he looked over at her as she opened her eyes.
"S'dark," she murmured, frowning slightly as she yawned.
"We fell asleep," the Doctor said, watching as she stretched and feeling a faint stirring somewhere in the lower part of his stomach.
"Do you want to go back?" he asked and she shook her head.
"Not just now." She lay on her back, her fingers resting on her stomach as she stared up at the sky. "Different stars," she murmured.
The Doctor nodded, laying on his side next to her and propping himself up on his elbow so he could look at her.
"It's always a bit weird to look up at the sky and see different stars, different constellations." Her lips curved into a small smile as she glanced over at him. "S'one of my favorite things about traveling with you."
He reached down and pushed a bit of her hair off her face, his fingers lingering on her cheek.
"You know what my favorite part of traveling with you is?" he said as he leaned towards her, his lips inches from hers. She shook her head.
"Everything," he whispered.