Entry Twenty-two - Jacowitz

When I woke up for breakfast Ariella was already drinking a cuppa in the galley and the Doctor wasn't anywhere to be found. This is not entirely unusual. Besides getting into trouble and saving planets I think that his favourite activity in the universe is TARDIS repair, which takes place pretty much anywhere within it's voluminous size.

I made eggs and beans and toast and served up two helpings. "I have to leave," Ariella finally said and I frowned.

"Really? Why?"

"I need," she sighed and then started over, "Jacowitz needs me."

I shook my head, "But we can drop you off right when we got you."

It was obvious that she knew I was going to say that before I said it, though with Ari that's just par for course. "I know that. I really do know that, but it's just... the last time I travelled with you I was so young. I knew I had responsibilities, but I couldn't quite fathom what that really meant. Now it's so different. Now, I can feel my people inside my head, I can speak to them, they speak to me. I'm connected with them and the planet. I know how they need me, and I need them."

I was a bit sad, but I understood. It all made sense and everything but that didn't mean I wouldn't miss her.

"I'll miss you too," she said.

I paused and then smiled, "It's a little creepy when you do that."

She smiled that brilliant smile of hers, "I try not to, you know. But it's hard for me, I forget. It's hard. I hear all kinds of things."

I blanched slightly wondering what it was that she meant by that. Plus, well I didn't entirely want her digging through my mind, there are things in there. Private things. "Yeah?" I said.

She laughed, "Nothing bad! Really. I just, well, you know, if you ever want to talk about things I'm always here, well, not here but I'll always be there. For you."

I smiled and nodded, I knew.

"Good," she said. I rolled my eyes, but smiled anyway and she laughed. "I'd say the same to him."

"Oh, why? What have I done now?" the Doctor said from the doorway, buttoning up the sleeves of his shirt.

"You missed breakfast," I said.

His face fell, "Oh, no, really?"

I laughed at how crestfallen he really looked, "I'm kidding. There's more eggs, the kettle's full, and I can pop more break in the toaster. More importantly, Ari has something to tell you."

He was halfway through pouring a cup of tea before looked at Ariella, "Oh," he said and put down the mug. "Okay."

"Oh, don't be like that, I'll always be here in spirit," she laughed and the Doctor put on the falsest smile I've ever seen.

She wrinkled her nose and then reached her hand out and touched his temple and they proceeded to have a kind of conversation apparent only as their expressions changed and ended when Ariella laughed. I felt a bit left out, actually.

But then the Doctor served himself up some breakfast and we talked about happy things while trying not to think about Ariella leaving us. Though, of course, it was inevitable. And we could always go visit her soon. So after we'd eaten, dressed properly (yeah that was all me, I like my breakfast in my jim jams), and played a rousing game of Snakes and Ladders, the Doctor put the coordinates for Jacowitz into the console and a moment later I nearly flew across the console room as the TARDIS jerked its way to Ariella's home planet.

We opened up the doors to chaos. We were in the throne room and Ariella immediately saw all her advisors present but there were masses of other people everywhere. It took me a minute to realise that they were all the slaves from the Antalusian ship, and then only because they were wearing the bracelet teleporters. They must have just arrived. An idea what was only supported by the unconcious Antalusians on the floor, who were already cuffed and being hauled into custody by some very cool looking rhino headed things.

Ariella sprang into action immediately with an efficiently that left both me and the Doctor impressed. Really, we exchanged grinny looks and everything. It wasn't like we hadn't seen Ariella in action before, we had helped out with a couple of Sontaran invasions not to mention Antalusians, but most of the time she was so calm and graceful that you'd forget how impressive she can be. She told her advisors to get the refugees to the hospital wing as they hadn't been treated properly, and to get them all a square meal.

Before, when I was with them, they'd been in a sort of coma like sleep state. But now they were definitely awake and they were sort of panicky, but they were all corralled away to the hospital wing and Ariella began to make arrangements to have them taken to a planet called something like Samu where they could be educated and then taken into functioning society. It was all so quick that I hardly had a chance to register much of anything. And then Kit was standing in front of me.

"Rose!" he said, "It worked, thank you, everyone's free and everyone's safe. I don't know how you did it!"

I smiled, I was genuinely happy to see him (even if I definitely don't fancy him). "I didn't do anything, not really," I said, and then gestured vaguely, "It was mostly him."

"Oh, I don't know about that, couldn't have done it without you," the Doctor said, shoving his hands in his pockets in the way that he does and clicked his tongue a bit.

It reminded me of when we'd first met this bloke called Adam (he was very pretty but was pretty lame when it came to adventuring) and the Doctor let me impress him by telling me where we were so that I could deduct it for Adam. I wasn't as good at deducting things then. Now, I'm brilliant, if I do say so myself. But he didn't have to do that, the Doctor I mean, I wasn't all that interested in impressing Kit.

"Yeah, he probably could of," I said.

"Nah, she's just being modest," the Doctor said.

"I'm not," I said.

Then the Doctor opened his mouth to say something else, probably a cheeky remark repudiating what I'd just said, like he does, but Kit broke in then, big old grin. "Is this your copulation partner then?" he asked me and I think my mouth dropped about fifty feet (if that were possible). We were both silent for a moment and then Ariella started laughing from across the room. In fact she was laughing so hard that I thought she was going to hurt herself.

My mouth was still hanging open and Kit was looking at me curiously, I could not turn my head to look at the Doctor, I was sure he was right horrified. "Um, no, Kit, he's just... we're just mates, friends, we travel together, but it's not like that." Which was probably one of my less eloquent sentences. Basically I wanted to die.

It was at this point that I became aware that the Doctor was laughing. And Ari was shooting me very amused looks from across the room.

Kit looked a bit confused, but said nothing. Instead he just thanked me again and then I gave him a hug, which Ariella took a photo of:


And then he went on his way with the rest of his people. He'd go, get a meal and be looked at by Ari's medical team and then he'd be educated and get to start all over again. I knew he'd be brilliant. Once everyone was cleared out of the throne room Ariella, who was still giggling, came back over and jabbed me lightly in the arm with her elbow and laughed again.

I shook my head, "Get out of my head!" I said, but not offended.

She smiled and I smiled and shook my head again and then we linked arms and went in to tea, the Doctor trailing behind us. I love Jacowitz food, they have little crustless sandwiches, and brilliant fairy cakes, and banana donuts of course, and they make the best soup I have ever tasted, and this lovely juice made from Jacowitzian fruit called Horalb (but no wine due to an incident once upon a time that no one needs ever hear the tale of). It was a gorgeous tea, overall, and we ate slowly cause once we were finished we knew that it'd be time for us to take off in the TARDIS and Ari to go back to her job. But even the three of us couldn't prolong it forever and eventually the table was cleared and it was time to go.

Hugs were exchanged, and promises were made that we'd see each other soon (but those promises are always made and always broken). Then the Doctor took my hand and we went back into the TARDIS.

"Rose Tyler and pretty boys," he said doing that little sniffing thing he does and then grinned even though I knew he was just a sorry that Ariella was leaving as I was.

I rolled my eyes, playing along, "Need I remind you of a certainly lady known as Reinette?" He pulled a face, "I didn't think so."

He laughed a bit and the poked me in the ribs and I poked him back and then he took the TARDIS and spun it into the Vortex.



Things I Have Learned About Romanadvoratrelundar:

- She was (is) a Time Lord... or, what do they call a female Time Lord? Time Lady, perhaps?

- She was the Doctor's assistant while finding the Key to Time (still unclear on what that's meant to be.

- She could choose what she wanted her regenerations to look like (need to ask about this more).

- She regenerated for fun (?).

- Her second regeneration got along absurdly well with the Doctor's fourth regeneration.

- She stayed in E-Space to help rebuild it.

- She became Madame President of Gallifrey.

- She realised that the Mona Lisa had not eyebrows.

- She looked like this (thank you TARDIS):


and like this:


Until next time.