kalleah | Voyages of Discovery (Chapter Seventeen)

For those of you who enjoyed the Doctor's exploration of how the heck this all came to pass, we have more of that in this chapter, along with further grumpy old men bantering. A shorter chapter, but the next one is long. Happy Tuesday!

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"To one who has faith, no explanation is necessary. To one without faith, no explanation is possible."
Saint Thomas Aquinas

"There's one place we haven't looked at," said the Doctor, standing up and extending a hand to help Rose up. She took it and then didn't let it go when she stood, using her free hand a little awkwardly to brush debris off her backside.

"Where's that?" she asked.

"The place where you appeared," he answered. "You didn't appear out of thin air in front of Jacob and me. You actually arrived here, through the mysterious doorway, deeper back into the garden." Rose nodded. "Think you can show me where?"

"I think so." She started forward and he followed, leaving the miscellany of gadgets and reading material spread out on the ground behind them. They walked together for a few moments, with the Doctor uncharacteristically silent and Rose carefully studying the trees around them for landmarks. At last, she stopped.

The Doctor looked around, his eyes flicking from one tree to another in quick succession. Rose turned in a circle and studied the view of the river below them. "This is it," she said. "From the doorway in the hospital, this is the view I remember of the river. I could see the marsh grass along the riverbank, and – yes, this tree! I remember."

"I've parked the TARDIS here before," said the Doctor thoughtfully, and put on his glasses. He aimed the sonic screwdriver at the ground where Rose stood, and even at the tree she had indicated. After a few readings, he tucked the screwdriver back into his pocket and produced a white scanner, repeating the analysis. Predictably, he sighed as he finished, returning both scanner and glasses to the pockets.

"Nothing new?" asked Rose.

"Nothing new. The same temporal and spatial disturbances from the TARDIS, and you and me. The same Void stuff." He scowled. "When did Void stuff get to be the same old routine? It's the same here as it seems to be everywhere else I look."

"Well, that's at least one more thing to rule out," said Rose. "All right. It's almost time to eat again, and we didn't eat lunch, remember?"

The Doctor brightened perceptibly at the idea of food, and Rose laughed at him. They joined hands again and set off at a brisk pace toward the central clearing.

They waited for several moments before the brothers emerged from the church and everyone went inside for their evening meal. Rose sat between the Doctor and Jacob and helped herself to a generous serving of an excellent salad when the bowl came to her. She ate heartily of fresh greens, tomatoes, bits of hard boiled eggs, crumbly white cheese, nuts, and crusty croutons made from the monastery's fine bread, all topped with an herby, thick dressing that she sopped up with more bread. At the end, she ate some of the citrus fruit, slightly warmed in a rich syrup.

The three of them settled on a bench outside the dining hall, with Rose for one drowsy and full from her meal. The Doctor filled Jacob in on his theories about the origins of the breach and elaborated on their initial experience in the parallel universe.

"That's all sealed now," said the Doctor, "and nothing I've seen in my analysis indicates that Rose could possibly have crossed through the same mechanisms we did before. It's got to be something completely new."

"An act of God?" asked Jacob.

"That's a phrase used to ensure insurance companies don't have to pay up after a lightning strike," complained the Doctor. "It is not an explanation."

"At least I have one."

"I have an explanation," said the Doctor, his voice a touch louder than politeness dictated. "Rose came through a doorway. I just don't happen to know what the doorway was or how it allowed her to travel. But it's at least as valid an explanation as yours."

"Boys," said Rose warningly. They both looked at her, eyebrows raised. "Play nice. Remember, you both like each other?"

Jacob laughed, a boisterous, rollicking sound, and the Doctor grinned. "Oh," he said, "I never argue this much with someone I don't like. No worries about that."

"What else can you look at?" asked Jacob, his face still alight with merriment.

"There's not much else," admitted the Doctor. "From here, I suppose it's a matter of letting my brilliant brain work it out." He let out a tiny, pained sigh. "I have a few more things in the library I can review, but I've looked at all the physical evidence we have."

"Let's go clean up your mess," said Rose. He agreed and they stood as one, leaving Jacob seated on the bench. "Are you coming?" she asked the monk.

He shook his head. "I don't think the Doctor would be very keen to let me touch his things. Besides, I have idled the day away with you, not that I have minded in the slightest, but I do have some chores to attend to before our prayers and my rest."

Rose helped him stand and kissed him tenderly on the cheek. "I know why you yelled at him," she whispered into his ear. "Don't think we won't talk about it later. But thank you."

"You're welcome," said Jacob, equally quietly.

"I'm right here," protested the Doctor. "I can hear every word you're saying."

Rose turned to him with a mischievous smirk. "Come on then, let's go clean up your toys." She took his hand and towed him off down the path.