Ashes ~ (a TenRose Fanfiction)

Henley's House

Realised after if wrote this its again in Rose's POV, so my next chapter will be in the Doctor's for a change! Hope you like this,
Ella :))

***

~Chapter 26
-Rose's POV

My eyes drift open slowly, and it takes me a moment to come to a sense of my surroundings. I'm not just in the TARDIS, I'm in the Doctors room, and he's led right beside me, sound asleep. It's not often I get moments like this, moments where I wake before him, or moments I can just lie with him without the worry of planets of fears, or waking up somewhere without him. It's just us, and no one else. Light pours into the room from outside the slightly open door left open from last night, and it casts shadows on The Doctor's face. I reach up a hand, gently gliding my fingers across his cheekbone. I see him stir slightly and he opens his eyes, a small smile forming on his lips.
"Hey" he says softly.
"Hi" I smile, and don't move my hand from his cheek.
"Sleep okay?" He asks, his eyes now fully open.
"Better after you came in" I smile, and cuddle in closer to him.
"Maybe it should be like this very night"
"You don't sleep, Doctor"
"I do - just not as much as you do"
"You don't need to turn domestic for me, just...stay once in a while" I murmur.
"How could I resist?" He smiles. I look up at him and press a small kiss to his lips, then jump out of bed. "Since when have you been so eager to get up?"
"Since I just remembered we're going to visit the adoption centre at 12pm, and that's in one hour" I say, shuffling into my slippers. His face pales.
"Adoption centre?"
"Not to adopt a kid!" I half laugh "To see Albany"
He lets out a big sigh of relief "Oh okay"
"Now get ready or else we'll be late"

***

The house is big and old from the outside, with big pillars and slightly cracked windows in the downstairs floors. I've passed it before on my way to work at the shop all those years ago. It still looks the same: cold and strangely uninviting. We walk through the heavy iron gates and up the path to the front door, hand-in-hand. There's a brass door knocker in the shape of a lion, but when I try to lift it it's completely stiff, and can't be moved from its position. But there's a doorbell to the right, which looks oddly out of place with the old building. I reach up and press it, and I'm surprised to hear an echoing ring sound through the house. I hear a child crying, and something being knocked over, then the door opens in front of us. A lady stands there, about 5ft, a small toddler positioned on her hip and a dirty bib hung over her shoulder.
"Can I help?" She asks, looking at me.
"Hi - We're here to see Albany. She's been to visit me before" I say. The woman considers this for a moment.
"I'm Mrs Henley" she nods at me, but then her eyes fix on the Doctor and she freezes. "Oh my god! You're that one from the TV!"
"That's me" says the Doctor with a fake smile.
"Albany knows you're alive" she says.
"Well that's a good start' I say a little bounty and pull my hair out from behind my ears.
"Justin Ben a terrible ordeal of the bin of you, sorry to hear about everything"  she smiles lightly and shifts the gurgling little girl up her hip a little.
"So can we come in?" The Doctor asks. Mrs Henley nods.
"Of course, come through"
We walk past her and into the hallway just as a toy car is thrown across from one room into the other "Now, that's Jack. The trouble maker, I'd watch out for him - and any flying cars for that matter" she says. The noise is louder now, crying children, and the clash of two TV's playing at once alongside an old cassette player sending out what should probably be a calming tune. Mrs Henley then  takes us through to the kitchen where a young girl about five is stood up on a stool playing with bubbles in the sink "That's Jess, she came to us a year ago, parental problems" and then she turns to another young girl who is sat on the floor drawing a spaceman on the back of an what appears to be an old shopping list "And this, this is our Melody, she don't speak much. She turned up on the doorstep two years ago and nothing's happened since" I take a moment look around at the dark interior, with the low watt institution-type lighting and peeling peach-coloured wall paper.
"How long's Albany been here?" The Doctor asks as Mrs Henley sets down the little girl on her hip by another boy with a train set.
"About a month. She's a timid little thing, 'ain't she?" Mrs Henley stands up and motions us to follow her up the stairs.
"Well, not when you get to know her" the Doctor shrugs as we walk up the stairs.
"How many have you got here?" I ask.
"Um...eleven" she says "Used to be thirteen but the two twin girls were recently adopted"
"And what ages?"
"All the way from 4 months to 12 years at the moment" she says, and walks towards an archway at the end of the hall, leading us through into a slightly darker area and towards a big wooden door. "This is Albany's room, were you planning on taking her out or you just visiting?"
"Just visiting today, but I'm sure we'll be back another day" I say, and squeeze the Doctors hand.
"Well then, I'll leave you here with her and I'll be back up to see you off in half an hour" she nods and walks back down the hall, her slippers squeaking against the  dusty floorboards.
"That was strange" I say, and the Doctor nods in agreement.
"And look at this place" he shudders as I tap my knuckles against the door, and turn to the Doctor with a small smile. It opens a crack, and Albany's face pokes around the side. She spots me and smiles, opening up the door wider, then she sees the Doctor, and she stills. I want has she chokes on her breath, her eyes fill with tears, and she runs out the door and into his arms.
"They all said you were dead still but I knew you'd come back!" She says, and hugs him tightly. He smiles into her shoulder and I feel myself welling up at the sight of them. They look like a father with his daughter, just sharing a lovely family hug...but I stop my thoughts from drifting and bring myself back to reality, and remember the look on the Doctors face when I said the words "adoption".
"Thank you" h smiles and he pulls away, smoothing down her hair a little "You were very brave"
"I was, wasn't I?" She smiles and wipes away a tear, "But you were too. Because you died, you have to be brave to die" she says.
"Yeah, I guess you do"

(To be continued in next chapter)