THE ADVENTURES OF THE DOCTOR'S AMAZING HAND

Chapter Thirty Eight

Everyone gathered up their things and John hid inside Rose's jacket while Martha led them through the warehouse to the front entrance. Just outside the front entrance was a battered white pickup truck. Leaning against it was a middle aged man, thin and haggard with short salt and pepper hair. He was smoking a cigarette while he waited for them.

"This is Georges," Martha said to her friends.

"Bon soir," Georges said in a thick Parisian accent, after taking the cigarette out of his mouth. "Mademoiselle Jones said you needed a ride out of Paris."

"Yes, we do," Ianto said.

He introduced everyone and Georges nodded at each person in turn. He pointed to the back of the truck. The bed of the truck had a green tarp tied over the top.

"You can hide under here," he said to them. "I deliver supplies to the missile fields so I have permission to drive."

"Missile fields?" James said. "Where are these missiles?"

"Outside of Paris. Monsieur Master has enslaved many people and they're building them. Why they're building them I cannot say. It's better not to ask questions, you live longer that way. Anyway, in the back of the truck all of you, Allons-y!"

Georges gave Rose an odd look when she laughed at that.

"Mademoiselle, did I say something funny?" he said.

"Sorry, it's a private joke," Rose said as John shook with laughter in her jacket.

Georges opened the gate at the back of the truck and they all crawled in under the tarp. They couldn't see anything under the heavy tarp but they felt a few spare parts here and there. Rose waited until Georges wasn't looking and leaned across the lowered gate, pretending to look inside as she nudged John to move. John quickly scurried out and Rose crawled in after him. John waited till she got settled before he came back to her. He took Rose's hand and she smiled and gave it a squeeze while George slammed the gate shut, plunging them into darkness.

"Finally, a way out," Martha said while they listened to Georges getting back in the cab and slamming the door.

"Do you know these people?" James asked.

"No, but we stayed with some people who knew them," Martha said. "They said we could rest there and resupply before moving on."

She fell silent when the engine turned over and the bed began to vibrate under them. There was a moment's pause and then the truck began to move.

"Where are you planning to go next?" James shouted over the engine noise.

"Dunno," Martha shouted back. "We'll decide that when we get to the house and have a proper rest."

She grunted when the truck's tire hit a bad spot and the truck bounced.

"Ugh, hope the road isn't this bad all the way there," Martha said.

"I just hope this house isn't way out in the country where there is no road," Ianto yelled. "I don't feel like bouncing up, hitting the tarp and coming back down."

Rose gritted her teeth while she held onto John. But after a few minutes, the road smoothed out and Georges picked up speed. Rose crooked her elbow and put her arm under her head as the rhythm soothed her to sleep. Eventually, everyone except John fell asleep. John lay by Rose's side, keeping her company and protecting her while he felt the vibrations from the moving truck on his palm. As he lay there, he felt the truck suddenly slow down, stop and the engine shut off. He got up on his fingers and tapped Rose on the cheek.

"Huh?" she murmured before slipping back to sleep.

John sighed inwardly, wishing right now he had that body he and Rose had been dreaming about so he could speak to her without signing. He tapped her again.

"Hmm?" Rose said.

He saw the outline of her head as it lifted up and looked around.

"We've stopped. We're here?" Rose murmured.

"It's alright, I have a license to drive!" they heard Georges say.

Rose fell silent when she heard one of the Toclafane ask him what he was doing and where he was going. By now, everyone else was awake and keeping silent while they listened to Georges explain that he was delivering parts for the missile sight. There was silence for a moment and then they heard the male voice of the Toclafane.

"Very well, carry on," the Toclafane said.

There was silence again for a few minutes and then they heard the truck door slam and the engine start up. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief when the truck drove on. Rose lay back down on her arm and smiled when John laid his fingers on her cheek. She laid her hand on his back and tried to get some more sleep, comforted by his touch.

A few hours later, John tapped her cheek again when the truck slowed down again. Rose opened her eyes and groaned.

"Not again," she said.

Everyone else woke up and they waited for the Toclafane voice. But instead, Georges lowered the gate and looked in.

"This is the address Mademoiselle Jones gave me," he said to them.

Rose picked up John and put him in her jacket before she slid out with the others. Her feet hit the crushed gravel of a driveway and she stood up and saw a large white, two story farmhouse at the end of the driveway before she reached in and grabbed her sleeping bag and rucksack. The house had a small wooden porch with two chairs on either side of a white wooden door. Martha went up the driveway with Georges and Rose noticed a light coming on in one of the upstairs windows. Ianto came up to Rose and pointed over her shoulder.

"Take a look at that," he said.

Rose turned and was shocked to see two stone legs about five miles away. They were enormous legs that looked like they belonged to a statue but there was nothing above the legs. James came up beside Ianto and frowned while he stared at it. There was a full moon out but the legs were illuminated by what Rose figured were two huge searchlights. The house was nestled in the countryside and there was nothing around them except hills and fields. The legs, the house and a small country road were the only manmade things for miles. Rose glanced at the front door when it opened and a disheveled looking woman wearing a bathrobe stood there, giving Martha and Georges confused looks. She had a dark brown curly perm that was messed up from sleeping on her pillow and she had a slightly lined and plump face. Martha began to explain to her who they were and what they were doing her. The woman looked at Rose, Ianto and James and Rose waved at her. The woman didn't wave back and turned her attention back to Martha. Martha handed her a letter that Yvette had given to her and the woman opened the envelope, read the letter and nodded as she gestured to Rose and the others to come inside and they picked up their gear and walked towards them. Martha thanked Georges while the others walked up onto the porch and they also thanked him for his hospitality.

"Not a problem," Georges said. "I wish you luck and I hope you defeat the Master. Au revoir, my friends."

They waved goodbye as he got back into the truck. They turned to the woman who ushered them inside and they carried their gear into the house. The interior of the house was made of wood and very cozy, most of the knick knacks seemed to be cats. A few of the pictures on the walls were also cats along with some family photos. The woman led them into the living room and they saw a white Persian cat sleeping on the end of the sofa.

"That is Mimi," the woman said to them. "I am Marie; Yvette said you needed my help."

"Yes," Martha said. "We need to rest and resupply for one or two days. We're going around the world on a mission from a man who can help defeat the Master."

"If you are doing that, you're welcome here," Marie said. "The Master's balls killed my husband."

She walked over to a table, picked up a silver framed photograph of her and her husband and showed it to them.

"Those ball things flew right in here," she said, pointing to the bay window off to their right. "They shot Gerard but flew away before they killed me. I wished they had killed me," she said, shooing Mimi off the sofa so they could sit down.

She put the picture frame back on the table while everyone sat their gear down by the sofa. The women sat on the sofa while the men sat in front of them. Ianto smiled when Mimi walked up to him and she purred when Ianto stroked her back.

"So, how do you hope to defeat the Master?" Marie said as she sat down in the chair opposite them.

Martha gave her an abbreviated version of the story she usually told others. James listened in fascination while Martha described the Doctor and told her about some of the things she had done with him. Marie looked stunned while she listened and she shook her head when Martha finished her story.

"Normally, I would say you are crazy but after those ball things…" she trailed off and didn't finish her sentence. "Would you like something to drink or eat? I have milk or orange juice and of course, water."

Everyone asked for orange juice and she rose and went into the kitchen to get it. Rose looked at Martha.

"Good job she believed us and is gonna help us out," she said softly to her.

"Yeah. Hope we have this kind of luck every step of the way. But if not, we can always sleep out under the stars. At least here we can rest."

Marie came back out with a silver tray loaded with glasses of orange juice. Everyone thanked her as they took a glass and she took the tray back into the kitchen. Rose sipped her orange juice and licked her lips, savoring the taste of fresh orange juice in her mouth. She felt John move around in her jacket and she patted the jacket where his back was, comforted by the fact that he was near her.

"You can put your sleeping bags in here," Marie said when she came back in the living room. "I hope that'll be okay."

"That'll be fine," Martha said. "We've been sleeping on the floor anyway."

"Good. It's nice to meet you all and we'll talk some more in the morning. I'm afraid I'm too tired to stay up so I'll see you at breakfast."

Everyone nodded and bid her goodnight. Rose finished her orange juice last, watching while the others finished theirs and put their glasses back in the kitchen before they rolled out their sleeping bags and prepared to go to bed. Rose went in the kitchen and set her glass on the counter. But she wasn't sleepy so she decided to go outside with John and get a bit of fresh air before she turned in for the night. She told the others where she was going and slipped outside. Shutting the door, she took a breath of fresh air, relishing the fact that for the first time in a long time, she was out in the countryside away from the pollution and noise of the city. The air was slightly chilly but the sky was clear and she could see the stars in the heavens. She admired them while she reached in and put John on the ground. John got up on his fingers and followed behind Rose while she walked off to the left towards a small hill. She walked past the property line into a bit of tall grass and onto a field as she headed for the hill. She heard rustling behind her and turned to see John in the tall grass. She giggled when John got up on his wrist and waved his hand around in a false panic.

Help, he signed to her. Tall grass. I'm drowning. Eeee.

Rose giggled when he ducked below the grass and then got back up on his wrist, waving his fingers and signing help, help to her.

"My poor John," Rose said fondly as she walked over to the grass.

She picked him up and sat him down on the ground amidst the shorter grass of the field. John got up on his wrist.

My hero, he signed to her. And as I say that, you have to imagine me saying it in a falsetto girl voice.

Rose giggled and patted the back of his hand. John followed her as she walked through the grass towards the hill. She climbed the hill and sat down on top of it. John followed her and stopped by her side.

"Look at it, John, all the stars. You can see them clearly without all the pollution," Rose said, looking up.

She laid back and stared up at the stars while John walked up to her head and got up on his wrist. Rose gazed up at Orion high above her, enjoying the night breeze.

"You know," she said while John listened to her, "when I was small, I dreamed of travelin' the world, seeing other countries. But not like this, not in this way. Until I met the Doctor, I'd never been out of England. We used to go to Sheffield when I was a kid to see a couple of cousins and Mum and I used to go to Blackpool on holiday but that was it. And now that I've traveled in time and space, I hate being stuck here on Earth, far away from those stars. I bet you hate it too."

John nodded his hand. Rose lifted her finger and stroked his back.

"We'll get there, someday. You and me, we'll find a way to get back to the stars," she said as she stroked his back.

John walked up onto her chest and Rose smiled and put her hands on him when he lay down. She gazed up at the stars while John watched her in a contented silence, loving the way the wind blew bits of her hair around her face while she stared up at the stars. Then he saw the front door open and Rose let go of him as she pushed up on her elbows to see who it was. John slid down her chest and stood up while James came outside and closed the door behind him. He waved at Rose and she waved back. He headed towards her and Rose sat up to make room for him. John hopped up onto her left leg and lay down on it.

"Hope I'm not botherin' ya," James said when he reached the hill and climbed up. "Can't sleep. I hate being in a new place and trying to get used to it."

"Yeah, I have that problem as well," she said when James sat down beside her.

James looked at John and shook his head.

"It's gonna take me awhile to get used to that," he said, pointing to John. "It's odd seeing a severed hand sitting on your leg like that."

"Yeah, it takes awhile to get used to him but he's been a great friend and protector, I can't imagine traveling without him now."

"Protector? How can he protect you?" James said.

Before Rose could explain, John got up; hopped onto Rose's shoulder and carefully latched himself around her neck, pretending to choke her while Rose gave James a pointed look.

"Whatever you can do with your hands, he can do," Rose said. "He can punch people; choke them like he's demonstrating here, use weapons. He's very intelligent."

John let go and dropped back down to her lap. He walked back onto her leg and lay down.

"So he's like a dog?" James said.

"Oh, I wouldn't call him that. He's loyal and protective but he's far from being a dog. He's just like a person rolled up into one hand," she said, patting John on the back.

"What Martha was saying to Marie about the Doctor, those stories of traveling with him, those are all true?"

"I think so. I haven't known Martha for very long and I wasn't with her when she traveled with him but I don't think she'd lie. Besides, I have my own batch of bizarre adventures that rival anything she told Marie."

"Severed hands, time traveling aliens, I have fallen in with a weird crowd," James said, shaking his head.

"Don't worry, you'll get used to us."

"This Doctor fella sounds interesting. Hope I get to meet him."

"So do I, I think he'd like you," Rose said. "In a way, you have met him since you know John."

John stood up at the mention of his name. He hopped on his wrist and signed something. Rose looked at James.

"Do you know sign language?" she asked.

"No, I'm afraid I don't," he said.

"He's saying allons-y. It's something the Doctor says."

"Is that why you were laughing earlier when Georges said that."

Rose laughed and nodded.

"Yeah. It made me think of him," Rose said. "I hope he's alright."

"Me too. He sounds like a remarkable man. He doesn't need to be with that Master bastard."

Rose laughed.

"Master bastard, I like that, we'll have to start calling him that," she said.

James looked at John who was shaking.

"What is that? Is he having an epileptic fit?" he said, pointing to John.

"No, that's how he laughs."

Rose giggled when James's eyebrows nearly shot up to his hairline.

"Dang, he is multitalented, isn't he?" he said to Rose.

"Yes, he is," Rose said while John got up on his wrist and bowed his hand.

"Well, I'm gonna go back inside and try to sleep. I'll see you both later. Night, Rose. Night, John."

"Night, James," Rose said while John signed the same.

James patted her on the shoulder and headed back towards the house. Rose watched him go for a moment and then lay back down so she could watch the stars for awhile.

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