Work Text:
Chapter 1
“The good and the beautiful is not forgotten; it lives in legend and in song.”
- Hans Christian Anderson
When Rose Marion Tyler and Amelia Jessica Pond were young, they were both seen as problematic children. Amy’s aunt sent her to a psychologist, while Rose’s mum thanked her lucky stars that Rose’s school had a psychologist they could use for free. When Amy was 9 and on her third psychologist in two years, the woman assigned Amy a pen pal who lived in London and was a patient of a friend of hers. The girl’s mother and Amy’s aunt had both signed an agreement that the sharing of information between the two psychologists was alright for this reason and this reason alone. Amy received a letter from the other girl first.
The girl’s name was Rose and she was 11, it said. She lived with her mother, her father had died, and she had three best friends: Shireen, Sharon, and Mickey. The letter also said that she did not expect anything out of this nor did she expect her pen pal to like her, nor did she expect to like her pen pal. Amy started the exercise with the firm mindset that she would always hate her pen pal. This was a girl who lived in London and who her stupid psychologist assigned to her. There was no way that they could ever even remotely like each other. She was happy with Rory and Mels. Mels believed her and Rory, at the very least, humored her. This girl would likely do neither.
Still, Amy wrote a letter in response to the girl (mostly at the prodding of her aunt). She was 9, she lived in Leadworth, she had moved from Scotland when she was younger, she lived with her aunt, she had two best friends: Rory and Mels. The two girls exchanged pleasantries like this for a while, before, in one letter, Rose asked what Amy wanted to do with her life. Amy’s response was simple but clear: I’m going to travel with the Raggedy Doctor. Rose took a while to write back. When she finally did, it was a response that caused Amy to gape at the letter for what felt like hours:
I believe you. I met a man named the Doctor once. He gave me his fez and helped me with my math homework. He had a sad look whenever he thought I wasn’t looking. He kept telling me I would be “fantastic” and that one day I would travel so, so far. Then he’d look sad again. He came back a few times - helped me more with math and told me funny stories about history. Mum doesn’t believe that I met him, keeps telling me I’m crazy. So… I don’t think you’re crazy. I believe you.
Amy felt a squeeze in her chest. She believed her. Rose believed her. Amy immediately picked up her pen, grabbed a piece of paper, and started writing a response.
Amy and Rose exchanged letters for eight more years. Rose was Amy’s mentor and older sister - helping her figure out how to parent her friend Mels and how to deal with an absent parent figure like her aunt. Amy was Rose’s comfort and little sister - helping her deal with the aftermath of Jimmy Stone and slowly come back to feeling comfortable being herself. They never met in person - Rose was too poor to do so and had to beg the school for stamps to send her letters (as the school stopped allowing her to see their psychologist when she was 13) until she dropped out, at which point she began saving up enough money to send a monthly letter, and Amy’s aunt was not about to get her to London just to see a friend that she didn’t know at all. Still, their friendship remained strong. They exchanged letters and photographs so that if, somehow, they saw each other, they would know who the other was. Everything was fine. Until, when Amy was 16, Rose suddenly stopped answering Amy’s letters around the same time Amy saw on the tele that the place that Rose worked at - Hendrick’s - had been blown up. She sent weekly letters after that - just wanting to know that Rose was all right. Two months in, Rose’s mum responded:
You’re Rose’s little pen pal friend, aren’t you? Do you know where she is? I haven’t seen her in months. I think someone did something to her. If you did something, I will find you and I will end you.
Rose was missing. Her best friend, her guide, her older sister. She was missing. Her mother thought that Amy had done something to her. How could she? Amy loved Rose so, so much. How could Rose’s mother not understand that?
Amy stopped sending letters to Rose after that. Rose’s mother obviously didn’t like her, and Rose would write her when she returned.
She never got another letter from Rose Marion Tyler, her big sister.
Amy was out at the pub with Rory and Mels, celebrating Mels’s recent 18th birthday. She had put Rose Tyler mostly out of her mind, along with their Raggedy Doctors since Rose’s disappearance two years before - except when Mels inevitably brought up the Doctor. Then, Amy had to stop herself from snapping at Mels when thoughts of Rose and the discussions about their Doctors drifted into her mind. But she tried to put those thoughts away as she sipped at her pint and smiled as Mels and Rory argued good-naturedly.
“We interrupt this broadcast with breaking news regarding the ghosts that have been appearing all over the world during the past two months and the occurrence at Canary Wharf, which are apparently somehow related.” A reporter on the pub’s tele stated. The pub went quiet, everyone turning to the tele. The bartender bowed his head and turned up the volume. Amy only just stopped herself from gulping, memories of silver men attacking her friends flashing through her mind. She had tried to stop them - attacked them - and when they turned to hurt her, they stopped and left, as if they had been recalled somewhere else. That would not stop the images of the silver men from haunting her memory, though. “The governments of the world have issued a denial over the events of the past few days and state that terrorists polluted the water supply with psychotropic drugs.” Mels blew a raspberry, rolling her eyes and shaking her head. The rest of the pub turned to gaze at her and Rory elbowed her. She rolled her eyes again, raised her pint to the pub, before taking a sip. Amy shared a glance with Rory, nodding her approval, before she turned back to gaze at the news report.
“However, the fact remains that a terrible tragedy occurred at Canary Wharf this past week. Only now have the names of the dead and missing been officially gathered. As the government and police have informed families of the deceased, news agencies have now been given the final clear to release the names of these men and women to the world. A moment of silence please, for all those who lost their lives in this horrible disaster.” The woman finished her report and the pub remained silent. Then, Rory raised his pint in the air, holding it high as he held back the tears that she could see in the depths of his eyes. Amy mirrored him a moment later. One by one, everyone in the pub raised their pints, Mels joining in a bit late in the game when Amy nudged her. Silent, they honored those who had fallen. Rory lowered his glass and took a sip, everyone in the pub following his lead. Amy turned to face the tele again as she sipped, watching as a slideshow of the victims faces, names, and dates of birth and death was shown on the screen. She watched as person after person after person was displayed. So many were killed at Canary Wharf - whether it was the result of terrorism or a battle or whatever. It was a tragedy either way. She watched, her attention waning as name after name was displayed. She only vaguely noticed when someone named “Adeola Oshodi” - a pretty black woman - was put up on screen, instead going back to nursing her drink. It was horrible that these people died, but it didn’t really matter to her. She may not believe that stupid story about hallucinogens in the water systems - really, all around the world? - but she didn’t know what really happened either, so she wasn’t really getting anything from this broadcast.
“There are a few men and women who, as far as government sources are willing to admit, had a large part in stopping the tragedy from going further. The government was willing to allow the press to release the names and faces of some of these individuals, along with some details of their life, as they seem to be deceased.” The reporter continued, after the presentation had ended. Amy glanced up quickly and rolled her eyes when she saw that woman that - apparently - had been in charge of Canary Wharf and the disaster, and tried to take control and stop it. Idiotic bitch, she thought, as she went back to her drink.
“Oh, that’s a shame.” Mels said, continuing to watch the screen while she took a sip from her pint. She quirked an eyebrow at Amy. “He’s cute. If he wasn’t dead, I may have dated him.” Amy looked at her sharply, turning back to the tele.
“That’s a horrible thing to say, Mels. It’s horrible he’s dead, no matter how cute he may have -” She was cut off as she stared at a picture of a man she had seen before in a picture years ago and a name that she remembered. “Mickey Smith.” She whispered, watching the face of the man who her best friend had been friends with fade away, another taking its place. If Rose were around she would be devastated. Mickey had been one of her oldest friends. What had he been doing that would have caused him to be killed in the tragedy? How had he been one of the few identified by the governments as someone who had attempted to stop - or had stopped - the calamity?
As his face faded away from the screen and Amy brought herself back to reality, she was stopped cold by another short, sharp shock to her system. Jackie Tyler. Jacqueline Andrea Suzette Prentice Tyler.
“Oh God.” Amy whispered, ignoring the strange looks she was receiving from Rory and Mels. While Amy herself had never had a favorable interaction with the woman (though she had only had the single encounter), Rose had adored her mother. Even when she had moved out of the house to live with Jimmy bloody Stone and had claimed to have hated her mother, Amy could always tell that those sections of her letters had a great deal of love and awe infused in them. No matter how much she sometimes denied it, Rose had loved her mother so so much. If she were still here and knew what had happened to her mother… Amy sighed. Rose would have been both proud and horrified by what happened to her mother. Proud that she was one of the few who fought against whatever the hell happened at Canary bloody Wharf but horrified and scared and sad that her mother - her idol and annoyance of a mother - was dead. Her face faded from the screen and was replaced once again by the news reporter whose appearance Amy was beginning to fear.
“The last tragic loss of one of these warriors is even more tragic. While the government has kept a tight hold on what is known regarding the events that occurred at Canary Wharf, they have said that this young woman was one of the most instrumental people to help end the tragedy before it got even worse. This young woman was born and raised by a single mother in a London estate.” The woman reporter said, causing Amy to grow cold. It couldn’t be...
“No. No. No.” Amy muttered, twisting her hands in her lap.
“Amy? What is it?” Rory asked, putting his pint down and grasping her hands. Mels looked at Amy, leaning forward across the table, worry evident in the crease of her brow. Amy ignored them both, watching the woman on screen, despite her desire to shut the damn tele off.
“She dropped out of school at 16 to run away with an older musician who later ended up in prison. Women such as her are often discounted due to their poor upbringing and bad decisions during their youth. However, she is an example as to how any person can rise up and fight adversity.” As the reporter ended her speech, she faded out to be replaced with a picture of a very familiar blonde woman - older than Amy last remembered seeing her in the last picture she sent - her face tilted back in a laugh. She was holding hands with someone, but they seemed to have been cropped out of the picture. Amy’s stomach fell to the floor and she felt like a hole had just opened beneath her seat.
“No.” She whispered, staring helplessly at the picture and the words beside it. Rose Marion Tyler, born 4 September 1986, died 19 July 2007. “No. She was missing. It can’t be her. It can’t.”
“Amy, please, tell me what’s going on.” Rory said, holding her hands still. “Did you know her?”
“Know her? She…” Amy trailed off, unable to explain. Rose Tyler was her sister and her mother and her hope and her comfort and her advisor and her student and… she was dead. Rose Tyler was dead. Amy felt a tear leak from her eye and fall on a small space on her hands that weren’t covered with Rory’s own. She wrenched her hands away and wiped her eyes with the back of her hands, while holding back the desire to bawl. She was in a public place and this was Mels’s day - she couldn’t do that. She grabbed the pint in front of her and slung it back, downing the liquor within in one gulp. Placing it back on the table with a bang, she stood up, her chair scraping against the wooden floor of the pub. “I’m going now. Mels, I hope you’ve had a wonderful birthday.” Mels smiled unsurely at her, before the smile became cockier and teasing.
“It would’ve been better if that Doctor had showed up.” She said, before being interrupted when Amy slapped her hands on the table and leaned forward in a moment of uncharacteristic rage towards her friend.
“Shut up about him, Mels.” She said, her voice wavering. Don’t cry now, she thought to herself, just wait till you get home. “Never mention his name again. Aunt Sharon was right. He was imaginary. He would have never let her die if he was real.” She grabbed her purse from the floor, turned on the spot, and stomped out of the pub and back toward her home, leaving behind a stunned Rory and a very hurt Mels.
Rory came down the staircase to the TARDIS console room and found the Doctor bracing himself against the console, facing away from him. He cleared his throat and waited for the Doctor to turn around.
“Ah, Rory! Roranicus, Rory Pond, good old Rory. Where’s Amy? Let’s get this show on the road.” The Doctor said, turning around quickly, his coat flaring behind him, arms raised in the air. Rory shook his head at the Doctor before his indulgent smile turned into a frown.
“Amy would prefer not to do anything today, Doctor. She’s not feeling too well.” Rory said, trying to ignore the pang in his chest. The Doctor lowered his arms, a frown furrowing his brows. He walked forward towards Rory, searching in the depths of his eyes.
“Is she alright, Rory? If she’s feeling ill, we have a medbay on board that has the cure for most diseases in the universe.” The Doctor paused, his frown deepening. “She always wants to travel.” Rory shook his head.
“No, Doctor, she’s not feeling ill.” He cleared his throat, pushing his hands into his pockets. “She’s not feeling well.” He repeated, before clarifying. “Emotionally.” The Doctor nodded slowly, templing his hands together and bringing them before his lips for a moment, before snapping his fingers and pointing to Rory.
“All the more reason to go out today. Travelling and exploring will cheer anyone up, an old friend of mine used to say.” He stopped, tension radiating on his face, before he shook it away and amended his statement. “Well, no, she said it differently, but the point still stands. Get Pond up here, we’re going on an adventure!” Rory placed his hands on the Doctor’s shoulders to stop him from turning back to the console.
“No, Doctor.” He stated firmly, before stepping back and continuing more quietly. “Just give her this day.” The Doctor looked at him closely, confusion evident in his eyes as his brow creased all the more.
“What’s so horrible about today, Rory?” He said quietly, placing his hands in his pockets and leaning back a little bit on the heels of his feet. Rory sighed, placing his own hands in his pockets and looking down at the floor.
“Canary Wharf.” Rory said quietly. He waited for the Doctor to respond, to ask what he meant, but nothing came. He looked up after a few minutes of uncharacteristic silence to find the Doctor frozen in place, a shell-shocked look on his face. “She takes the day off on the anniversary every year to mourn. Apparently, she had an old pen pal and really good friend who died in the disaster.” Rory tried to explain.
“Battle.” He was interrupted by the Doctor, whose shell-shocked look was turning into something more stony.
“Sorry?” Rory asked him.
“It may have been a disaster.” The Doctor said, closing his eyes and pinching the bridge of his nose. “But what it really was was a battle.” He sighed, keeping his eyes closed. “The anniversary is today? Relative to your time?” He asked Rory, his eyes remaining closed. Rory nodded slowly, not understanding the question, waiting for the Doctor to answer until he realized the Time Lord still had his eyes closed.
“Yes.” He said, before pausing. “I mean, Amy keeps a pretty detailed record of the days so that she doesn’t miss it.” The Doctor sighed again, before nodding slowly.
“Okay, no adventure today then.” The Doctor said, turning around back to the console.
“It could just be the two of us.” Rory said, entertaining the thought for a moment. “Some kind of boy’s day out.” The Doctor shook his head.
“Maybe another time, Rory. I’ve actually had some things I’ve been meaning to do.” He looked over his shoulder and gave Rory a wan smile. “Why don’t you have some fun? Explore the TARDIS. There’s loads to do here.” Rory nodded slowly.
“If that’s what you want.” He said, before turning to retreat back up the stairs. He paused halfway up, turned back towards the Doctor and said, “If you need anything - even just to talk - , please come to me.” The Doctor didn’t turn back towards him, but he nodded slowly, even as he began to move around the console, guiding the ship to wherever he needed to do his errands. Rory swallowed once, nodding shortly, before heading back up the stairs into the hallway that lead to his and Amy’s room. He paused for a minute, before turning back and sneaking a peek into the console room. He watched silently as the Doctor continued to pilot the ship, finally bringing down a lever and stopping the strange noise that the TARDIS made as it traveled. He leaned forward over the console, breathing out slowly, and, though Rory couldn’t see it, he would hazard a bet that the Doctor had closed his eyes.
“Darlig Ulv Stranden.” Rory heard the Doctor whisper. “Bad Wolf Bay.” He almost started when the Doctor gave a sad, almost choked laugh. “Courtesy of the Bad Wolf herself.” Rory’s eyebrows furrowed in confusion as he watched the Doctor shake his head and stand back upright. The Doctor raised a hand and ran his hand up and down the central column of the console, almost caressing it. “You miss her girl, don’t you?” Rory jumped when he heard the TARDIS make a strange sound. The Doctor let out the strange laugh again. “You two always were so close.” He sighed, before making his way to the doorway. “Just for a few hours.” The Doctor whispered to no one, shaking his head almost ruefully. “Don’t need to torture myself anymore than that.” The Doctor stood at the doors for a moment, before pushing his hand out and forcing the doors to part. Rory watched as he went outside and got a glimpse of an empty, desolate, almost heartbreaking beach. He held in a breath as he watched the Doctor go. He only released it when the Doctor was gone, closing his eyes briefly, before turning back around and heading towards the library. Amy would want to know about this. But not today.
“Amy?” Rory said quietly, peeking into their bedroom after his 24 hour exile was finished and the anniversary of Canary Wharf was done. “Can I come in?” He waited for her response, knowing that sometimes her solitude would last more than one day. He hoped this wasn’t one of those years.
“Yeah, it’s fine.” He hears and tries to ignore the quiet sniffling that he can hear coming from their bed. “Come in.” Rory comes in quietly and closes the door behind him, before walking over to the bed and sitting on the comforters beside the Amy-shaped lump.
“Hey. Amy.” He said, placing a hand on the lump where he believed her thigh to be and moving it up and down in an attempt to console her. “You okay?” She peeked her head out from under the covers, her hair mussed with sleep and her eyes still puffy from crying. She opened her mouth to speak, before closing it after a moment, swallowing and nodding. “Hey.” Rory said, scooching up to sit by her head and combing his fingers through her hair. “It’s okay to be sad.” She placed her head in his lap, just resting for a while, closing her eyes as she felt him comb through her hair gently. She held her tears in and, after a few minutes, sat up, looking in his eyes.
“I know, Rory.” She said quietly, before sighing. “I’m just trying to deal with it the best way I can.” She pulled her knees up to her chest and rested her head on his shoulder. “I’ll deal.” Rory placed a kiss on the crown of her head and nodded against her hair, reveling in the warm feel of her curls against his cheek. She sat up straight after a few more minutes, getting out of bed to rummage through the drawers and begin getting dressed for the day ahead of them. “Did you and the Doctor do anything fun yesterday?” Rory stayed silent for a minute, thinking through what he should say. Apparently, his silence lasted long enough for Amy, as she began to frown and poked Rory in the side to get him to speak.
“The Doctor didn’t want to do anything yesterday.” Rory finally said, carefully modulating his tone. Amy’s frown deepened.
“Because I wasn’t there? That’s rude of him.” Before she even finished her statement, Rory was shaking his head.
“He was worried about you for a while.” He said, skirting around the topic. “He seemed to understand more when I told him about Canary Wharf.” As he said the words, he trailed his hand up and down the small of her back, attempting to radiate comfort. Amy leaned into him, accepting the warmth and comfort he offered to fight back the cold sadness she dealt with on days like these. Rory’s hand paused for a moment as he struggled with his words. “He said something interesting about it.” He finally decided upon. Amy froze, before lifting her head to look at him, her eyes asking the question her lips couldn’t form. “He called it a battle.” He said slowly. “He seemed to know quite a lot about it.” He paused again. “After I told him it was the anniversary, he asked for some alone time to do errands.” Rory looked at her sheepishly for a moment. “I may have peeked into the console room as he entered the coordinates.” Amy laughed silently, shaking her head at him. “He said something about Bad Wolf Bay, courtesy of the Bad Wolf herself, and he and the TARDIS missing this person.” Amy froze again. He quietly continued. “At a guess, she had something to do with Canary Wharf.” Amy slowly nodded in agreement.
“Did you ask him?” She asked him quietly. Rory shook his head.
“I let him have the day.” He said, before giving her a small smile. “And I thought you’d like to join me.” Amy gave him a smile, trying to convey her gratitude, while her heart remained heavy. She gave him a kiss on the lips, slow and languid, tapering off after a minute or so, before squeezing his hand and pulling him up from the bed with her.
“Let’s go find him. Who knows what that mad man is up to?” She said, her small smile becoming more genuine. Rory gave a small laugh, before following her out of the room, his hand still in hers. They headed towards the console room, entering it slowly and quietly in case the Doctor was inside. They quietly went down the stairs, and breathed a sigh when no sound came from below the console - the Doctor’s usual hidey hole. Amy purposefully strode around the central console, came to the front door, looked behind her at Rory - who stood near the console, nodding at her - and pulled it open. She froze, staring at what lay beyond. “Beautiful.” She whispered, staring into the image that lay before her amidst the dark space. Two swirling galaxies collided, the top one almost circular while the bottom one was stretched out in a vertical manner. Almost like… “A flower.” She said, smiling slightly at the breathtaking image before her. She heard Rory walk up behind her and heard his intake of breath as he stared at the view outside the TARDIS.
“This isn’t where he said he was going.” Rory stated after a moment of staring at the two galaxies, never letting his eyes drift from the beautiful sight. Amy shook herself, taking one last look at the gorgeous view before shutting the door on the sight and turning around.
“Right, you said something about a bay.” She said, turning back to Rory and heading up the ramp to the central console. “Which means he must have moved the TARDIS at least once more yesterday.”
“Maybe quite a bit more.” Rory chimed in. “There’s really no way of knowing. It’s not like we can read any of the TARDIS’s display screens.” Amy sighed, nodding, before something struck her.
“Out there is space.” She said slowly. Rory stared at her, confused. “There’s no planet, there’s no atmosphere, there’s no gravity. It’s not like he’s tied to the TARDIS with a rope or something.” What she was saying dawned on Rory, finally.
“So he must be in the TARDIS.” He said, feeling slightly dumb. She snapped her fingers at him, circling the console.
“The question is, where?” She asked, pursing her lips. Rory furrowed his eyes for a moment in thought, before looking towards the ceiling of the TARDIS.
“TARDIS?” He asked. “Can you understand us? Blink the lights once if you can.” The lights remained for a moment, as Amy stared at Rory in confusion, before the lights dimmed and brightened quickly. Amy took in a breath of shock and Rory continued. “Do you know where the Doctor is? Once for yes, twice for no.” The lights dimmed and lowered once again. Rory smiled at Amy as she almost twirled around the console.
“Take us to him.” She almost commanded. Rory frowned for a moment, before the lights dimmed and brightened twice in a row. Then, it was Amy’s turn to frown. “Take us to him, please?” She asked. The lights dimmed and brightened twice in a row again. Her frown turned to a scowl. “What do you mean ‘no?’ We’re worried about him. That man is a damn fool and if you don’t take us to him, I’ll - ”. She was cut off as Rory raised a hand, before inadvertently looking up at the TARDIS’s ceiling again.
“TARDIS. We’re worried about him. He seemed really upset yesterday. We just want to make sure he’s alright. He’s our friend. It’s not like him not to be down in the console in the morning, waiting to whisk us away on another adventure.” He paused, his gaze lowering to Amy’s worried face. “Please. You could just brighten the lights in the corridors we need to follow. That way you’re not exactly taking us to him.” Nothing happened for a few minutes and Rory waited with baited breath, watching as Amy grew more and more anxious. Finally, the lights dimmed and brightened once. He smiled as Amy’s face brightened, a smile blooming on her face. She threw her arms around the console once, kissing the column.
“Oh, thank you, you marvellous, sexy blue box you.” The lights pulsed for a moment, as if with happiness. She pulled away from the TARDIS and turned to the hallways. “Which way?” The lights in two of the hallways dimmed, while the third brightened almost imperceptibly. Amy shot towards the corridor, Rory following at a more sedate pace after he patted the column twice in thanks. They had a Doctor to find.
After following the brightening lights for what seemed like hours, going deeper and deeper into the labyrinth of TARDIS hallways, they finally reached a short, small hallway with only six doors. All of the doors seemed to be made of a dark wood and each door had a design etched into it, and four of the doors had those strange circular symbols that were part of the Doctor’s language. One of the doors without the Doctor’s language had a clock on it, while the other had a flame. The doors with the strange circles on them had a classic spaceship, a strange cylindrical thing that Amy didn’t know at all, two stars, and… a rose. Amy held back her flinch and forced herself to keep her breaths even and calm. She was done mourning for this year. There was no reason to cry yet again. She steered herself away from the door, going to the first door in the hallway - the one with the clock on it. She reached out, looking over her shoulder at Rory for a moment, who nodded, and turned the door knob. The door opened and she and Rory stepped into a strange room. The room was almost entirely lined with metal - almost like she imagined the interior of a spaceship to be - but it had coral supports stretching along the walls from the roof to the floor. The bed was large and looked as if it would be wonderful to sleep in. Amy peered into the ensuite and stared at the large shower and the luxurious bathtub, before returning to the room that Rory was now walking around. She walked over to Rory and looked over his shoulder at the picture that he was holding. A handsome young man with a greatcoat, a blonde haired girl that Amy glossed over - the pain was too fresh still -, and a strange, older man with massive ears, huddling together and smiling in... was that Cardiff? Amy shook her head at the strange picture and continued to look around the room. Her breath almost caught as she looked out of an artificial window across from the foot of the bed. It displayed the Milky Way in all her splendor - not as scientists from Earth saw it, but from a completely different perspective. It was…
“Beautiful.” Rory said, looking over her shoulder at the projection, placing a hand on her other shoulder. She nodded, resting her head under his chin for a moment, before pulling away and looking back at the room.
“He’s not here, obviously.” She said, glancing at the strangely futuristic room that somehow still had a homey feel to it. Her thoughts were giving her headaches and right now, she just wanted to get out of this strange room. She glanced back once more at the projection, before heading out of the door, Rory at her heels.
She walked across the hallway to the next door - the one with the flame engraved on it -, opened the door, and walked in. While the other room may have had a vaguely homey feel, this one positively radiated warmth. Although the room itself seemed quite lavish, with a lilac paint job, rich, dark wood furnishings, and a massive (though empty) closet (although there was a strange assortment of hats in it…), and a large, ornate mirror on the wall, there were touches here and there that made it seem so homey. There was a large, poofy, royal purple arm chair in one corner by a bookshelf, the bed had to have at least 10 pillows, and star maps were pinned on the walls. It seemed much more like a room that Amy could live in, compared with the one she had just left. But the Doctor wasn’t in here either, so she walked out, Rory following her a moment later as he put down a picture of a red-haired woman and an old man, passing by a picture of the same woman and a brown-haired man in a trench coat as he exited the room.
The next room they entered was the one with the strange cylinder on it. This room was as strange as the first one they entered, but nonetheless magnificent. The ceiling had a painting of two large stars on it, and there was a window looking out onto a field lush with red grass, silvery trees lining the edges, with a snow-capped mountain in the distance framed against the orange sky. The view - which was quite obviously alien - took Amy’s breath away. She reached forward to touch the window and leaned closer, feeling as if she could step out of the window onto the planet’s surface.
“Strange.” Rory said from behind her. She snapped her focus away from the window and turned to him, finally getting a glimpse of the rest of the room. There were electronics present throughout the room - a mix of old-fashioned (to her) and futuristic ones that were both whole and taken apart. There was a large corner library that she walked over to - inspecting the books to find both college level technical books and textbooks, as well as classic literature and books that she would expect to find in a teenager’s room (albeit a teenager from the 20th century). On one of the shelves, there was a picture of a strange old man and a teenager with dark hair. She let her fingers caress the frame for a moment before turning to Rory. She found him looking into the closet with a puzzled look on his face. She strode over to him, preparing to smack him for looking into someone’s closet, but stopped, puzzled. There was an eclectic mix of clothing in the closet - strange robes in shades of red and orange, clothes that she would expect a 1960s schoolgirl to wear, and clothing that could easily be found in her own era.
“Yeah.” She agreed, looking around the nonsensical room. “Strange.” She tore her eyes away from the room and grabbed Rory’s hand. “The Doctor isn’t here. Let’s go.” Rory nodded, letting her pull him away from the room, even as his eyes tried to take it all in. Amy shut the door in his face once they had exited, pulling him into the next room - the one with the classic spaceship on it. She opened the door and pulled Rory in. This room was just as individual as the others, but there was one main difference. The others had some sort of feeling as if they had been lived in. This one felt like it was waiting for someone. There were pictures of planets tacked up on every wall - Amy felt her heartstrings tug when she looked at them. It felt like a collage of might-have-beens, for some reason that Amy didn’t fully understand. The room wasn’t elaborate or anything - it seemed a bit spartan, to be honest, besides the collage of pictures on the wall. Only one thing stood out. On a wooden vanity against one wall, there was a single picture. A young blonde haired girl laughing with a brown-haired man in a trench coat. Amy stared at it for a while as if the picture might help her understand the room better. The entire place ached of nostalgia and - maybe - hope. She could almost feel tears forming in her eyes. This time, it was Rory who tugged on her arm, Rory who pulled her out of the room and quietly shut the door, as she simply stared at the door.
“What was that?” She asked Rory, her voice uncharacteristically quiet. He shook his head.
“I don’t know.” He said, chancing a look at the door. “I don’t think we’re supposed to know.” She continued staring at the door for a minute, while he transferred his gaze to the floor. Finally, he tugged her arm again, placing his other arm over her shoulders and guiding her to the door with two stars on it. “He wasn’t in that one.” Amy shook herself out of her daze and nodded, pushing the latent sadness to the back of her mind.
“Right.” She said. “We have to find him.” She reached out to turn the doorknob, but paused with her hand on the knob as she heard the lock flip. She turned to look at Rory, who was looking at her, and she tried the doorknob. It was locked. “TARDIS?” She asked. “Did you do that?” There was no response. “We have to find him. You said you would help us.” The lights remained as they were. Rory sighed, shaking his head for a moment, before nudging Amy towards the last door - the one with the flower on it.
“Might as well check.” He said. She nodded, her scowl still on her face, and tried the doorknob. It opened slowly, and she held her breath as she and Rory entered the room quietly. The walls of the room were a soft lilac color, and there was a long mirror leaned back against the far wall from the door. As the two crept quietly into the room they caught a glimpse of a wall of bookshelves, before freezing as they heard a noise.
“Oh, you precious girl.” They heard the Doctor say, though there was some strange background noise they didn’t understand. “How I miss you.” Rory and Amy shared a look and, after a moment or two, Rory nodded.
“Doctor?” He asked loudly, peeking around the cover that was provided by the ensuite bathroom. Amy heard a small crash, and peeked around the corner to see the Doctor picking himself up from the floor next to a bed.
“Ponds!” He said, a smile instantly appearing on his face, although it seemed somewhat fake. After a second, his brow creased and he became puzzled. “How did you get here?”
“We came through the door.” Rory said, his brow furrowing in turn. The Doctor shook his head.
“No, I mean how did you find this place.” He asked, looking sternly at the two of them. Amy cut in before Rory could say anything.
“We were worried about you, Doctor. You’re usually the first one in the console room and we couldn’t find you in any of your usual haunts.” She said. Okay, she admitted to herself, that last bit was a lie, but it wasn’t exactly a big one. Right? Rory hurriedly began to nod, agreeing with her.
“And after how you reacted yesterday…” He started, before stopping himself. “We were worried.” He restated. The Doctor sighed for a moment, before putting on his fake grin again.
“Nothing to worry about. Everything is a-okay.” He frowned for a moment. “Remind me never to say that again.” He scrunched up his face and stuck out his tongue as if the taste of the word was disgusting. Rory seriously doubted that everything was okay, but let the Doctor have his denial for a moment longer.
“What is this place?” He asked, looking around at the lilac room. There was a very large bed with pale pink sheets in the room, along with an old fashioned desk, and pictures lining the walls. Before he or Amy could look at the pictures, their attention was pulled away by a noise. They turned to see a TV screen playing, showing the man with big ears from the picture in the first room and a blonde girl (probably the same one as the one in the picture with the man, although she was facing away so they couldn’t see her face) talking in a room that looked a little like the console room. Amy’s brows furrowed as she watched the screen.
“What’s that?” She asked, her voice serious. The Doctor scrambled back onto the bed, grabbing the remote and pausing the video.
“Oh, nothing, nothing.” He said, jumping off the bed and moving to usher Amy and Rory out of the room. “Let’s go you two - places to go, people to see, all that.” Amy stuck her feet to the ground.
“Tell us, Raggedy Man.” She said, looking at him sternly. “What is this place and what is that on the screen?” She paused for a second before continuing, her eyes narrowing. “More importantly, what was so wrong yesterday that you refused to spend the day with Rory?” Rory opened his mouth to speak, but closed it shortly, deciding to let Amy take the reins in this case. The Doctor sighed, stepped back, and sat heavily on the bed. He raked his hand through his hair, before turning to the two of them with a sad look in his eye.
“This room belonged to an old companion of mine.” He said, finally. He nodded toward the screen. “That’s her there.” He looked at the screen for a moment, a wistful look on his face, before turning back to the two. He gulped quickly, before continuing. “She was involved in the Battle of Canary Wharf.”
“Battle?” Amy asked, settling herself on the ground near the Doctor. “The government’s barely acknowledged that it occurred - claimed it was hallucinogens in the water. It wasn’t an accident or tragedy or whatever?” The Doctor barked out a laugh and shook his head, his hair flopping in his eyes.
“It was a tragedy.” He agreed, and then shrugged. “And in some ways it was an accident.” He admitted. “But it was certainly a battle.” Rory sat down beside Amy, taking her hand in his, and gently prodded the Doctor to continue.
“Between who?” The Doctor closed his eyes.
“The Daleks and the Cybermen. Two of my oldest enemies.” He sighed. “The Daleks should have been destroyed. But some of them escaped the War and…” Amy cut him off.
“The War? What war?” She asked, puzzled, even though she dearly wanted to learn the truth behind the tragedy that took away her older sister. The Doctor looked away.
“The Time War. Between my people and the Daleks. For a while, I thought we won. But the Daleks came back.” He scrunched up his eyes as if he was holding back tears and took in a deep breath. “They fought the Cybermen from another universe - a parallel one almost like our own, but with a few small changes.” He nodded at the picture on the screen. “Her dad was alive there. That was one of those changes. He fought the Cybermen there with us when we fell through a hole in the Void between universes and landed there for a little while. We defeated the Cybermen, but they somehow managed to escape to this world.” He looked at the two of them. “They were the ghosts you might remember seeing.” Amy sucked in a breath. She remembered, oh she remembered. For a moment, when she first saw them, she had thought they were her mother and father. She had shaken that off quickly, instinctively knowing they weren’t for some reason. She frowned at that, but quickly let it be so that she could go back to the story. “Torchwood did it. They helped the Cybermen come.”
“Torchwood?” Rory asked, squeezing Amy’s hand.
“The people in charge of Canary Wharf.” The Doctor explained. Amy laughed wryly.
“Like that Hartmann woman? She was named a hero, you know.” She said, her throat thick. The Doctor scowled.
“Yvonne Hartmann was only a hero in her death.” He said. He remained quiet for a moment, before continuing. “Me and my friend, we went to find out what was causing the ghosts. We ended up causing the war, rather than just the invasion of the world.” He fell quiet. “We managed to lock the Cybermen into the Void between worlds, but she...” The Doctor closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and turned back to the video, his eyes almost caressing the form of the girl on the screen. “Sometimes, I miss her so, so much.” Rory and Amy looked at each other, before Rory reached up and placed a hand on the Doctor’s knee. The Doctor looked down at him.
“Do you want to watch some more of the videos?” He asked quietly. “We can wait.” The Doctor looked wistfully at the TV for a moment. Amy reached out her hand and placed it on top of Rory’s.
“She was important to you.” She said quietly, trying to halt the pain that came when thinking about another blonde lost at Canary Wharf. “We want to know her.” The Doctor sighed, picking up the remote and turning the video back on. Amy and Rory scooched over nearer to the bed and turned to watch the screen.
“You’re lying.” The girl said, laughing as she sat on the chair in the console room, sipping a cup of (what was probably) tea. The man with big ears grinned from where he stood, leaning against the railing around the console.
“Am not. Why would I need to?” He grinned a maniacal grin at her and, although Amy still couldn’t see the woman’s face, she could bet that the woman gave him a cheeky grin in return.
“Really?” The woman asked. “The people of Altrifora really believed you were the god of reason and logic and tried to make you their king?” She barked out a laugh. “Like I’d believe that.” The man’s face fell a bit.
“Why wouldn’t you?” He asked.
“Reason and logic?” She said, a laugh in her voice. “That’s not exactly you, now is it, Doctor?”
“Wait!” Amy said loudly, causing the Doctor and Rory to jump. The Doctor fumbled with the remote for a moment, before pausing the scene and turning to Amy, his eyebrows furrowed.
“What is it, Pond?” He asked, a bit of irritation leaking into his voice. Amy raised an eyebrow at that, but let it be. He missed his friend and wanted to spend time with her in the only way he could - she would have wanted to watch videos of her and Rose for days if she could.
“She called him Doctor.” Amy stated, looking at the Doctor. Rory frowned, looked at the screen for a moment and then turned to the Doctor.
“How is that possible?” He asked, his nose scrunched up as he tried to understand. “You’re the Doctor.” The Doctor blinked for a moment uncomprehendingly and then smacked himself in the forehead.
“I thought I had told you.” He said, before muttering to himself. “I promised her I’d tell people from now on.”
“Told us what?” Amy asked, pressing the Doctor. The Doctor turned to them.
“Time Lords don’t exactly die. Well, they do, but it certainly takes a while.” The two of them glared at him and he continued quickly. “Time Lords are given 13 lives - 12 regenerations. When one life dies, the Time Lord regenerates and is reborn. A completely different body, with some new quirks, but the core of the Time Lord is the same.” He turned to Amy. “I had just regenerated when I met you, Amelia.”
“Is that why you were acting all…” Amy waved her arms in the air. “Weird?” The Doctor smiled at her and nodded.
“That,” The Doctor said, pointing at the screen, “is my regeneration two gos ago.” He frowned for a moment. “It didn’t last very long though.” He picked up the clicker and exited the video, showing a myriad of footage. He scrolled through a bit, before picking another one. “This was the me after that.” He pressed play and watched as the footage showed the movie room that he rarely entered nowadays.
“This is rubbish.” They heard a man’s voice say. They could only see the back of his head, at the moment, but they could see the strange, sticky-upy brown hair and the more familiar blonde head beside it. “Complete rubbish.”
“Shh, Doctor.” The woman said. “I want to watch.”
“We’ve read the books.” The Doctor exclaimed, turning sideways to face her. Amy and Rory finally got a clearer view of his face (although it was only one side) and were able to make out long sideburns, brown eyes, and a kind smile. “Why watch these movies? They’re rubbish.” The woman hit him over the back of his head without looking and he scowled, rubbing his head.
“Why don’t you want me to watch them?” She asked him. He continued to rub his head, so she repeated the question. “Why don’t you want me to watch them, Doctor?”
“There might be an actor who looks a bit like me.” The Doctor on the screen said sheepishly. “Maybe.” The woman turned a bit, but with the movie screen on it was difficult to make out her features.
“Maybe?” She asked. The Doctor nodded swiftly. “And this would be completely coincidental, would it not?” The Doctor nodded again. The woman broke out into laughter and the Doctor on the screen watched her helplessly. “You don’t want me to watch the Harry Potter movies because you went and got a role in them?” She asked breathlessly.
“A tiny role, really.” He said quietly. The woman laughed again.
“Oh, Doctor. Never change. You are wonderful.” She said. The Doctor perked up.
“Does that mean we’re not watching them?” He asked. She shook her head.
“Nope, you’re not getting out of it like that.” She leaned against him for a moment, before pulling back.
“When did you have the time to go and do the filming, mister?” She asked him. He rubbed the back of his neck subconsciously and she shook her head. “Oh, never mind.” She laid her head back against his side and he turned his head and softly placed a kiss on top of her head. He smiled softly as he looked down at her.
“You loved her, didn’t you?” Amy said quietly, watching the screen through blurry eyes, tears falling silently down her face. The Doctor looked at his hands and fiddled with his fingers, refusing to say anything. Rory got up from his place on the floor, walked to the other side of the bed, and sat down next to the Doctor. He placed a hand on the Doctor’s shoulder and waited. After a moment, the Doctor looked up at him.
“Sometimes, Doctor,” he said, bottling up his own emotions, “it’s better to say the words out loud then keep them within you.” The Doctor bit his lip as he looked up at Rory through his eyelashes, before glancing to a small box that sat solitarily on the old-fashioned desk in the room, quickly glancing back to his hands. Amy stood up slowly, carefully, the tears continuing to fall, and walked over to the desk. She kept her back to the Doctor and Rory and touched the box with shaky hands, letting her fingers brush over the smooth fabric covering. After a moment, she closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and opened the box. Slowly, she opened her eyes, one at a time. Within the box, she could see a small silvery looking band, although Amy doubted that’s what it actually was. In the middle of the band, sat a small, round cut clear stone that looked almost like a diamond. On either side of it, were a series of three very small blue stones. Amy picked up the box, holding her breath as she looked at the gorgeous ring. As she looked, she saw words engraved on the inside. Craning her neck, she looked within.
“How long are you going to stay with me?” She said aloud quietly, as she read the words on the band.
“Forever.” A voice croaked behind her. She spun around, clasping the box shut and holding it close to her for a moment, before relaxing as she realized that it was simply the Doctor, who had yet to look up from his hands. “That’s what she said. Forever.” Finally, he looked up at Amy, who almost gasped and dropped the box as she beheld the sadness within them and the tears he refused to let fall. “I shoved my past companions in her face. I had abandoned her, more than once. Her friend had left us. I let her get hurt over and over again. But she said she would stay with me forever.”
“Did you get to ask her?” Rory asked quietly, looking at the box in Amy’s hands and trying to keep from falling apart himself at the sadness of the thought. The Doctor looked back down at his hands and shook his head.
“I had that made on an asteroid she and I visited. She bought a trinket for her mum while I was getting that.” He took a deep breath. “We headed to her home so she could give her mum the trinket, and I could ask her mum for permission, like you humans do. And then we learned about the ghosts.”
“And she died.” Amy said quietly, looking down at the box in horror, her heart breaking for the Doctor. The Doctor laughed hoarsely.
“Almost. She almost died.” He said. “She was trapped in another universe, parallel to ours - the one where the cybermen came from. She was trapped there with her mother, her best friend, and her parallel father.” The Doctor pulled on his left ring finger as he sat, tears falling down his face and dripping onto the bedding. “She could live out her life happy.”
“She wasn’t with you.” Amy said. “I’m pretty sure she wasn’t happy.” The Doctor let out a horrid half-laugh, half-sob that made Rory almost jump in an attempt to help him.
“She wasn’t, oh, she wasn’t.” The Doctor’s tears grew more present. “She found a way to do the impossible and ripped her way back home to me, bringing news of impending doom.” Rory and Amy shared a look, Rory keeping his hand on the Doctor’s arm, but moving steadily closer to him. Amy carefully, gingerly, placed the box on the desk and climbed up onto the bed with them.
“What happened, Doctor?” She asked, sidling up beside Rory. The Doctor looked up at the two of them, tears clinging to his eyelashes.
“I was going to regenerate. I was able to stop it but, well…” He sighed. “It’s complicated, but a clone of that me was formed. The same as me, except it was human.” He looked back down at his hands. Rory’s face went blank with horror and he pulled on the Doctor’s shoulder, forcing the Doctor to look up.
“Tell me you didn’t. Please, tell me you didn’t.” Rory said, searching the Doctor’s eyes for an answer that would make him happy. Amy looked between the two of them in confusion.
“What?” She asked, becoming more worried as they didn’t answer and just continued to stare into each other’s eyes. “What is it? What did you do, Doctor?” The Doctor still didn’t respond. “Rory!” She said, hitting him on the shoulder and forcing him to look at her. “What did he do?” Rory continued to look into the Doctor’s eyes, even as he answered Amy’s question.
“He left her with the clone.” He said, looking both angry beyond belief and heartbroken on the Doctor’s behalf.
“He had her lifespan. They could have the forever she always promised me.” The Doctor said quietly. Amy frowned.
“Did you even check to see if he was the exact same as you? Did you see if he would survive the process?” She snapped, before taking a deep breath and forcing her anger to simmer down. It wasn’t something the Doctor could change now, so why should she yell and cause more heartbreak. “I’m sorry.” She said quietly. “I just… I can imagine how she felt.” The Doctor shut his eyes quickly and scrunched them against the pain.
“I can too.” He said quietly. Amy gave up any pretense and pushed Rory out of the way, curling up beside the Doctor. Rory rolled his eyes, but went over to the other side of the bed, nudged the Doctor into the middle, and sat beside him, acting as a stalwart presence. Tears rolled down the Doctor’s cheeks and Rory pressed his hand on the Doctor’s knee, squeezing it gently. The Doctor reached out with his own hand and squeezed back.
“She deserved more than me.” He said quietly - so quietly that both Amy and Rory had to strain their ears to hear. “She deserved more than a broken, alien soldier who did horrible, horrible things and can never give her a truly normal life.”
“That’s not your decision.” Amy said, holding back her anger and attempting to make her tone less snappy. Her anger at the Doctor’s decision, while called for, would not help this situation.
“It’s not about what she deserved.” Rory said, smiling softly at the Doctor. “It’s about what she wanted. And that was you.” The Doctor smiled wanly at Rory, squeezing his hand for a moment before looking down.
“I loved her so much.” He said in a low voice, tears still crawling down his cheeks. “And I never got to say it.” He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, his face relaxing and becoming so much younger than he had ever seemed to both Rory and Amy. “Rose Marion Tyler, I love you from the first moment of the Big Bang to the moment when the last star explodes. I love you.” Amy felt a chill slither down her spine and she moved away from the Doctor, her tears restarting as she stared at him, eyes wide.
“Rose?” She asked, her voice almost silent. “Rose Marion Tyler? Of the Powell Estate?” The Doctor chuckled quietly, still looking down.
“Dame Rose Tyler of the Powell Estate.” He corrected, playing with his fingers. “Queen Victoria knighted us.” A frown appeared upon his face. “And then banished us, but oh well.”
“Rose Tyler? Disappeared at age 19? Named one of the heroes of Canary Wharf along with her single mother Jacqueline Andrea Suzette Prentice Tyler and her best friend Mickey Smith?” The Doctor look up, the frown becoming even more prominent.
“Yes. What of it?” He asked. Amy’s center of gravity shifted as she fell forward, tears streaming down her cheeks, gasping for breath.
“No, no, no.” She whispered quietly, clutching her hands to her heart.
“Amy?” Rory crawled around the Doctor and held him to her. “Amy? Are you okay?”
“Pond?” The Doctor said, turning to her, his tears still clinging to his eyelashes. He looked up at Rory, bewildered. “Did I say something wrong?”
“P-p-picture.” Amy said, putting a hand out towards the Doctor. “Please.” The Doctor looked at her for a second, then turned to Rory. Rory nodded to the Doctor quickly, keeping his arm around Amy. The Doctor jumped off the bed, fell onto the ground, popped back up, and lunged for a picture frame that was facing away from them on a dresser in the corner. He grabbed it and quickly brought it back to Amy, still facing away from her. Amy reached out to take the frame from him with trembling hands. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and turned it. Opening one eye at a time, she stared into the smiling face of Rose Marion Tyler, with her brown-haired Doctor at her side. “Rose.” She whispered, tracing her hand along the edge of the frame. She looked up at the Doctor with wide eyes. “She traveled with you when she was 19. That’s why she disappeared.” The Doctor nodded, watching Amy carefully as he tried to hold back his own tears, though she could see them swimming in his eyes. Amy shut her eyes tightly and took another deep breath.
“Why does it matter, Amy?” Rory asked quietly, still holding her in his arms, staring at the picture of the woman that seemed to matter so much to his wife. Amy held the picture out to him and he took it, carefully inspecting the woman. She seemed… familiar, somehow.
“When I was 9, my psychologist made me have a pen pal of another girl who was seeing a psychologist.” Amy said slowly, making sure the tears didn’t obstruct her words. “She was an 11 year old who lived in London with her mother. We didn’t get on very well at first. But she believed me about my Raggedy Man. Told me stories of this Doctor who came and helped her with her homework, told her funny stories about history.” Amy looked up at the Doctor to see that his tears had begun to fall again. “She became my older sister. She was everything to me.” Amy looked back down at the picture. “They said she died at Canary Wharf. But she didn’t. She lived.” She closed her eyes, holding the picture to her chest. “I’ll never see her again, but she lived.” She held out her hand to the Doctor, her eyes still closed, and smiled as she felt his hand take hers. “And I’ll travel all of time and space with my brother-in-law, just as she would have wanted.” The Doctor squeezed Amy’s hand and she felt Rory’s familiar lips kiss her forehead. She finally opened her eyes, and through the film of tears, looked up at the both of them and smiled.