#11th Doctor x child oc

[idkfitememate]

Frozen Family

૮꒰˶ᵔ ᗜ ᵔ˶꒱ა Pairings : GN! Grandpa Reader x Childe & Family

૮꒰ྀི∩´ ᵕ `∩꒱ྀིა W.K. : 2.1k

໒꒰ྀིᵔ ᵕ ᵔ ꒱ྀི১ Tags/CW&TW : Fluff, family relations, small bit of angst, character death, OC death

໒꒰ྀི˶˙Ⱉ˙˶꒱ྀིა Author’s note : So anyway this is the newfound brain rot because I got to many ideas, not enough for a fic, but it’s gonna distract me from others so here we go lol-

(Also yeah Grandpa I’m in a manly mood)

Note from weeks later: Nah this bitch a fix tf-

“Tell me about my Дедушка*.”

Capitano looked down at the ginger with contempt. It was often now, since Dottore had let it slip - curse that bastard - that Tartaglia’s Grandfather was a Harbinger. Apparently the boy had been raised to think that great man was simply a lowly solider, not one of the most powerful men in Snezhnaya.

When he heard that, Capitano had never wanted to kill a family more.

They hid your legacy from their kids, how dare they keep living as thought they had any right!?-

He sighed.

The boy continued to bother the much larger man at any chance he got, borderline begging - or now was he? Maybe he crossed that line ages ago - the man to tell him anything about his grandfather.

War stories, tall tales, hell even DRINKING stories, the 11th would take any.

It wasn’t like his Grandfather wasn’t alive, Childe could leave the palace right now and go ask you, seeing as you lived with his family.

But what Childe wanted was to come home one day in a boisterous manner and shout at his parents:

“You LIED you FEINDS!!! How DARE YOU LIE to not only ME but the REST OF YOUR CHILDREN about their ГРАНДФАТЕР?!? And to YOU, ГРАНДФАТЕР, ALLOWED THEM TO LIE!!! How COULD YOU?!?”

But he held to much respect for both them and you, even if his father sent him off as thought sending his blood thirsty son to join the Fatui would do anything. It was like sending a polar bear to a penguins nest, he had no clue what his father was thinking.

No matter, because you were there, showing him moves and teaching him tricks and giving him tips. Though, he still felt a bit betrayed at the fact that you even hid the fact that you were one of the strongest men in Snezhnaya.

“You truly wish to know boy?” The sharp voice of his superior snapped Childe out of his head. A quick nod was enough to bring Capitano to a nearby chair and sit, Childe quickly following.

“He was brave, I can say that much… He was around before me and had made a name for himself long before I even dared touch the Fatui, let alone graced its ranks.”

Childe took in the information like a sponge, absorbing everything the man said.

“They called him Большой хищник Севера*, a powerful title I’m sure you can see. It is said that before his accident, he had not lost a single man in war or battle, but after, he only lost seven men, one of each nation.”

Childe looked on in wonder. Only seven men… in the entirety of his Harbinger career? He knew the Doctor could never account for that.

“Wait… his accident? Do you mean..?” “Yes, when he first received that scar across his face, marring it, that was the first time he lost a man, someone near and dear to him as I’ve heard. I was only then truly climbing the ranks when this happened… a pity. But he wore that scar, and his friend’s Vision, with pride.” Childe gaped.

“Wait, you mean to tell me that-“ “Yes, Tartaglia, that Vision he carries in his eye, as well as arm and ear, back and finger, even his heart, they all work. They are the last pieces of his closest comrades. He’d rather die than give them up, I’ve heard. Unfortunately the strain of using them forced him into retirement, but he comes when we call.”

Childe’s eyes widened as he screamed.

“WAIT THEY WORK?!?-“

૮꒰づ˶• ༝ •˶꒱づ ˚ʚ ꒰⁐⁐⁐⁐୨🍦🍯🍧୧⁐⁐⁐⁐꒱ ɞ˚

“BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA-“

Ajax looked on in awe at his Дедушка. The nearly ten foot tall giant of a man, with a full beard and furry body hair to boot had just pulled a huge fish out from beneath the ice sheet they currently stood on while ice-fishing, bare handed.

Your roaring laughter echoed through the tundra as you held the fish up proudly. You grabbed the then four year old and hoisted him onto your shoulder, that which he could fully sit on and still have some room. His hands latched onto the side of your face but that didn’t seem to phase you, as you continued your loud laughter. The cause of your laughter, being that the fish was the same size as Ajax.

“LOOK AT HOW LARGE IT IS, МАЛЕНЬКИЙ ОДИН*!! SHE IS THE SAME SIZE AS YOU BWAHAHAHAHA!!”

Ajax’s entire body shook as you continued to laugh, giggles beginning to bubble up from his own mouth.

He watched as your Hydro themed earring bounced around as your body gyrated up and down from the mere force of your laughter. His laughter grew until the two of you were basically screaming out through the tundra.

You sighed and - while still chuckling - wrapped an arm around the boys waist and began walking back home. Of course, not before grabbing the bucket filled with other fish from your fishing trip.

Ajax didn’t want to say anything, on account of the fact that it would’ve been disrespectful of course, but your arm that was wrapped around him was bumpy and hard and cold, not unlike a certain place on your chest, though it was just super cold.

The arm was usually covered in more layers or a bunch or bandages wrapped around it to soften its shape and surface, but Ajax could still feel the sharp points and edges, though he never minded.

Eventually you both made it back to the house you shared with his family, and ducking under the doorframe quickly alerted the family of your presents.

“ГРАНДФАТЕР!!!!” Ajax’s two younger siblings - a third was on his way, Teucer would be his name - ran up to you jumping at your feet. You chuckled more and let their heads, greeting each.

“Tonia, Anthon, calm yourselves!! We were only gone a few hours hah hah!!” The two only cried out in joy louder, wrapping themselves around your legs. You stumbled for a moment before walking forward as if they weren’t there.

A man and a woman watched as you walked into the kitchen and subsequently the freezer - ironic considering where you lived - to drop off the fish before waltzing into the living room. You plopped down in the couch, first removing Ajax’s coat and then your own.

The two on your legs let go and smiled up at you, the man and woman - Ajax’s mom and dad - walked over a gave you smile, a hand landing on your shoulder.

Your smile widened.

Archons you fucking loved your family.

૮꒰づ˶• ༝ •˶꒱づ ˚ʚ ꒰⁐⁐⁐⁐୨🍰🍨🍫୧⁐⁐⁐⁐꒱ ɞ˚

Archons you fucking hated these enemies.

These fuckers from Natlan were resistant little fuckers. You chop off a hand and they’d still keep fighting.

You were growing annoyed after hours of fighting, blood drenching your uniform and absolutely caking your hair, something you knew would be a bitch to get out from experience.

Your right hand of the time, a Natlander by the name of Eztil, was beside you through the whole fight. He wielded large war hammer made of various precious metals and stones, as well as prettified wood; it swung through the skies, heating up the air as his Pyro vision burned bright. Much like you, his battle-hungry smile was long gone, replaced by annoyance as he squished another enemy beneath his hammer, blood spraying across his already bloody face.

“UGH! I’m getting bored nouehuepo*!! When are we going to be finished?? I am growing hungry and wish to challenge you to another eating contest after this!!” He shouted, completely ignoring the man running at him with a knife, whom was taken down by another Fatui member.

“I do not know приятель*. But let us continue until no other man stands but us!” And with that, you both continued swinging. You with your fists, sickles and hammers, him with his war hammer and bursts of flame.

Your movements were in sync, almost like a dance as you ravaged the battle field. You had each others back, making you both the most dangerous force on the battlefield.

If only it could’ve stayed that way.

It was a second. A second to look back at your friend to make a mental check.

Then you felt a searing sensation on the side of your face not looking at him. Eyes quickly looking back, a knife was embedded in your skin and a man had his foot on your chest. He smirked, then dragged the burning hot knife up, towards your eye, but before you could fully react.

Everything went white in that eye, then black.

Then, the most searing, burning, awful sensation you had ever felt.

Your scream silenced the battlefield as you bat the man away with the knife still embedded in your flesh, his body skipping across the land like a stone on a lake. Eztil’s eyes landed on you, which was just enough time for another attack.

“EZTIL!!!” You screamed.

…

A sword embedded itself through his chest. Both your eyes widened as your hand left the knife in your eye, reaching out to your now falling comrade.

You refused to cry, because he’d live.

That’s what you said to yourself as you rushed over to him, not minding your injury.

“Eztil, don’t you DARE fucking close your eyes, do you understand me?!?” Blood bubbles from his lips as his breathing slowed. A tear slipped from his eye as one of his hands pressed against your cheek.

“Nouehuepo… take it.” He whispered. Your gaze became confused as you stared at the dying man.

“What..?-“ “My vision. Take it. She shall be of service to… y-you.” He let out a harsh cough, his blood not staining your skin, making you flinch.

“No. It is yours приятель, I could never-“ “It is my last wish. Y-you wouldn’t deny a d-dying man his last wi-sh, would you?” You sighed, smiling at him.

“I don’t want you to die of enemy hands, so would you allow me to do the honors?” His grin widened, a glint in his eyes as he laughed, which quickly turned to hacking up his lungs.

“O-of co-urse!!” He smiled, and you smiled as well. Your hand flew up to the knife in your eye, and tore it out, not caring for the fountain of blood that squelched out. You also didn’t mind the large flap of skin that fell from your cheek, revealing the musculature of your face and your gums and teeth.

“Goodbye, my friend. May you find many fights in the afterlife to satisfy your bloodlust.” He grabbed your hand with the widest smile you’d ever seen in him.

“And ma-y I see you I-in that place!” Your hand came down onto his head, knife imbedding itself into his skull. Then, you raised your arm and planted the knife tainted with you and his blood now into his chest, striking his heart head on.

The light died from his eyes and his vision, but you quickly picked up the small red jewel which had been attached to his hair. Wiping it off, you leaned back and held your hand forward, before slamming the damned thing into your eye.

The battlefield suddenly felt as though it was atop a volcano itself, the air heating up and ash seemingly falling from the sky. You gripped your friend’s weapon, testing it in your hand and grip, swinging it slightly. Your hands pressed to your waist and your hand tilted to the sky, and finally, you laughed.

Your laughter shook the world, men falling in their asses as you showcased your joy. the air grew even hotter as the vision grew even brighter. Your entire body shook as the ear hammer in your hand heated up to a point where the metals were turning white in heat, though they didn’t melt.

You turned to your men, a wide smile on your face and tears, one trail of water and one of blood, streamed from your eyes.

“WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR MEN?!? LET US FIGHT UNTIL ONLY WE REMAIN!! CHARRGGEEE!!!!”

You continued to laugh as you knocked down tens of hundreds of soldiers in one swipe, the sky nearly turning red at the mere sight of your bloodlust and rage.

That night would go down in history. The night the sky cried blood, the fall of a nation of soldiers, the day Natlan would forever regret.

‘The Night Man became a God”

૮꒰づ˶• ༝ •˶꒱づ ˚ʚ ꒰⁐⁐⁐⁐୨🍰🍭🍬୧⁐⁐⁐⁐꒱ ɞ˚

You stared at the bloodied Tartaglia- no. You stared at your grandson, Ajax’s bloodied form.

He only looked back at you.

“Well, Дедушка? Have I become a God?”

໒꒰ྀི˶˙Ⱉ˙˶꒱ྀིა Author’s note : Holy shit this sucked the shit outta me-

This ain’t the best but I hope you enjoyed might go back and make another of these lmao-

Дедушка - Grandfather

ГРАНДФАТЕР - GRANDFATHER

Большой хищник Севера - The Great Predator of the North

МАЛЕНЬКИЙ ОДИН - LITTLE ONE

nouehuepo - my friend

приятель - buddy

[saiilorstars]

Ch. 15:  Fantasy Land

Current Masterlist // Previous Story

Fandom: Doctor Who // Pairing: 11th Doctor x OFC

Taglist: @ocappreciationtag​​​​ @arrthurpendragon​​​​ @anotherunreadblog​​​​ @maaaaarveeeeel​​​​ @stareyedplanet​​​​ @foxesandmagic @kmc1989 @caplanbuckybarnes​​​​

[If you would like to be added to this specific OC’s taglist, let me know!]

"Renata? Renata, you've overslept! Wake up!"

Somebody laughed but Renata felt too groggy to make it out right now.

"Renata, I know you're tired but I don't think you would like to fall behind on your schedule. You'd hate it, actually. You're all about routines, after all. Wake up already!"

Renata sat upright on a bed suddenly, her eyes blinking fast to clear up her blurry vision. Soon she found the man who was talking to her and she almost fell out of her bed from shock...and fear.

A tall man with dirty blonde hair, neatly parted, was smiling at her so sweetly...like he always did. "Sometimes I wonder how much time you actually put into these routines of yours…"

"Elek…" Renata said breathlessly. She could feel her hearts pounding in her chest. "How are you...?" This couldn't be possible. He couldn't be here with her.

And yet, Elek chuckled softly at her. "I think you slept pretty hard again. You're so confused. Didn't have another dream did you?"

"Dream?" Renata tilted her head slightly. When she said the word, she got a faint image of a man and a blue box — a TARDIS. As quickly as it came, it left.

"Gala?" Elek called to her gently. His hand cupped the side of her face. "Maybe you should lie back down and rest for a bit more."

"I'm fine…" Renata said slowly, sounding like she wasn't truly sure if that was the case. She started hearing a chirping noise...birds. They were...chirping. "Elek, do you hear that?"

"Hear what?"

"I'm not sure, a-a bird…"

"What's a bird?"

Renata blinked and the bird chirping faded away, leaving her in a moment of daze.

~ 0 ~

"Honestly, Asgari, can't you let it go?" The Doctor groaned as he strode down a hallway with a brunette woman hot on his trail.

She was outraged and the fact that the Doctor kept walking away from her only made her angrier. "No!" She shouted so hard that the Doctor winced into a stop. "You just got up and left and I had no idea where you were!"

"I just went out for a bit," he turned to face her and internally sighed. He honestly lost count how many times his wife got angry with him per day. "I was going to come back!"

"With you, I never know!" She huffed. "I never know anything about you and what you're gonna do!"

"Yeah, I know," he mumbled under his breath. Years of marriage had gone by for them and yet Asgari still felt like a stranger to him no matter how hard they tried to make things work. Not even the birth of their first child brought them closer.

Asgari shook her head at her husband. "I just want to know that if I need you, you'll be here."

"Of course I'll be," the Doctor said. He wasn't that terrible that he'd leave her behind to her own luck.

Asgari didn't seem so convinced and the Doctor thought it was fair. He'd just woken up that morning with a need - an urgency - for air. Asgari had been fast asleep and their daughter slept soundly in the next room. As much as the Doctor looked on at their daughter, he couldn't make the suffocation go away. He needed to leave the house for a bit. 'A bit', however, turned into hours. Asgari woke up and freaked, understandably.

"You should be," Asgari told him quietly, the disappointment flooding her simple three words. With one last look between them, she left him.

The Doctor thought it best to follow her to try and work it out but he started hearing a funny noise in the air. If he was correct, and he usually was, it sounded like Earth birds chirping…

He yawned. Maybe he should've stayed in bed…

~ 0 ~

"RORY-Y-Y-Y-Y-Y-Y!" Amy yelled at the top of her lungs, clutching her very pregnant belly. "It's starting!"

Rory had only just arrived home to hear his wife crying out for him. He left his bike to fall on the ground and hurried inside the house. "Ah. OK, OK!" However by the time he found Amy, she was sitting down in the kitchen with a bowl of batter in front of her...not looking like she was in labor as she had said only seconds ago. "False alarm," she shrugged. "What?" Rory blinked at her, confused.

"False alarm!"

"What!?"

Amy let her wooden spoon drop into the bowl as she huffed. "Well, I don't know what it feels like. I've never had a baby before." She couldn't help it if she kept repeating the false labor thing several times. It was her first child; she was clueless.

"So, when's the Doctor and Renata stopping by?" Rory moved on before Amy yelled at him. He came over to peek into the bowl and stuck a finger into the batter, much to Amy's annoyance.

She swatted his hand away and when he refused, she grabbed the wooden spoon to threaten his hand with. "I don't know," she shrugged. "Renata said tomorrow but you know with the Doctor's piloting skills…"

"Noo," Rory sarcastically said. He ended up taking the wooden spoon from Amy to fully taste the batter. "Well, he better get it right if he doesn't want to get on Gabby's bad side. She's coming in today."

Indeed Gabby would be coming to Leadworth for a visit since the Doctor and Renata promised that they would stop by. Gabby showed up a few hours later and, much to their delight, so did their Time Lords. The TARDIS appeared in their cottage's front yard and out popped the alien pair.

"Oh dear," Renata stepped out to see the flowers the TARDIS had ruined. "We've crushed your flowers."

Rory agreed. "Oh, Amy will kill you."

Renata made a face, making Gabby chuckle. "I should stop letting the Doctor land us. He makes messes as soon as we get somewhere."

The Doctor shot her a look for her comment. "Not on purpose!"

Renata playfully rolled her eyes at him and moved on to hug Rory and then Gabby. "It's so nice to see you all."

"I know, nice to see you too," Gabby hugged her back tightly then moved onto the Doctor. "How come you guys don't stop by more often?"

"Gabriella, I thought we went over this: the Doctor's piloting skills!"

"Oi!" the Doctor once again shot Renata a look. "You're getting too carried away!"

"Where's Amy?" Renata asked, looking around curiously. She figured that the TARDIS' loud landing noises would have brought Amy out like a magnet.

"She'll need a bit longer," Rory jerked a thumb over his shoulder towards the cottage's entrance.

"Whenever you're ready, Amy," called the Doctor, promptly ignoring Renata's 'Don't be rude' remark. He was much more interested in Amy's new protruding stomach. "Oh, wahey! Wahey. You've swallowed a planet!"

"Doctor!" Renata couldn't believe her ears...actually, she could because it was him. Still, it wouldn't mean that she would stand for it. "She's pregnant!" She beamed at the sight of Amy. "Oh my goodness, you're pregnant!"

Amy laughed and received her hug. "Yup. Pregnant."

"You're huge!" The Doctor exclaimed, either ignoring Renata's scold for it or simply not hearing her in all his awe.

Amy shook her head at both of them. Neither had changed a bit and that was just fine. "Yeah, I'm pregnant!"

It still somehow did not click for the Doctor. "Look at you. When worlds collide!"

"Wow," Gabby was truly amazed how he was regarded as one of the most intelligent beings in the universe and yet...he did this.

"Oh, look at you both. Five years later and you haven't changed a bit!" He went on and hugged Amy. "Apart from age and size."

"Doctor!" Renata huffed. "For the love of God!"

He stared at Amy until they all literally saw a spark in his eyes that came just before he asked, "Are you pregnant?"

Amy shook her head at him and started back for the cottage, prompting Rory to follow.

"You really haven't changed," Gabby laughed as she followed too.

"What?" The Doctor was left asking until Renata turned him towards her. "What I do?"

The Time Lady smiled at him. "You're unbelievable."

When the group was all settled, they decided to take a stroll through Leadworth. Gabby had only been in the town for Amy's and Rory's wedding so she wanted to see what else was around.

"Ah, Leadworth. Vibrant as ever," the Doctor said, clearly a strain due to its significant small size.

"It's Upper Leadworth, actually," Rory smiled proudly, "We've gone slightly upmarket."

"Where is everyone?"

"This is busy," Amy gestured to the very few people in the street. "OK, it's quiet, but it's really restful and healthy. Loads of people here live well into their 90s."

"I like it," Renata said, unsurprisingly for the others. Of course she would love the quaint towns like Leadworth. "I think it's a good place to live in and start a family."

Amy eventually slowed down until she had to take a rest on a bench. "Sorry," she apologized and rubbed her stomach.

"Don't be, it's normal," Renata said and sat down next to her. "Girl or boy?" She asked with as much curiosity as Amy's blood relatives had whenever they got into the same discussion.

"Don't know," Amy shrugged. "It's going to be a surprise."

"Oh, how nice," Renata beamed and looked at the others, specifically at the Doctor. "We are going to be here on time when this child comes." He playfully rolled his eyes at her but agreed he'd like to be there as well.

"I want to be here too," Gabby nodded. "I'm going to be an aunt! Are there names yet?"

"A few, but that's a surprise too," Rory said, sharing a knowing smile with Amy. They clearly had a name in mind.

"Alright," Gabby shrugged and turned away to get a better look at the town. There really were hardly any people on the street. "So, um, what exactly do you do here?"

"A lot," Rory said defensively, as if Gabby was already viewing Leadworth like the Doctor had: a small, boring town.

"Like what?"

"We relax...we live, we listen to the birds."

"Yeah, see, birds. Those are nice," Amy agreed somewhat as they started hearing the faint chirp of a birdsong.

"We didn't get time to listen to birdsong back in the TARDIS days."

The birdsong started getting louder.

"Uh...my head…" Renata rubbed her temples. Maybe she was exaggerating but the chirping sounded way too loud.

"Oh, blimey. My head's a bit, ooh…" The Doctor said with a scrunched face. "No, you're right, there wasn't a lot of time for birdsong back in the good...old... days."

Everyone had drifted into a sleep.

~ 0 ~

Gabby continuously giggled as she and Donna watched the tenth incarnated Renata and the tenth Doctor go back and forth in their little bickering session. They walked behind the pair down a street filled with cheerful celebrating humans.

"Doctor, I cannot believe you are this ridiculous," Renata huffed at the Doctor who had stopped at a stall to try on a classic funny hat.

"What? You don't like it?" He asked, tilting his head.

"No! Stop being a child and get us back to the TARDIS!"

He didn't wince with her scream but he didn't looked pleased to find that she was upset with their destination. "It's a simple celebration, Renée, have some fun."

"I don't like it," Renata shook her head.

"Well, Gabby and Donna sure do!" The Doctor returned the hat to its proper place. "Don't we, ladies?"

Donna rolled her eyes. "Oh sure, bring us into your argument. No thanks!" She promptly grabbed Gabby's arm and walked down a few stalls ahead. "Oh those two will be the death of me!" It was her turn to huff. "You know very well that they argue because they're attracted to each other."

Gabby agreed with a light chuckle. "I know."

"Maybe we should help them. Give 'em little nudges," Donna smirked. "Whaddya say?"

"I say that Renata will kill us but…" Gabby stopped walking and turned to face Donna. "We're the best duo they've got so let's go for it!"

Donna laughed and high-fived Gabby. They really were the best duo together. They returned to the bickering Time Lords to break them apart by suggesting that they go find somewhere to eat. Little did they know that they would be searching for a romantic spot for them.

Gabby was in charge of finding the spot while Donna bided some time for them. She had just turned down the corner when she heard a significantly loud bird chirping somewhere. She stopped and looked up at the sky. It was as normal as any Earth sky.

But then she felt so tired.

She yawned and brought a hand to her mouth to cover it up. Her eyes felt quite heavy suddenly...like she wanted a nap…

~ 0 ~

"I had a terrible nightmare…" the Doctor was saying to Renata when Amy, Rory and Gabby joined them in the console room.

"Me too," Renata was pale as she recalled her own dream. She hadn't dreamt about Elek in years, and that was just before she had met the Doctor again in 1969. Now suddenly she was dreaming that she was back on Gallifrey, married to Elek...

"Yeah, don't ask," the Doctor scrunched his face. He wasn't prepared to talk about Asgari again. He himself didn't like what he dreamt about as it made him beyond guilty remembering that he wasn't the best husband that Asgari deserved.

"You guys had bad dreams too?" Amy was rubbing her flat stomach as if she really was pregnant like she had been in her dream.

"What? Seriously? You guys too?" Gabby looked around and saw everyone, except for Rory, wore similar pale faces. She felt sick to her stomach and it wasn't because of the dream with Donna...but more to the fact that it was another reminder how she had failed recently to keep their endeavors on Renata and the Doctor safe.

"I had a dream but it wasn't a nightmare," Rory shrugged and glanced at Amy. "We were married."

The Doctor took note of the silent, but flashy, red lights on the console. That was unusual. "What's wrong with the console?"

Amy arched an eyebrow. "Yeah, in a little village."

"A sweet little village, and you were pregnant…" Rory trailed off when he realized that Amy knew exactly what he was talking about...as if she had the same dream.

"Yeah, I was huge. I was a boat!"

"You guys had the same dream?" Gabby quickly looked at the Doctor and Renata. "What did you dream about?"

The question kept them both silent.

"Okay…" Gabby cleared her throat, figuring she might as well go first. "I dreamt with you guys, but the previous you guys...and Donna." She looked down momentarily. Even if the dream had been a short one, it made her miss Donna like crazy again.

"You guys were there too," Amy suddenly remembered and pointed at the Time Lords. "But these current versions, not the last ones like Gabby's dream."

"Were we in any of your dreams?" Rory curiously wondered since it seemed like they were crossing dreams.

"No," Renata said quickly, and the Doctor agreed a few seconds later. "I was on Gallifrey...with my late husband." She waited to hear the Doctor's reaction but instead he admitted that his dream involved his own late wife.

"I haven't dreamed about Asgari in centuries," he confessed. "But it felt real."

"So did mine," Renata confessed. Everything about Elek had been accurate down the same way he used to laugh.

"I don't understand what's going on but I know that something's going on," Gabby declared and blew out some air. "Did you all hear the birds chirping in the end?" There was a collective nod amongst them. "Oh yeah, something's going on!"

"Look, it doesn't matter. We all had some kind of psychic episode. We probably jumped a time track…" the Doctor tried to say but even he didn't look convinced of his own words. "Forget it, we're back to reality now."

Amy stiffened. "Doctor, if we're back to reality how come I can still hear birds?"

"She's right," Renata whispered and turned to him, eyes filled with fear. "I hear it too."

They even felt the same tiredness as the first time just before everything went dark.

~ 0 ~

Renata blinked and she was back with Elek, having a calm breakfast together. She swallowed hard. "Elek…"

~ 0 ~

The Doctor blinked to find himself watching his young daughter fast asleep in her room. There was a terrible pit in his stomach now…

~ 0 ~

"Rory," Amy reached for Rory's hand and grabbed it tightly, "I'm scared."

"I know," he nodded in agreement.

While they had woken up from the chirping noise, their versions of the Doctor, Renata and Gabby acted like nothing had happened.

~ 0 ~

When they had been all pulled back into the same world in the TARDIS, they did a quick relay of what their world had done in the few minutes they'd been apart.

"We're looking at the park again," Amy and Rory had told them together.

"But there's ducks this time," Rory pointed out for the sake of adding more details to that world. He wanted to believe that maybe that other world really was theirs. Why wouldn't it be? It was lovely, calm and he and Amy were together and starting a family. It was just...amazing.

Gabby was slightly less hopeful. "Donna and I...we're planning again," she said quietly. "You and the Doctor...we're trying to push you together."

"Oh," Renata scratched the side of her head. "That, uh, that sounds right."

"Mhm," Gabby nodded. "That's what we used to do," she whispered. Was it wrong to hope - just a tiny bit - that the other world was the real one? The other world had Donna with all her memories. They were still friends and travelling together with the Doctor and Renata - their small space family. It was all so great...like it used to be once.

"What about you two?" Amy asked the silent Time Lords. She noticed that there was some reluctance from both of them to describe their worlds. "What are you doing right now?"

Renata swallowed hard. "Elek and I had breakfast together. He's going to work...I'm going to my foundation." Whether or not she wanted to, her gaze landed on the Doctor.

Knowing all eyes were on him to share, he did so, albeit quietly. "Just...just watching my daughter sleep."

Renata's hand flew to her stomach then. She had to swallow another thick lump in her throat.

A warm smile spread across the Doctor's face. Whether or not that world was real, that was his daughter. His firstborn. "It's like we're living the life we would've had if the war never happened."

"Yeah," Renata agreed with her gaze anywhere but him. She still saw, from the corner of her eye, that the Doctor had moved away from her, trying to work the controls again but if he was being honest, he was doing it to put some distance between them again. She felt it and she...may have agreed. Everything was fuzzy, reality wasn't clear. She, like him, had the guilty suspicion that maybe, just maybe, this reality wasn't theirs and they were truly meant to be on Gallifrey with their respective spouses.

They shouldn't be acting like anything beyond friends.

"So what do we do?" Amy once again pushed for some answers. "You said the TARDIS was dead, what do we do to get it back?"

"I don't know," the Doctor shrugged his shoulders. "I don't - I have no idea what's going on. Everything's off, sensors, core power. We're drifting. The scanner's down so we can't even see out. We could be anywhere. Someone, something, is overriding my controls."

"What could be so powerful to do that?" Gabby was wide-eyed with the news. In her long time travelling with them, she had never known anything to be able to do that. The Daleks in the Crucible were a different story. Plus, the only Daleks in the universe were mere scavengers right now. They couldn't be behind all this.

"Well, that took a while!" A new man's voice startled the group. They all quickly got in the same spot and turned to see the short man standing across them. He was rather familiar but no one could pinpoint how yet. It could be the similar clothing. "Honestly, I'd heard such good things. Last of the Time Lords, the Oncoming Storm. Him in the bow tie." His eyes flickered then to Renata, his smile stretching widely. "Oh, and the Vortex Butterfly. Who could forget about you? Certainly not that one." He jerked a thumb at the Doctor, and for the briefest moments his eyes had shifted over to Amy.

"How did you get into my TARDIS?" The Doctor stepped in front of the group, eyes narrowing on the stranger. "What are you?"

"What shall we call me? Well, if you're the Time Lord, let's call me the Dream Lord."

"I prefer intruder," Renata moved up to stand beside the Doctor, though she still couldn't bring herself to look at him. "You're trespassing."

"One could say so have you," he grinned. "But in other ways."

Renata's face paled. "What are you—?"

"Don't play stupid, Butterfly. I am in the past, the present - I am in everyone's head," the man made sure to look at every single one of them. "All of you carry secrets and guilt that you're too afraid to confess to."

"That's called being a human," Gabby tried to say but the man scoffed harshly, making her wince.

"No, that's what we call a terrible being."

The Doctor had reached for something inside his pocket and chucked it at the Dream Lord. Unlike everyone else who was surprised to see the thing go through the man, the Doctor wasn't. "Interesting…"

"I'd love to be impressed, but Dream Lord - it's in the name, isn't it? Spooky, not quite there." The Dream Lord disappeared and reappeared behind them, making them spin around to face him again. "And yet, very much here."

"You said in our heads," Rory pointed out. He was messing with them in their minds?

"Anyone want to take a guess what that is?" The Doctor made a gesture for anyone to try it out.

Amy was eager to answer first. "Um. Dream Lord. He creates dreams."

"Dreams, delusions, cheap tricks."

"And what about the gooseberry here, does he get a guess?" The Dream Lord nodded over to Rory who immediately jumped at the insult.

"Listen, mate, if anyone's the gooseberry around here, it's the Doctor."

The Dream Lord snorted. "There's a delusion I'm not responsible for."

"No, he is," Rory insisted, ignoring the Doctor's offended expression. "Isn't he, Amy?"

"Oh, Amy, have to sort your men out. Choose, even. That's one guilt," the Dream Lord grinned at the ginger.

Amy was now the center of attention and how she wished she wasn't. "I have chosen," she argued.

"Right," the Dream Lord said before glancing at Renata. "She would know though. After all, she was in the same position once upon a time. Got any tips on how not to screw it up?"

Renata breathed rather quickly in that moment. "Stop." Her voice had been a whisper. She felt her stomach twisting when she got to wondering how deeply this man knew her, of the Doctor, and their friends.

"None of you can fool me," the Dream Lord began, his voice cold as he once again gave each of the travelers a sharp look. "I see your minds, I see your thoughts. Oh...and I do see dreams. My dear Amy, when I say that you need to choose it's because I know you need to choose. I've seen your dreams. Some of them twice, Amy. Blimey, I'd blush if I had a blood supply or a real face."

"Where did you pick up this cheap cabaret act?" The Doctor cut him off before he went any further.

"Me? Oh, you're on shaky ground."

"Am I?"

"If you had any more tawdry quirks you could open up a Tawdry Quirk Shop. The madcap vehicle, the cockamamie hair, the clothes designed by a first-year fashion student... I'm surprised you haven't got a little purple space dog just to ram home what an intergalactic wag you are. Where was I?"

"Being a pain in the ass," Gabby was quick to answer. "What the hell are you? Because right now, you're looking like a parasite."

"Did Donna tell you that?" The Dream Lord sent her a big ole smile as she paled. "Oh, right, she can't anymore...because of you…"

"Leave her alone!" Renata snapped, but the man laughed.

"And here comes Mama Butterfly to save you. It's ironic, isn't it, Gabriella?" The man set his hands on his hips. "She's helped so much and yet..what did you do in return?"

Gabby's fell silent with her terrible guilt gnawing at her. She failed Renata, and Donna; that's what she had done. Renata always helped her, always looked after her as if she really was like a daughter to her and when the time came...she wasn't able to help Renata. In the Crucible, instead of helping Renata put an end to the Daleks, she got all weak and needy. When Donna had been so close to that severed hand, she wasn't able to stop her. She let the meta-crisis happen and lost Donna.

"Here's your challenge," the Dream Lord made a dramatic, long pause. "Each of you have been placed in a different world, only problem is I can't remember which one's the real one...can you?" He shot them a smirk. "Could be this one, where you're all together…" His eyes met the Doctor's and Renata's. "Or could it be one of the other worlds? On Gallifrey? Maybe the humans aren't real. Or perhaps it's still 2009 and Donna Noble is still travelling with you. Decide."

"And if we don't play along?" asked Renata defiantly.

"Then you're stuck forever going between different worlds. Each time you jump, though, you'll get weaker. Oh, and I might have thrown in a bit of a danger in some worlds."

"This time I wasn't the one to ask," the Doctor mumbled to her and earned a whack on the side.

The chirping noise alerted them that they would be jumping worlds again.

"Doctor, what do we do?" Amy covered her ears but then realized she wouldn't be able to hear the Doctor's answer. "Doctor!"

"Try to keep your eyes open for something that doesn't make sense!"

"Uh, that's going to be hard!" Rory gestured to the Doctor first in his long list of things that didn't make sense. "We're in a spaceship that's bigger on the inside than the outside, with a bow tie-wearing alien, a woman who sprouts butterfly wings, a girl who does the same thing…"

"Right, we get it, thanks," Renata muttered. "Just simple things! Sometimes we just…" She trailed off when the chirping became too loud for her. "...simple...just...simple things…"

"Ren? Ren!" The Doctor caught her slumping body and met her gaze one last time before her world went dark.

~ 0 ~

"Renata, you have to be more careful," Elek was holding the Time Lady in his arms. It took Renata a few minutes to realize they were right in front of the door; Elek was leaving for work but not anymore. "I love that being clumsy is an endearing part of your personality but right now it is the utmost importance that you take it easy."

"Clumsy?" Renata tried pulling herself away from him but he had such a firm grip around her that it was futile to try. "I'm not...I've never been clumsy."

That didn't make sense. "Try to keep your eyes open for something that doesn't make sense!"

At the Doctor's voice, Renata felt a series of chills run through her body. The Doctor. She loved im - had once loved him. That was in her past...wasn't it?

"Renata, I think you should go lay down again," Elek resolved that this was the best, and safest, option for Renata. "You're starting to worry me. The pregnancy is taking a toll on you."

Renata's hands came to rest on her stomach. She hadn't noticed it straightaway but she'd learned soon enough from Elek that she was pregnant. With no war, she was able to keep her pregnancy going. Her unborn child once again lived inside her.

"Oh God…" Her voice was shaky enough without her body deciding to join her in trembles. She was pregnant? Or she wasn't? She was with the Doctor, in the TARDIS - their TARDIS — as he once told her...if he had ever told her.

~ 0 ~

"You can't just keep watching your daughter and pretend like nothing's wrong," Asgari was beside the Doctor, keeping her tone quiet so their daughter, who remained asleep, wouldn't wake.

"Believe me, I'm not pretending," the Doctor took in a deep breath. He couldn't tear his eyes off his child no matter how much he tried. If this was all fake, then the illusions were so real...and if it was fake, then it was cruel.

Asgari shook her head. "You know, sometimes I wish we hadn't gotten married at all. I feel like we got along better before we were forced to marry."

The Doctor kept quiet but he silently agreed on that. Asgari was a lovely woman, when she had been his friend. She was a bit snarky, but it made her challenging personality all the more fun. They had bickering rounds when they were 'engaged' and those were fun, but that was it. It never compared to what he felt when he bickered with Renata, when he was so close to her ginger, freckled face. Asgari was beautiful but Renata was simply breathtaking.

But had their story truly ended the night before his wedding?

Did he never meet her again?

His hearts ached with both love and guilt. Love for his Renée, and guilt for Asgari and their children.

~ 0 ~

"I don't like being near to them," Amy whispered to Rory as they watched their versions of the Doctor, Renata and Gabby try a swingset. "They might not be real."

Rory couldn't help the scoff that escaped his lips. "Why would you think that? Why would you think that this world isn't real?"

"C'mon Rory," Amy turned to him, "Is this...is this really what we want our future to be like?"

"What's wrong with it?"

"I just feel like we could have more than…"

"A family?"

Amy fell silent. It only made Rory feel worse. How come he always ended up on this side of the path and Amy was stuck on the other one? He didn't feel like he demanded much, but it always seemed that way for Amy.

"Do you not want this?" He asked her, quieter as if anyone was listening in. "I thought you'd chosen me, not him."

Amy smiled at him. "You are always so insecure!"

Her nonchalant attitude wouldn't change the topic this time. "You ran off with another man!" He huffed.

"Not in that way! And Renata was there too, and Gabby!"

"Yet it didn't make much of a difference in the end, did it?" Rory's snap was a hard blow but one that he felt had to be made. It wasn't fair that Amy kept acting as if nothing happened because it did happen.

Amy looked down guiltily. "I said I was sorry."

"Yeah, but did you mean it?" Rory waited for her to answer but as it seemed, Amy was more troubled than previously thought.

~ 0 ~

"Oh this place is amazing!" Donna beamed at the lovely restaurant Gabby had found for them. It was like an old fashioned place with red brick walls, wooden tables and a pretty loud band playing in the corner.

Gabby only nodded as she kept looking at Donna and then the Doctor and then Renata. She couldn't get over the fact that this might all be fake, a plain farce.

The Doctor sure seemed to love the place. "It's great!"

Renata, on the other hand, wasn't so sure. "Does it have to be so loud?"

"They're just playing a gig," Donna shrugged. "They'll be off soon enough, you'll see. Go find us a table, hmm?" She glanced at the Time Lords with a hopeful smile.

"Yeah, alright. C'mon, Renée!" The Doctor offered her his arm and though Renata still didn't seem to like the place, she linked her arm with his.

"Let's see what we can do to push them together," Donna immediately told Gabby when they were gone. She pulled the girl towards the counter and called for the first employee that passed by.

Gabby watched and listened as Donna explained the situation to the employee. She smiled at Donna's determination to make things as romantic as possible for their friends. It was truly like nothing had changed. No doubt they would get into so much trouble from Renata if they were caught but it never mattered to them. They were the duo, the wing women, of the Time Lords and they had to do whatever they could to make them open their eyes.

[somethingeden]

Book help - Series + Characters and Love Tropes

[Firstly, here is post for the fandoms]

Hello, I am a writer on Wattpad and I am trying to think of a story. I do get writer's block so I have old books but I am to lazy to rewrite them. Okay so I have a few ideas but may you use about a minute to vote or even give me suggestions, it would be appreciated! I could also do a cross over.

Series and the characters that I am considering of doing is (I am also okay with character x character and oc x oc:

Narnia (Edmund Pevensie/Peter Pevensie/Caspian X/Lucy Pevensie/Susan Pevensie/Aslan/Eustace Scrubb)

MCU (Bucky Barnes/Steve Rogers/Wanda Maximoff/Peter Parker/Harley Keener/Hope Lang/Scott Lang/Same Wilson/Natasha Romanoff/Pietro Maximoff/Tony Stark/Thor/Loki/Stephen Strange/Wade Wilson/Peter Quill)

Harry Potter (Harry Potter/Draco Malfoy/Ron Weasley/Hermione Granger/Luna Lovegood/Neville Longbottom/Blaise Zabini/Pansy Parkinson/Sirius Black/Remus Lupin/Bellatrix Lestrange/Ginny Weasley/Fred Weasley/George Weasley/Bill Weasley/Charlie Weasley/Cedric Diggory/Tom Riddle/Mattheo Riddle)

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child (Albus Potter/James Potter II/Rose Granger-Weasley/Scorpius Malfoy/Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter/Hermione Granger/Ted Lupin)

Marauders (James Potter/Sirius Black/Remus Lupin/Bellatrix Black/Marlene Mckinnon/Mary Mcdonald/Dorcas Meadows)

Doctor Who (9th Doctor/Jack Harkness/10th Doctor/Donna Noble/11th Doctor/Amy Pond/Clara Oswin Oswald/12th Doctor/13th Doctor/Yasmin Khan/Ryan Sinclair/14th Doctor/Donna Noble/Rose Noble)

Heartstopper (Ben Hope/Harry Greene/Imogen Heaney/David Nelson)

Grease (Danny Zuko/Sandy Olsson/Kenickie Murdock/Leo Balmudo)

Disney (Ariel/Maleficent/Briar Rose/Ursula/Prince Eric)

Greek Mythology (Medusa/Hades/Poseidon/Apollo/Ares/Hermes/Demeter)

The Mortal Instruments [I haven't read all the books] (Jace Wayland-Herondale.../Alec Lightwood/Raphael Santiago/Isabelle Lightwood/Magnus Bane/Jonathan Morgenstern/Maia Roberts/Jordan Kyle)

Percy Jackson [I sadly don't have the books but I am going to base it off the tv series that'll come out next month] (Percy Jackson/Annabeth Chase/Grover Underwood/Luke Castellan/Ares/Poseidon/Hades/Clarisse La Rue/Medusa/Hermes/Hephaestus)

Enola Holmes 1 and 2 (Enola Holmes/Tewksbury/Sherlock Holmes/Mycroft Holmes)

Jurassic Park (Ian Malcolm/Alan Grant)

Jurassic World (Own Grady/Zach Mitchell/Maisie Lockwood/Gray Mitchell/Ian Malcolm/Alan Grant)

Little Women (Theodore Laurence)

Lord of the Rings (Frodo Baggins/Legolas Greenleaf/Aragorn/Eomer/Faramir)

The Hobbit (Bilbo Baggins/Thorin Oakenshield/Kili Oakenshield/Fili Oakenshield/Thranduil Greenleaf/Bard/Legolas Greenleaf)

Uncharted (Nathan Drake/Victor Sullivan/Chloe Frazer)

Supernatural (Dean Winchester/Sam Winchester/Jack Kline/Claire Novak)

Mamma Mia 1 and 2 (Sam Carmichael/Harry Bright/Bill Anderson/Sky)

Love tropes:

Enemies to Lovers

Friends to Lovers

Forbidden Love

Secret Identity/Billionaire/Royal

Best friend's Brother/Sister

Second Chance

Soulmates

Fake Relationships to Lovers

Wedding – Runaway Bride/Runaway Groom/Jilted/Arranged Marriage

Strangers to Lovers

Amnesia/Mistaken Identity

Holiday Romance/Flings (Can lead to a baby)

Already Together

Hero x Villain

Sworn off Relationships

Opposites Attract

Secret Baby

Two Person Love Triangle (Mistaken Identity)

Reunited

Fairy Tale Retelling

Bet

Blind Date

and more...

[peantbutter-honeycombs]

The Hollowing Series: Part II

Title: The Boy and His Companion

Word count: 3,339

Characters: The 11th Doctor, Amy Pond, ocs

Warnings: Platonic fic not romantic.

Notes: Originally the story was going to be completely told from the point of Sophia but after a few drafts I decided it should follow Oliver. My college friend who sometimes beta reads my work used to hate the boy but now she likes him. He used to be mean and dismissive toward Sophia but clearly I changed things. Even I quite like his character now.

Speacial Thanks to @underskaro for beta reading this chapter. I know your busy and this really meant a lot to me. So thank so much.

Figured I tag @mirkwoodshewolf because they kindly edited the first chapter and I want them to know I finally got around to the second.

———

The rain had ceased, leaving a heavy blanket of grey white on the hills. It hugged the rain-soaked ground, dancing around each of the kid’s heels. The late day fog controlled the landscape, making it blur in the same way as the opening credits of Mary Poppins.

The entire walk home, the two walked in silence. Oliver, in one hand, held the middle bar of the bright green trike. The metal was ice in his palm. He gripped the bar so tight his knuckles were turning a ghostly shade of white. He held Sophia’s hand in the other, though not nearly as tight. However, still tight enough to make the little girl uneasy.

Sophia would have “said” something if it wasn’t so woefully clear Oliver was cross. His soulful hickory eyes were hard as stone. Instead of their usual boyish spark, there lingered a disdainful flicker. She could swear he was muttering something bitter. Now and then she’d fear a foul word, he’d probably later scold himself for saying.

Whoooooooooo.

He stopped, eyes narrowing. He took a deep, rather stiff breath and sharply exhaled through his nostrils. Adrenaline surged through his system so fast he felt it burn a path through his veins. He spun around, pulling Sophia behind him. Oliver had a glacially callous glare on his face, eyes fixed on the horizon.

The wind tore at the collar of his slicker, and his damp mess of blonde curls. Their surroundings were clouded, hidden, shrouded by the thick veil of fog. Oliver stood silently, the only sound coming from the ferocious flapping of his jacket. He scanned the stretch with the careful eye of a concerned mother.

The fog is not the mist. The fog is not the mist.

The second they arrived home, Oliver condemned Sophia to the time-out chair. She quietly settled in on the stool, positioned in the far corner of the dead end down stairs corridor, without protest. It was an older item. The hand carved mahogany always felt stiff on her bum. But she thought it better not to whine.

Oliver, he sat alone in the living room. A damp, worn out mess of a human being. He tiredly sunk into the couch. He ignored the clammy feeling of his rain-soaked clothes. He completely collapsed across the cushions. Every muscle in his body just surrendered to gravity. He could feel the tiredness pressing on his chest, weighing him down, draining his energy, exhausting his patience.

Why would she think?… Especially now. He rolled off his side onto his back and focused his eyes on the ceiling. She can’t just… Ugh!

He brought a pillow to his face and screamed.

The seconds ticked away into minutes; in the isolation of the sitting room, Oliver let the world around him fade into silence. The minutes ticked into half an hour; Sophia absentmindedly twiddled her thumbs, humming a familiar song in the back of her head; Oliver had been awake for sixteen hours. His consciousness was grasping at straws.

One sniff and Oliver’s eyes are open. He rolled on to his side. Immediately his face fell into irritation. Oliver locked eyes with a familiar pair mere inches from his face.

“I’m not done with timeout. Go back.”

Sophia blinked, processing the instructions she’d just been given. Her eyes darted around, searching his face for any traces of sarcasm or falsehood. Nothing.

Sophia lightly pecks his cheek in the sloppy little kid way. It left a little wet mark, one he’d wipe away once she’d left the room. Oliver chuckles softly, carefully bumping his forehead against Sophia’s. The little ginge giggled, stumbling back, whilst raising a palm to where her temple had been nudged.

“Ten minutes?”

Sophia nods and politely shuffles off.

The landscape blurred, clouded, the fog lingered hovering above the cool streams and the crowned hills. The brilliant greens and vibrant patches of rich wildflower were poking through the fleeting fog. Soon the sun would begin its descent. Lowering, lowering until it was nothing more than a single sliver of gold vanishing on the horizon.

Eyes closed, arms folded over his chest, which rhythmically rose and fell with each dozy intake of breath, Oliver laid quietly on the couch. The father clock at the top of the stairs ticked, the pendulum swung from side to side. Quarter till four, it read.

Sophia sat in her timeout chair, continuing to hum her melodic tune. In these moments of boredom with no toys to play, no stuffy to “talk” to and no Ollie to cling to, all Sophia could do was wait. She sighed, blowing up a long strand of hair that kept dipping, falling between her eyes.

Oliver stuck his head through the white Tudor arch way that separated the sitting room and entryway corridor. Sophia, having somehow positioned herself upside down on the small stool, gave the boy a dopey smile.

Oliver rolled his eyes, pulling at the fabric of his shirt.

“Hey Soph a loaf,” Oliver softly sing-songed, sitting against the wall directly beside the timeout spot. Being upside down, her auburn hair fell in waves suspended centimetres above the rough and stained planks. She was holding her shirt down, preventing it from exposing her stomach.

“You… Wanna make a pillow fort?”

The quiet of the house is shattered by Sophia, letting out a blaring squeal. In moments she somersaults off the bench, landing clumsily on the floor. She’s up on her feet in a heartbeat, bouncing, squealing, stomping.

Oliver chuckles lightly. “Sophia, Sophia, Sophia.”

Sophia poked her head through the arch at the call of her name.

Sophia whined, tilting her head as if to ask ‘what?’

“Nothing. Just… love you Soph a loaf. Lots and lots.”

The pillow fort took longer than expected, given that they both took the construction of fort building oh so seriously. They rushed through putting on their pjs, then moved on to making dinner. No one could tell them not to eat under the bedclothes.

“You can’t put peanut butter on grilled cheese!”

Just as it did every day, the sun set. The shadows of the trees and the aging building stretched up the hills, as the golden ball of orangish yellow began its descent.

Beneath navy blue blankets, patterned with rocket ships and sea creature stickers, sat the two children. Oliver had built much of the fort; Borrowing cushions, towels and blankets from around the house. While Sophia had eagerly decorated their cloth kingdom; twinkle lights, stickers, and scribbled drawings decorated the walls and ceilings.

“So her dad was killed-- Ow. By the same agent trying to recruit her?"

Cuddled firmly against his side was Sophia, her body glued against his similar to Double Pops. Every time she moved, her knees or feet would buck, nailing Oliver in the ribs or hip. He had an arm wrapped around her neck, functioning as both a pillow for her head, and one support for the tablet he was holding.

“That’s quite coinc-- Ow! Sophia!”

Sophia bit the edge of her lip, trying to contain her giggles. Her giggle was a violin playing the open string G (Sol), alluring and dulcet. Considering she burst into a mini giggle fit with each jab, Oliver’s face crumpled like a discarded wad of paper.

He could feel Sophia wiggling against him. Her legs squirmed in a boyishly wild fashion. Her knees curved, beating him in the ribs.

“Ow!" Oliver sat up.

“Okay.” He inhaled sharply. His body was stiff from high levels of irritation. Sophia calmed herself, gently curling her toes. Her brown eyes followed Oliver’s movements, becoming larger, curious.

“Sophia, do you have to use the toilet?”

Sophia drew in her lip. She bent her knees, so she grabbed her toes. She stared, thinking hard. He watched as her face became still, eyes blinking frenziedly. Within fifteen seconds, she nodded.

“Let’s go then.” He stood, helping Sophia up.

He crawled out of the fort’s entry tunnel, it was barely big enough for him to squeeze through. They’d run low on pillows, while building some part of the structure had to be sacrificed.

He heard the soft scuffling of sock padded feet against the old wooden floor. “Sophia?” He looked back over his shoulder, realising Sophia was making more noise than necessary.

“No! Soph, you’re not bringing a blanket to the loo.”

“We lay my love and I…” Oliver sang.

Oliver sat on the third step of the stairs. Beating his hands against his thighs. He was a child. His rigid posture had been replaced by a chill slouch. Sophia had taken her time correcting the blanket as she shifted. She was just now clambering out of the blanket fort.

“Beneath the weeping willow…”

Sophia shuffled past him into the next room, across the corridor from the sitting room. As she passed, Oliver gently took hold of the back of her shirt. Sophia backtracked, then turned on her heels to face him. Oliver had a focused look, his eyes fixated on the ginger like a surgeon during brain surgery.

“Sophia. Where are you going?” He asked.

Sophia wrinkled her nose, pointing in every direction. Oliver simply rolled his eyes.

“Then go find your sweater.” He instructed. Sophia points to the room she was headed toward. “No. It’s not in the drawing room. You left it in my room. Upstairs.”

Sophia let out a pout huff, making Oliver chuckle. She looked past him at the stairs, eyes narrowing to a thin line. Nonetheless, she began her slow ascent upwards. A downside of wooden stairs. If you’re not wearing shoes, instead socks, it's easy to slip. Her sock covered feet slipped and slid, making her ascent up the stairs look clumsy.

“One foot in front of the other.” Oliver teased. Sophia, her face only inches from his ear, blew a spitty raspberry. With the satisfying feeling of retaliation, Sophia pressed on.

“Remember to use the toilet.” Oliver reminded, wiping the flecks of spit from the side of his face.

Oliver patted his thighs and then stood. Standing rather motionless, in his sharp black and orange KTM Factory pyjamas, he distinguished himself amongst the rustic clutter of the foyer. After a moment of stillness, he leapt from the third step, landing on the floor with a hard thud. He resets himself, brushing a hand through his mop top of dirty honey blonde hair.

He wanders around the corridor, gently running his fingers across the wall, over the knickknacks and along the edges of the chair rail.

"But now alone I lie..." he quietly sang, “...And weep beside the tree...”

The house was old. Ancient. It looked like it had been plucked from an autumn-aphile's Pinterest board. Time had been kind to the country home. While the creepers crept along the worn grey cobbles, the inside was a monument to times long gone by.

Thump, thump, thump.

Sophia. She was moving around upstairs.

His mother was a collector. Her husband called her a hoarder. She called herself a dreamer. She was a traveller. When she had been young, before the children, she'd seen the world collecting baubles and knickknacks that now cluttered the home.

Thump, thu, thu, thum.

"Your feet aren't drums!"

A single overhanging lamp dimly illuminated the foyer, mirroring the glow of candle light. Their neighbour had once asked why they didn’t store all their tchotchkes away in the shed. Stacks of completed books left careless about rough wood carvings from around, antique finds nestled beneath blankets of dust, dried flowers, and colourful drawings from Oliver’s younger days.

Thump, thu, thu, thum.

The house, so full of things. Some would shudder at the chaos of it all, others would be queasy because of claustrophobia, and rest would be quietly fascinated.

Oliver stood himself in front of Credenza, pushed up against the left wall. He eyed the reflection staring at him through the distressed mirror mounted about mahogany sideboard.

He’d forgotten a lot rather recently. Thirteen. He’s thirteen. His eyes are a weak shade of brown, not like Sophia’s, the colour of almond coffee. His dirty blonde hair softly curled and tucked, just barely overhanging his sunken eyes.

Thump, thu, thu, thum.

“Singing ‘Oh willow waly’…” he sang, “… by the tree that weeps with me.”

Oliver retreated, leaning against the sloping stair posts. He checked the clock hanging above the front door. Four minutes had passed since Sophia had gone upstairs. Standing there with nothing to do but listen to the creaky footsteps from above.

Thump, thump, thump, thump.

“Singing—”

Tap, tap, tap, tap.

His nerves abandon him quickly. His breathing becomes shallow and erratic. He couldn’t hear his rapid breathing, the chaotic beat of his heart dominated. His fingers curl into a fist, nails piercing the tender skin of his palm.

Tap, tap, tap, tap.

His eyes dart to the clock. 6:11.

It’s as if his hidden sixth or seventh sense activates. Every tick of the clock is a threat, every creak of a floorboard is a risk. His fingers twitched as he defensively moved toward the door. His body stiffens, trying to shut him down before he can reach the front door. He keeps moving.

His hands tremble and his skin becomes rough with goosebumps as he reaches towards the door handle grip.

No one knocks. No one could would.

He grips the handle tightly thumb pressed on the thumb-place, the metal would surely leave a mark on his palm. He finds it hard to swallow, lungs betraying him. Slowly he presses down on the thumb-place, pulling on the handle.

“Hello!”

Oliver’s blood ran cold. He tightened his jaw.

“You followed us?” Oliver murmured. His grip on the door handle tightened, to where he could feel the cool metal dig into his palm. Standing square, shoulders defensively strained back, he felt a knot forming in the back of his throat. Fear sat quietly, waiting like a vulture, ready to claim him.

“You followed us home?” His eyes darted to the Moors, where a small cloud of mist was slowly forming. He wasn’t quite scared. His eyes showed more of a wary concern. After all, he was all that stood between two mysterious strangers and his world.

“Yes. We did.” As he spoke, Oliver observed the Doctor with slight aversion. When he spoke, he’d move his hands about. A little unnerving. Still Oliver held his ground, preventing the Doctor, still a stranger, from entering his home. “We have some questions…”

“Questions?”

Thump, thump, thump.

That’s when Oliver jumps. A pump of adrenaline surged through his system almost triggering his flight or fight instinct. Without his support “system”, it would have been flight. Oliver shook his head, pushing down his panic.

Thump, thump, thump.

He was the barrier between his world and trespassers. A wave of boldness washed through him, demanding he be bold and shielding. However, a light gust of embarrassment from his jump made his cheeks glow.

“You-- you have questions?” he stammered.

The Doctor seemed to take this as an invitation. He moved to enter the cobblestone house. Oliver slammed a hand across to the other side of the door frame, so he couldn’t enter.

The Doctor’s brows pressed together, his shoulders slumped, and his mouth hung slightly open and loose. His expression gave way to his confusion. A hard stone glare carved into Oliver’s tired eyes. A warning. The doctor took heed and took a careful step back.

His lighthearted manner returned within seconds.

“I don’t think we’ve been properly introduced. I’m the Doctor, this is my friend Amy. What’s your name?” He asked as he extended a hand out for Oliver.

Oliver shook his head, smiling a little, as he gently pushed the Doctor’s hand down and said.

“Can’t tell you that.”

“Why not?”

Just because someone introduces themselves, they aren’t any less of a stranger. Though most of what he observed of the Doctor seemed safe, suspicion and caution still governed his mind. He’d be more trusting in different circumstances. But there weren’t many people worth trusting, at least not anymore.

“You’re still a stranger.”

The Doctor nods, scratching at his chin. “Fair enough.” Something about the grown man’s cluelessness. The right corner of Oliver’s lip twitched, threatening to curve upward. He started gesticulating again, moving his hands about as he spoke. “Answer me this then where is everyone else?”

His brain stuttered for a moment, his face fell, and the blood drained from his face, leaving him as pale as a sheet. He recomposed himself, adopting a more stoic expression.

“Home,” his tone was cold, cold as ice.

“Home?”

The Doctor observes Oliver’s shift in manner with calculative eyes. He leans back, arching a brow. Oliver only nods in response. However, he could see it. The Doctor could see it, the fear trying to hide in the corners of the blonde child’s eyes.

He’d figure that out later, for now…

“Tell me, why should we be wary of the mist?”

Oliver scratched the back of his head. His eyes struggled to focus on one point. Again, they settled on the Moors. His stomach twisted and sunk with his nerves, as he gripped the fabric of his shirt tightly, wrapping it around his hand.

“Hard to see, you could get lost.”

The Doctor squatted, so that his eyes were level with Oliver’s. He carefully studied Oliver’s face as he lowered his mouth. He went to speak, but Amy, she spoke first.

“Have people gotten lost?”

Thud.

This time his muscles become tense. “I-- I better get inside,” he stammered, gesturing with a thumb over his shoulder. His unsettled eyes shift down to the ground, avoiding the watchful looks of the Doctor and his companion. Oliver cleared his throat and then croaked out.

“You should get back home, before it’s too late.”

Without another word, he shut the door, leaving the Doctor and Amy in the chill of dusk.

Oliver was silent as he fell back against the front door. The tick of the grandfather clock at the top of the stairs felt louder than before. As the full realisation of his conversation sank in, he ran his hands down his face. A loud groan of frustration flowed past his lips.

It’s foolish to trust, he reminded himself, for no one knows what the mist does hide.

A small whine snapped him out of his stupor. He immediately stood. Sophia stood one step from the top of the stairs. She wore a puzzled expression. Oliver rolled his eyes, his brows creased, and he put on a fake smile.

“It was no one,” he lied, dismissively waving a hand in the air. Sophia’s eyes narrowed. “It was no one Sophia, leave it alone.” He insisted, trying to laugh the matter off.

“Now, I have some work to finish.” He said as he moved toward the drawing room. As far as he was concerned, the matter of who was at the door was finished. His mouth twitched into a genuine smile, and his tone softened. “If you’d like, you can color at the desk while I work.”

Sophia shook her head, gesturing with an arm toward the entire upstairs. “No? Just going to play in the upstairs?” He asked. She nodded, making her ginger tresses bounce. “By yourself? Are you sure?” The way her one dimple crinkled, the shifting of her freckles, gave him his answer.

“Fine, have fun, bed in an hour.” Oliver brushed his fingers through his hair, strolling into the drawing room.

Sophia brought a hand to her mouth, then blew him a sloppy kiss. Hearing the noise of the peck from the other side of the archway, Oliver bent an arm back through the doorway to catch it. He cast his head back through the opening, a goofy grin plastered on his face.

“Love you too Soph a loaf. Lots and lots.” he gently laughed. “You be good,” he reminded moving into the drawing room.

“And Sophia,” His tone became serious, and resigned. “Let's stay out of the master room.”

[azurethevampire]

• Masterlist •

Drabble = under 1,000 words

Oneshot = over 1,000 words

Unless stated otherwise, my stories are all purely of platonic relationships between reader and the characters. Sometimes between the character(s) and my OCs.

Updated: 22.1.2024

•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•

Peaky Blinders

Not Alone | oneshot | Tommy Shelby x child!reader × rest of the Shelby family

"Sweetheart what did you bury in the garden?" | Drabble | Tommy Shelby x child!reader

•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•

Lord of the Rings

Misbehaving Leads to Tickling | oneshot | teen!reader x Elrond

Heart(s) of Mischief | Drabble | teen!reader x Glorfindel, Elrond makes an appearance too 

Hair Trouble | Drabble | Celebrían x child!reader

"Can you please kill the spider in my room?" | Drabble | Asta(oc), Elrond

"I didn’t bang my head that much, I promise…" | Drabble | reader x Glorfindel

"It's too cold. I'm not going." | Drabble | Elrond, Asta(oc)

Stargazing | drabble | Aragorn, Asta(oc)

Stubborn Little Patient | drabble | Elrond, Asta(oc)

•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•

Supernatural

Are We There Yet? | oneshot | tickle fic | Dean Winchester x sister!reader x Sam Winchester

Snowy Day | Drabble | Dean Winchester x gn!sibling reader x Sam Winchester

"You are still as cuddly as you were when you were little." | drabble | Sam Winchester x sister!reader

•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•

Doctor Who

Little Star | oneshot | Doctor x teen!reader

"My feet are cold" | Drabble | 10th Doctor x reader

"Did you turn my sock into a puppet?" | Drabble | 11th Doctor x reader

"How can I make it up to you?" | Drabble | 9th Doctor x reader

Bigger on the Inside Out | Drabble | The Doctor x reader meets the movie Inside Out

"It's a shame you're mad at me, little one~" | Drabble | 10th Doctor x reader

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Sherlock

Ice Cream Makes Everything Better | oneshot | Sherlock x reader x John

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The Mandalorian

Mando's Lessons to Parenting: Sleep | oneshot | Mandalorian/Din Djarin x child!reader x The Child

Mando's Lessons to Parenting Special: The Gift |oneshot | Mandalorian/Din Djarin x child!reader x The Child, Cara Dune makes an appearance too

Mando's Lessons to Parenting: The Eggcident | Drabble | Mandalorian/Din Djarin x Eva(oc) x The Child/Grogu

MLtP: I Would Do It Again | Drabble | Mandalorian/Din Djarin x platonic!reader

"I doubt he even knows how to tickle someone" | MLtP verse | Eva(oc) x The Child/Grogu

MLtP: Just a Little Laugh Will Do | Eva, Din Djarin/Mandalorian, The Child/Grogu

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Marvel

Bickering Children | drabble | Bucky Barnes, Sam Wilson, Erika Barnes(oc)

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One Chicago

Chicago Fire

"Dad, don't leave me" | oneshot | Kelly Severide x daughter!reader, episode tag to CF 3x19

Little Trouble Monkey | drabble | Kelly Severide, Severide's daughter Tina(oc)

Chicago PD

Concern | drabble | gn!sibling reader x Jay Halstead

Chicago Med

Stomach ache | drabble | sibling reader x Will Halstead

Crossovers

"Can you bail me out? Please?" | Med/PD(mention only)| drabble | gn!sibling reader x Will Halstead, Jay is also mentioned

The Smore's Incident | Med/PD | drabble | Will Halstead x sibling!reader x Jay Halsted

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True Blood

I Will Give You a Reason | oneshot | Eric Northman, Emily Northman(oc), Pamela Swynford de Beaufort

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NCIS

"Please be careful" | Drabble | teen!reader x Gibbs

"I'm not mad at you" | Drabble | Gibbs x reader

To my family | drabble | team x reader

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Uncharted

An Uncle Would Be Fine | drabble | Nathan Drake, sister!reader, Victor Sullivan

[ezekieltheking]

Summary: You have come down with a cold and the king insists on taking care of his fair maiden. 

Author’s Notes: This is an excerpt from my King Ezekiel X OC fanfic which I have yet to finish or share on any website. From Chapter 6. The OC is named Amelia and she was a botanist with a background in homeopathic medicine. She was recruited into the Kingdom as the camp’s doctor. Mention of Dr. Carson is made, the character from Hilltop who was treating Maggie in the TV show during season 7 and 8.

Genre: Fluff (like always)

Featured Characters: Reader, King Ezekiel, Shiva

Playlist

The next morning, you wake up to a strange feeling. Your throat was dry and itchy while your nose was clogged. You didn’t want to believe you were sick; it’d been years since you’d caught a cold. You felt a bit better after brushing your teeth and washing your face, but the icky feeling continued to linger. Eventually, you drag yourself to the cafeteria for lunch. Per usual, you find an empty table to sit by yourself.

“Is this seat taken?” You hear Ezekiel ask. You shake your head without looking at him. Quietly, he sits across from you. “How did you rest?”

“Fine.” Again, you stare at your food.

“Amelia, look at me.” You do as you’re told. “You look ill. What happened out there?”

You shrug. “I guess I caught something.”

“You should be resting.”

“I’ve already slept. Dr. Carson is supposed to test me today, anyway, so I have to be there.”

“He will understand. Besides, it’s imperative to not spread the illness.”

“You make it sound like I have tuberculosis.”

“My apologies.”

“What are you going to do about it, anyway, keep me quarantined?” You offer a weak, playful smile.

“More or less.” You couldn’t tell if he was playing back with you. After finishing your meal, he tells you to follow him. He takes you through many hallways until he stops in front of a closed door. He opens it and gestures for you to enter first.

You noticed how regal the room appeared. “This is your room?” You ask.

“Yes. Is it to your liking?”

“What does it matter?”

“You’re going to be staying here. You’ve befallen the treacheries of the common cold and you need to be taken care of.”

“I can’t imagine you do this with everyone in The Kingdom who fall ill.” You respond coyly.

He walks up to you. “Only for the one I find most special.” You back up until you hit the bed. He follows.

A breath hitches in your throat. “You’re going to take care of me?” He nods. His hand reaches up to caress your cheek. Almost instinctively, you let yourself rest in his palm. He leans down and tenderly places a kiss on your forehead.

“Now, stay here and get some rest. I will bring Shiva to keep you company.”

“More like claw my face off.” You whisper raspily. You figured he didn’t hear you, but he chuckled as he left the room.

After leaving you alone in the room, you weren’t sure what to do. Did he really expect you to stay and slip under his covers? You bite your lip as you contemplate what to do. You had the two other options of either going home or finding another guest room. You glide your hands over his satin-like covers. He invited you into his room, his personal space. You imagine him unwinding at night; his shoulders relaxing, him undressing. Quickly, you shake the thoughts, wondering if they were inappropriate, but then you wonder if he’d ever thought of you that way too. You finally decide to get into the bed.

You tried to stay awake for him, but you couldn't help but fall asleep. He was right and you knew it, your body needed rest. It was late in the evening when you woke up again. You were probably going to sleep until the next morning if it wasn’t for Shiva’s roar. The orange light of the sun setting blanketed the room through the windows. Shiva got up, stretched her legs and laid back down on her own make-shift bed. She watched as you got out of bed and made your way toward her. Your steps were quiet and slow, wanting not to startle her. As you got closer, you noticed that she was chained to the wall. The leash connected to it was long enough for her to walk around a bit, but not enough for her to reach you on the bed. Gently, you called out her name to let her know you could trust her. You bend down and let her sniff your hand before petting her head. After a few moments, she started to make a type of purring sound. You took that as a good sign. You propped yourself up against the wall and began petting her stomach. You laughed as she rolled onto her back, asking for more. Eventually, you felt comfortable enough to detach the leash from her collar. She moved closer and laid her head upon your thigh. It was heavier than you thought; like having a six year old child sit on your lap.

The door suddenly opens. Ezekiel peeks his head in and frowns as he finds the bed empty. He walks further in, only to see you and Shiva together. He could feel his heart expanding from the scene before him. At this point, you were drifting in and out of sleep. It took you a moment to notice that he was in the room.

“I’m stuck. She’s been cutting off my blood circulation for about a half hour.” You joke with Ezekiel.

He smiles at you, then whistles to Shiva. “Come, Shiva. Come, here.” Immediately, she picks her head up from your lap. Just as fast, you feel the blood rushing down your leg. Ezekiel calls again, snapping his fingers. Shiva gets up and goes to him. She rubs her face on his leg as he pets her. “I like seeing you two together. I’m glad you aren’t afraid of her anymore.”

“Yeah, we had a talk. It was all just a misunderstanding.” You joke with him.

“It's nice to see your spirits up as well. How are you feeling?”

“A bit better.” You respond. He walks up to you and offers his hand. He pulls you up and walks you to his bed.

“I am glad to hear this. I talked to Dr. Carson and he’s fine taking over your job until you get better.”

“Thank you for talking to him.”

“You’re welcome. Well, I hope you are hungry. I was able to get the cook to make you a bowl of soup. We’ve had an abundance of tomatoes harvested from the garden, so he made tomato soup. I hope that is pleasing.”

You nod. “Well you’re in luck, because tomato soup is my favorite kind.” Ezekiel goes back into the hall to bring in the tray. He sets it on your lap before taking a seat next to you. “Thank you, Ezekiel, really.”

He nods. “Anything for the fairest maiden in the kingdom.”

“Don’t you get tired of talking like that? I know you weren’t raised in the 11th century.”

“No.” He states simply. “Well, sometimes.”

“It's just me you’re talking to. If you want to talk like Ezekiel and save the King, you can.” He doesn’t respond but acknowledges your words. “And also stop watching me while I eat.”

He plays offence. “I’m only making sure you eat everything.”

“You don’t have to worry about that, I will.” You laugh.

He took your empty bowl and told you that he wouldn’t be back until later. You chalked it up to kingly duties and even teased him a bit about it. You found yourself becoming more and more comfortable around him.

******

You wake up worse than the morning before. All of the symptoms came back and they came back strong. Your tongue was dry from breathing through your mouth all night. You spot a glass of water on the nightstand and reach for it, but your body wouldn’t move. You try again, but it was as if you were being pulled back. Looking down, you find an arm wrapped around your waist. You turn around, tracing the arm back to its owner. Last night when you fell asleep, Ezekiel wasn’t there, but he must have come in later.

Ezekiel is still asleep. You’d never seen him look so peaceful. It's now a memory forever etched in your brain. A tickle in your throat reminds you of the water. Gently, you slide out from under his arm. You take the glass and leave the room without waking him or Shiva. He’s probably going to scold you later for breaking his quarantine rule, but you needed to get into your stash and make some tea. After grabbing a couple of lemons and packets of sugar from the cafeteria, you head to your office.

You were on your second cup by the time you found yourself in front of Ezekiel’s door. You were about to knock, but thought twice, not wanting to wake him up. It proved to be a hopeless cause when you opened the door because he was already sitting up in bed.

“Where did you go?” He asks in a raspy voice. You were hoping he hadn’t caught your cold and that it was just his very attractive morning voice.

“I needed to make myself some tea. My throat was very dry.” You hold up your mug. “When did you get up?”

“A few minutes ago.” He replies while patting the side of the bed you slept in not even an hour ago. Immediately, you walk over to him. He slides back down under the covers and watches as you do the same. You weren’t sure what to do once in the bed. Should you two cuddle like before? You settled on laying on your stomach while propping yourself up on a pillow. He held his head in his hand as he laid on his side next to you. “Where are your thoughts, Amelia.”

[eddysocs]

🍼 + Maggie and The 11th Doctor, please?

Name: April Reed

Personality: Incredibly smart, with a flair for the dramatic, also a little reckless

Who they like better: The Doctor

Who they take after more: Maggie

Personal headcanon: She’s very into make believe, making up worlds and characters far longer than is considered normal for the average child, and has a longing to travel

Send me 🍼 + an OC x canon ship of mine and I’ll make their child on faceapp.

[peantbutter-honeycombs]

The Hollowing Series: Part I

Title: Prelude

Word count: 2,980

Characters: The 11th Doctor, Amy Pond, ocs

Warnings: Platonic fic not romantic. Crappy writing?

Notes: So three? I want to say three years ago this idea came to mind. Well not this one. But I worked off that idea and came to this. I like the idea of the Doctor being around children. They’re just so innocent. But then I though what the hell let’s torture 11 and the kids and this was born. I’ll explain more later but for now Spoilers. I reall have worked hard on this it’s my first Doctor Who fic. It’s been in my head and notes for years so please be kind and enjoy. I’m going to try, try to break this in to only 4 parts. But hey I’m a detailed writer.

Special Thanks to my college buddy B, @mirkwoodshewolf, and @underskaro​ for tolerating my ramblish rants and beta reading the chapter.

———

Down the road aways, pushed against the hills, stood a cobblestone farm style home. The front lawn was messy, jagged and uncut. From the muddy earth sprang up wildflowers and weeds, northern marches, poppies, and heathers. It was all very wild. The pedestal of a concrete birdbath was cracked and lopsided, with vines wrapping around the very base.

A trike was tangled, hidden in the tall overgrown grass. It felt out of place among the weedy garden. The bike in contrast to the exterior of the old homestead must have been brand new. Green and black, the trike was just brilliant enough to be noticeable through the thrush.

Visible from the left lower window appeared a boy, no older than 14 but no younger than 12. He reached out toward the edges of the frame, grasping at the sangria red fabric. In one swift motion, he drew the curtains closed.

“There,” the boy said, standing back to admire his work.

The four windows of the well-sized sitting room. The warm golden light that once flooded through the glass panes, faded, leaving room to feel somewhat dark and empty.

Stepping backward, the young teen collapsed over an armrest onto a sofa. The sofa’s cushions sank under the weight of him, creating a spot perfectly tailored to the shape of his body. The sofa had seen better days. The brown leather fabric was worn, torn in some places and had a great dark stain on the Center cushion that the boy couldn’t remember ever not existing.

Dragging his legs over the armrest, he moved himself so he was in a sitting position. He stretched his right hand out, leaning his body so he could reach a drawing book on the right end table. The silence of the sitting room hugged him like a security blanket, his muscles became jello, all the stress of the day just melted off him. Being the man of the house was hard.

He became lost in his own world. He didn’t utter a word for the next fifteen minutes and barely moved from his spot for a full thirty minutes. His left hand carefully looped and curved over the blank sheet of paper, no longer blank. Every now and again he’d spin his pencil around in his fingers in deep thought, or wildly erase a thoughtless mistake. He hummed along to the song blasting through his one right earbud (the one thing he’d moved to retrieve.) nodding his head in time with the 60’s melody.

The sound of creaking floorboards overhead pressed through his exposed ear, carrying him back to reality. He could hear gentle feet beating against the wood. They were almost unnoticeable over the music. Almost.

There was a lull in the footsteps, creating silence.

They must be at the stairs, he thought, beginning to set his drawing tools away.

They always stopped at the top of the stairs and the base. The stairs of the old farmhouse were criminally steep, with each weirdly a different height than the last. They were enough to give anyone unfamiliar with them a headache. If his mother had gotten them carpeted, maybe the stairs wouldn’t have been so nauseating, but she’d wanted to preserve the house’s history as best she could.

Thump, thump, thump.

He could just imagine the little human, the footsteps belonged to crawling down the stairs. Moving down them one by one, on their knees. Sort of in a reverse way of the puppy conquering the stairs in Lady and the Tramp.

“No, go away,” he called, pressing a pencil down into its colouring box. When there was quiet he looked over his shoulder, everything from the waist down just sitting there on the steps. The figure's upper body was obstructed from his view.

“I was kidding, you can come down.” He turned back to his tidying. He heard the little feet happily stomp about, then thump, thump, thump.

Focused on organising his things, he looked up only when noticing the pair of dust stained white socks out of the corner of his eye. He blinked, somewhat irritatedly, staring at the little girl who now stood across from him.

With a great sigh, he said.

“You’re really annoying sometimes, you know that?”

A child no older than four stood before him. Her brown eyes, earthy hues of the soil after rain or bark on a walnut tree. They gave him a look that was of youthful innocence. Bright auburn hair reached down to the middle of her back, slightly covering the sides of her cheeks. Her pale skin was dotted and marked with a surplus of freckles — Sophia.

Sophia frowned, taking a step back. This made the older boy quietly snicker.

He smiles in a reassuring manner, “Hello, Soph-a-loaf.” He teased goofily pronouncing her name. The slightest smile tugged at the corners of the ginger's lips. He brought Sophia onto his lap, letting her sit on his thighs. “What’s up ducky?” He asked, brushing some of her hair back behind her ear. Sophia scrunches her mouth to one side, making a few murmuring noises. “Oh really? Sounds like you’ve had a day.”

Sophia nods. She rests her head on Oliver’s stomach, looking up at him with her sweet doe eyes.

“What?”

Her eyes darted off toward the window.

“No. No.” Oliver shook his head, crossing his arms over his chest. Sophia tilted her head to one side, training her attention on Oliver’s. “Seriously the park now?” Oliver whined, backing into the cushion.

He reaches for a throw pillow and covers his face with it.

“I’m sleeping,” he murmurs from behind the fabric. Sophia fusses lightly, pressing at his stomach. Oliver grunted, but kept the pillow pressed against his face. “I’m dead,” he tried.

This time Sophia head butted him in the gut. Oliver pulled a face, bringing the pillow down.

“Bleh!” He mocked, tongue lolled out of his mouth. Sophia squeaks, swatting her palm against Oliver’s arm. “Hey, we don’t hit. Sophia, I don’t want to go to the park.” Oliver said leaning down so his forehead was against hers. Sophia kindly taps her temple against his. Oliver chuckles softly, giving her forehead a sweet peck. “Sophey Tophie.”

He lifts Sophia off his lap, setting her on the floor in front of him.

“I suppose… it would be nice to get out of the house.” His eye drifted to a calendar on the interior sidewall of the sitting room. He couldn’t remember when he circled that day. Sophia excitedly bounces up and down. “What are you a rabbit?” The little ginger doesn’t respond, bouncing her way to the front door.

Oliver rolls his eyes. Upon realisation, he sprang up from the sofa.

“Sophia, you need a coat!”

-

The two children squinted against the hazy Yorkshire rain. The rain was cool against their exposed skin. It felt nice, refreshing even. It ran through their hair, smoothing out Sophia’s auburn waves, mopping Oliver’s ash brown locks. It plastered small individual strands to each of their faces.

Oliver chatted away as they went down the muddy, winding path. Chatting isn't quite the right word as Sophia never spoke. It had only taken him two minutes to go off on a tangent about something or other.

Sophia, only kind of sort of listening, pedaling her hand-me-down trike. His voice disappeared into the white noise, allowing her to quietly enjoy the English landscape.

The countryside stretched and weaved as far as the eye could see. Rustic English cottages and cobblestone farm houses dotted the grassy hills. The land gently rolled up and down the valley, merging with the uneven, mist filled moors half way up the emerald green mounds of earth.

Dew, white and clear, decorated the damp droopy grass the land glittered, sparkling under the orange purpling sunlight.

The houses of the humdrum sleepy town were few and well spaced out. One could walk a good half a mile before reaching their neighbours' property. Those closer to the center of town were flats, pushed together in neat lines, occupying the space over the small, often family owned shops.

Oliver and Sophia arrived at the park in twenty minutes. Sophia having to struggle, pedaling through the mud had set them back. However, neither of the children seemed to care. Sophia hopped off the trike and clicked off her helmet, abandoning both on the pavement. She couldn’t wait to explore the soggy park.

For the next 20 minutes they hung out at the park, Sophia wandered the grassy playing field picking at wild flowers while Oliver practiced his kicks. In the following ten, Sophia ran up the stairs then went down the slide. She’d dust herself off, then go round again. The next five minutes she sat still, a bit tired, content to watch the villagers while Oliver puttered around.

“Oi! Sophia, I’m goin’ to the loo. I’ll be back right back!” Oliver shouted from the far side of the futbol field. The park had no bathroom, so he’d have to walk clear cross the road to Brews Brothers’ Pub. The popular bar had an outdoor side restroom reserved for the public.

Sophia watched Oliver leave until he became nothing more than a speck in the distance.

The quiet times brought a certain comfort to Sophia. It was the perfect time to watch people revel in the coolness of other humans’ lives. Usually the park was a buzz with townsfolk, mostly children. They melded together and dotted the public lawn like A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte. But now there was little life to distinguish the little village from Oradour-sur-Glane, France.

The night air, though cool, had a biting sharpness to it. No thanks to the rain. Sophia sniffs through her nostrils, inhaling the almost intoxicating spring air. Sitting on the bench, her little legs swung over mud coated grass. Misty rain was still falling steadily, and the temperature had dropped considerably.

Sophia wasn’t bothered though.

Reaching for a short stick she traces some shapes in the ground. She nods her head, humming a tune she couldn’t quite place.

“You know, sometimes I wonder if you actually know how to fly the TARDIS.” A voice, female with a thick Scottish accent, said.

Two foreign voices cut through the cold silence. Her eyes dart down the path. From where she sat she could hear them, the voices, bickering. About what, she had no clue.

Out of mist in the distance strode what appeared to be a young couple. The man seemed tall. His dark brown hair was long, stuck to his forehead in a droopy fashion, much like Ollie’s. Despite looking like a young man, he wore clothes that reminded Sophia of one of the town retirees; a Donegal tweed sport jacket with elbow patches, an off white dress shirt, rolled up deep blue trousers and… and bow tie?

Bow ties are for Sunday, Sophia thought, eyes narrowing at the approaching pair.

His partner appeared to be much more put together. Auburn hair, just a smidge less vibrant than Sophia’s framed a pale Scottish face. An irradiated cross expression dominated her features. Her voice wasn’t high nor low, it perfectly suited her in an indescribable way. And unlike the man to her right, she wore clothes appropriate for her age.

The pair stopped in the middle of the path, continuing to argue.

“Of course, I know how to fly the TARDIS sometimes she- she just has a mind of her own.” The lanky man argued, earning an eye roll from the ginger.

“We’re supposed to be England,” She grouched. “What about Churchill? This looks like— are we in Scotland?”

Sophia scoffed, shaking her head, tourists. She watched as the man licked a finger, held it against the wind, then popped it back in his mouth.

“No, no. I’m sure we’re in England.”

The finger crossed her arms over her chest in a cool way.

“Shouldn’t there be I dunno fighters, soldiers, something? I’m getting sheep.” She said looking round the area. She wasn’t wrong there were sheep, white puffs mindlessly grazing on the hills. When she looked back at the man, he was squatting. In his right hand he held a good chunk of mud.

“Wha—What are you doing?”

“Definitely in England. Westerdale Yorkshire, to be more precise. Right country wrong period. Does something seem off to you?” He asked, running a thumb over the mucky mud, cautiously examining it.

His partner snorted indignantly.

“Something or… someone? No don’t eat the—”

Sophia quickly pushed her head down, crinkling her nose. Adults are weird. She turned her attention to her dirt scribbles. She didn’t understand what they were on about, anyway. Hopefully they’d be on their way soon. They didn’t belong.

There’s a weight increase, bending the planks of the bench. An electric chill ran up Sophia’s spine, making the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end. The reaction wasn’t from the cold. There was a weight increase bending the planks of the bench.

“Well hello there, I’m the Doctor. What’s your name.”

Surprise was never an emotion Sophia handled well. Her shoulders went rigid, her entire body defensively readying itself. Her sweet eyes become stoney. Her breathing felt as if it was becoming more shallow with each breath. The guarding alarms inside her mind we’re going crazy halting the thinking gears of her brain.

The man held his hands up resignedly. “No, no, don’t worry. I’m not going to hurt you.” There was a gentleness to his tone, a kind of concern. Sophia couldn’t be sure. No matter something about him. She let her shoulders go loose, but the rest of her still felt tense. “Would you mind? I have a few questions.”

Sophia allowed herself to relax a little more, not completely but more.

“Doctor!” The scot’s voice rang up briefly, sending Sophia back into defensive mode. “You can’t keep talking to children you don’t know.” She sounded like a mother chiding her young child.

Her comment sparked a minor argument between the pair.

Sophia took the time to lean back and take the pair in full, particularly the man. He was a little more normal-ish looking up close. Normal enough. There was something about his eyes she couldn’t quite describe.

Sophia observed the two curiously, unaware that the fear, once crushing her chest, was steadily subsiding.

“I introduced myself this time. Oh yes,” the Doctor swiftly turns to Sophia, “this is Amy.”

“That’s not how it works,” Amy grumbled.

Her partner ignores her, keeping his attention on Sophia. “There’s something… something about this place. Don't know. I think-" He spoke fast, flaggishly moving his hands about. “Well I know it’s something. Too many ideas. Head’s bit cloudy.” He knocked on his temple.

Sophia, though a little behind, shifted uncomfortably.

“Need to narrow it down…” he trailed off. Sophia, her left palm on her thigh, absently traces along each finger with her right index. He observes Sophia with a kind, sort of calculating, gaze.

“Something’s wrong, isn’t it?

Concurrently, Ollie was on his way back from the toilet. He dribbles across the park, knocking a futbol between one foot and the other. “He’s going for the full court folks.” He deepened his voice, trying to mimic the vocals of a proper sports announcer. “He’s at the 75 marker, will he go for the assist?” He sped up, using a lace touch to control the ball. “He passes to,” Oliver knocks the ball clear cross the field.

“No one.”

He’d get his ball back tomorrow. The silence made his blood as cold as the icy waters of a polar plunge, as he strode across the park to where he had left Sophia.

Everything was still hazy and cloudy from the English rain. Billions of trillions of icy drops dripped down his neck and fell off the flaps of his slicker. In this de-focused world, he could just make the outlined silhouette of Sophia.

“Sophia. Sophia?”

He goes taut, stopping in his tracks. For a moment his brain glitches. His eyes went wide, mouth falling slightly ajar. Although he was staring at Sophia, he was seeing more than he expected.

“Sophia, what do you think you’re doing?” His voice was steady, but had a sharpness to it. “Talking to strangers?” He holds a hand out, which Sophia compliantly takes within seconds.

“And you lot.” The ginger seemed taken back by Oliver’s frigidity. A tween scolding two strange grownups, one of them a Scot, bit startling. The gentleman, however, seemed off in his head, silently mouthing the same word over and over. “You can’t just be talking to people you don’t know, numpties.”

“Oi, watch it.”

Oliver’s eyes sourly narrow. “You’re not from around here, are you?” He deadpanned.

“Just passing through. Hello, I’m the—”

“You should keep passing,” Oliver interrupted. Stepping between Sophia and the pair. Sophia could only watch as Oliver spoke to the two adults. “Leave town before it gets dark.” He warned, picking Sophia up, holding her on his hip.

“Is everything okay?” The gentleman asked, stepping up from the bench.

Though his expression held a casual indifference, his skin goes colourless. He let out an understated sigh, bowing his head and turning to leave. “I have to get Sophia home. It's almost supper time.”

Sophia beats her head against Oliver's shoulder, hitting it just hard enough to make the older child wince. He rolls his eyes, but turns back to the pair. “If you are going to stay… it’s only fair.” He sounded like a toddler forced to apologise.

“I must warn you.” He let his face fall in seriousness.

“Beware what lies in the mist of the Moors.”

[saiilorstars]

Written in the Stars

Previous Chapters • Sequel to Falling in Temptation • Avalon’s Masterlist

Ch. 2: Prison Break

Fandom: Doctor Who // Pairing: 11th Doctor x OFC

Chapter summary: Avalon decides it's time to start seeing River Song, a.k.a. her mother, again. It's been a couple decades since the Silence and River's sentencing which leaves Avalon slightly nervous about seeing River again.

Taglist: @ocfairygodmother​​​ @anotherunreadblog​​ @maaaaarveeeeel​​ @stareyedplanet​​ @perfectlystiles​​

[If you’d like to be added to this specific OC’s stories/edits, send me a message!]

"There we go! Now I think it's perfect, see?" Avalon couldn't be more proud of the way she made a plain little cellphone look so grand. She turned its back to the Doctor so he could see the rose gold flower she managed to tattoo over the surface.

The Doctor laughed but did agree that it was far better than when they first bought it. His wife always had the most creative ways to make things better. He moved around the console until he was standing in front of her chair. "So then, do you think you're ready to meet her?"

Avalon lowered the cellphone to her lap. "I think so," she answered quietly, opposite of the way she'd just been. But that was usually how it went wherever her mother was mentioned. It had been a very long time since she last saw River Song, Amy and Rory…

Not that she complained over the reason why that was. In fact, she felt a nice warmth blossom in her chest instead. The Doctor had promised her the honeymoon of a lifetime and he sure followed through. Ten years had passed before they felt like they were properly moving beyond the honeymoon phase. Ten more years passed of them adjusting to a marriage that involved time travelling, constant running, and the occasional threats from other species. Finally came the third decade of their marriage and it was then that the Doctor noticed something happening to his wife…

She was a bit mopey on occasions.

She wouldn't say anything but the Doctor assumed why her mood was dwindling. She was beginning to miss her family. The Ponds. The Reynolds. Even River Song was making the cut. Though Avalon's feelings towards her biological mother were still mixed, she knew that she did want River in her life. They were good friends and they got along...and she might have wanted her mother. Every child wants their mother in the end.

Whenever he was around, Avalon tried to fake her mood but the Doctor knew. He could see right through it. He never wanted his Ava to be sad. As a husband, it was a huge no-no. Plus, he kind of missed everyone too. So, they decided to start dropping by Earth again but since neither Amy nor Rory picked up their phones - something the Doctor would be pointing out since they loved to make that remark to him - they would visit River Song for the first time (from her perspective) in Stormcage.

"Where should we take her?" Avalon slid off the console chair, leaving behind the cellphone. "It should be somewhere nice! Somewhere fantastic!"

"You don't think I can provide that?" The Doctor made a face, almost offended that she even had to say what the trip should be like.

"Oh, I know you can," Avalon leaned on him, wrapping her arms around his waist and resting her chin on his chest. "I'm just waiting for your usual fantastic ideas."

"Why don't we make it a surprise then?"

"I love surprises. You're very good at those."

The Doctor smirked. "I am. Let's go find something to wear, shall we?"

"Oooh, are we going somewhere fancy?"

"Only the best for my Ava," the Doctor tapped her nose. "And I've gotta make a good impression with the mother-in-law, right?"

"You're an idiot!" Avalon laughed as he pulled her for the corridors.

~ 0 ~

In her cell, River Song wrote in a book when she heard the TARDIS materializing. To her surprise, it had materialized right in her cell. She didn't even know that was allowed. Leave it to the Doctor to find a way to do that. She discarded the book, grabbed the TARDIS journal on the bed stand, and dashed for the TARDIS. Any chance to see Avalon was a chance to run headfirst to. She skidded to a stop inside, her face lighting up when she saw her daughter by the console. She wore a beautiful, floor-length pink gown with silver crystals twinkling around the skirt.

"Don't you look nice," River remarked, eyeing the Doctor's white suit next. "You look...interesting."

Avalon burst into laughter when the Doctor's face fell flat. "I told you the white suit was weird. Should've gone with the black one like I told ya."

"I look good, dammit!" He huffed and moved to the opposite end of the console.

"Yes, you do," Avalon playfully rolled her eyes at him. "He's just a little cranky because I turned down the dress he wanted me to wear."

"Ah," River folded her arms over her chest, setting her gaze on the Doctor. "What the hell are you trying to get her into?"

The Doctor said nothing, only clearing his throat, and purposely focusing on the console and ignoring the warmth in his face. So he had chosen a little gown that was just a tad bit on the daring side but as far as he remembered, Avalon loved all that stuff. Why she said 'no' to this one was beyond him.

"Don't worry, I'm sure you'll find something to wear too," Avalon said to River before her husband died of embarrassment.

"Are we going out?" River was confused because, as far as she remembered, she was in prison pRISON.

"Yes! If you'd like, of course," Avalon said quickly, making River laugh.

"Well of course! I could never pass up a chance to see you!"

Avalon smiled silently. Remembering that River was trying to be nice and be like a Mother was still so strange...but not bad. In the past 30 years, she had a lot of time to really think about her family and her biological mother. River had long ago made it clear that she would only try to be a mother if Avalon wanted it, and Avalon did want it. She wasn't ready to call River 'Mum' but she was open to the possibility of doing it one day.

"But I thought you weren't even together right now," River said, reminding them once again that they were 30 years into her future. "Last time I saw you, I had just given you my baby Avalon…"

"Spoilers, that was 30 years ago for me," Avalon waved a hand.

"And another 100 years for me," the Doctor added for his time alone after he 'died'.

"Oh, well, that's just fine," River dropped her arms to her side. "Life with time travelers I suppose."

"We've sort of been in a marriage daze," Avalon said, preferring to keep the details of that time totally private. "But I wanted to come visit you. How's, um...how's Stormcage?" She felt awkward asking that considering she was the reason River was incarcerated in the first place. If River hadn't taken her place in the astronaut suit, she'd be in Stormcage right now.

River could see the struggle in her daughter's face. "Avalon, I'm fine. Don't worry about me, please."

"How could I not? You're on the first night of twelve thousand consecutive life sentences. I did that to you…"

River threw a look at the Doctor. "Thirty years and you couldn't get her past that?"

"I do try," the Doctor sighed. But it would take a much longer time for Avalon to shed the guilt of having her mother in jail, even if her thought process was completely wrong.

River shook her head and walked up to Avalon, taking hold of the ginger's hands. "I will be fine, Avalon. Stop pouting over me, please. Instead, tell me where we're going."

Avalon nodded slowly and glanced at the Doctor. "He said it'd be fantastic."

"It better be," River sarcastically wanted him.

He rolled his eyes at her. She was definitely Avalon's mother. "Alderin Beta. Boring, planet of the chip shops. But - there is a four hundred foot tree growing out of a cliff top on the north side of a mountain in the middle of the sea, and if you take the lift to the top and look up-" He'd started speaking at lightspeed, scaring River just a bit while Avalon tried her best not to laugh, "-at exactly twelve minutes past midnight on the twenty-first of September Twenty-Three Sixty, you can see more stars in one sky that at any other moment in the history of the universe. It's like daylight, only magic. You could read a book by it!"

"Dear Lord do you breathe or what?" River looked at her daughter for some help. "Does he ever pass out?"

"No," she said, sounding a bit sad about it too.

"Oi!" The Doctor huffed. "We've got ten minutes."

"I laid out some dresses I thought you might like," Avalon added.

"Thank you, sweetie," River patted her hands before letting them go.

"River, did you bring the diary?" asked the Doctor. He was relieved to see her pull it out from her back pocket.

"It's a diary?"

"It is now, because River, from now on, there are rules."

"Oh, you've gone all strict. Kind of annoying."

"River, you and us, it's all in the wrong order. We never meet in sequence. You put everything in the diary so we know where we are."

"You have one too?" River looked between the pair. "Is that the one Avalon always carried around?"

"I've got a new one," Avalon grinned. She realized that this River had no idea about her silver, bigger on the inside, journal that the Doctor had gifted her. "I can show it to you later!"

"I'd love that, sweetie. But I have to ask what exactly I'm supposed to write in mine." She gave her diary a quick wave in the air. "I'm in the highest security prison in all of the known universe, it's not like I'm gonna go anywhere."

"River Song could walk in and out of the prison like the walls aren't there," Avalon smirked. "And she brings me on adventures. Fun ones too, make a note of that somewhere."

"Avalon," the Doctor warned. He could already see the trouble those two could get into if they were given the full reigns. "River, go get dressed. First right, second left, just past the helter-skelter."

"Oh, you haven't seen the TARDIS yet!" Avalon beamed. "I can show you my favorite room: the wardrobe!" She grabbed River's hand and yanked her for the corridors.

"Avalon!" called the Doctor. "Don't take too mu-" He stopped when the two disappeared. Great. He might never see them again.

Suddenly, he heard laser guns firing from outside. He didn't even feel the TARDIS land! Sometimes she just did it without him realizing it! He hurried towards the doors to open them up, only for Avalon to stagger inside.

"Woah!" He barely caught her and still struggled to stay on his feet. "Avalon! What the-"

"I told her you'd come! Ha! Looks like I win the argument!" Avalon smirked before limp in his arms.

"Avalon!" The Doctor exclaimed in horror. Just as he'd said her name, he heard River call for her too.

A second River rushed into the TARDIS and shut the doors, leaning her back against them as if something would break through. Soon as she saw him, she laughed. "She won the argument! Good boy knowing when to give in."

"What!?" the poor Doctor was utterly confused but he needed to figure out how to wake up the Avalon with him. He carefully laid her on the floor and felt for her vitals on her wrist. "Avalon! Ava, c'mon! Show me you're okay!" Her vitals were pretty strong, perhaps a bit too fast from the running, but she still wasn't moving. He then listened for her breathing, crouching down to her lips for a better measure.

Oh my God he absolutely hated her.

He looked down at her, ignoring River's quiet snicker on the side. "Avalon Harmony Reynolds, stop holding your breath!"

Avalon's lips stretched into a wide smile. She opened her eyes to see his glare. "Oh, are we about to argue again? I thought we were done with that. I love what happens afterwards."

"What the hell is going on!?" The Doctor helped her stand up and looked at the mother and daughter pair. "And who was shooting at you!?"

"That's her fault!" Avalon pointed a finger at River.

River rolled her eyes. "Oh please. It's just a few Sontarans."

"They've been chasing us halfway across the galaxy!" Avalon argued, very much out of breath just remembering.

"Yeah, I probably shouldn't have asked them if they were on a hen night."

"You can't just do things like that!" The Doctor groaned.

"Well maybe next time you shouldn't argue with me," Avalon folded her arms over her chest.

The Doctor rubbed his temples. Alright, so this was a future version of Avalon and somehow his future self had screwed up and argued with her. That was something to look forward to.

"Oh, I need some water!" Avalon decided, exhaling deeply.

"Me too," River agreed and marched with her daughter towards the stairs. "Maybe make a milkshake or something."

"No cherries though!"

"Of course!"

"Avalon, come back!" the Doctor called after her, not that it made such a different for Avalon.

"You're invited too!" She said in response.

"AVALON!"

"What?" came the first version, and his proper, Avalon from the corridor. She was frowning at him, making him wonder if he'd already messed up here too. "Who are you yelling at?"

"I wasn't!" The Doctor quickly said.

"I'm pretty sure I heard you yelling!"

"No, no, just me!"

Avalon rolled her eyes and went back into the corridor...and then the second Avalon emerged from the top of the stairs.

"Who the hell are you talking to?"

The Doctor slapped a hand to his forehead. "Myself."

"Stupid."

The Doctor dropped his hand to his side and glared. "Complicated!"

Avalon smirked. "Never bothered you before. Would you like a milkshake?"

"No, yes, I don't know!"

"Stupid and weird, just the way I like my Fairy Tale Man," she laughed and hurried away.

The Doctor leaned against the console to catch his breath. Sure he had dreams once or twice where he was gifted with multiple versions of his wife - something she'd kill him for no doubt - but it felt more hectic than he imagined. Definitely complicated. The Ponds were always complicated, weren't they?

When he heard the doors re-open again, he was almost afraid to see who had come in. He was only partially relieved to see just another version of River. No Avalon but there was still another River. What the hell was going on!?

"You really are nostalgic, huh?" This River was dressed in a fine black gown and had her hair picked up. "That or an idiot. I'll let you know which one I decided on."

The Doctor wearily leaned away from the console. "River, could you just check the light on top? I think the bulb needs changing."

River was naturally skeptic. "The bulb?"

"Mm-hmm…"

"The things I do for my daughter," River muttered on her way out.

"Okay!" The second Avalon came running down the staircase with her second River in tow. "I know I heard someone! I swear to God, Doctor, that I will murder you on the spot if I find another woman!"

"Avalon!" The Doctor shrieked and grabbed her arm to stop her from running all around. "Please just stop! I'm not your Doctor!"

Avalon's eyes widened with newfound anger. Behind her, River shook her head. "You just dug your own hole. Again!"

"No, no, I meant I'm not the Doctor you argued with...yet!"

Avalon raised an eyebrow at him. "Yeah, how do I know you're not lying? You might be using that excuse to get off free!"

"Wouldn't be the first time," River added.

"Stop helping!" The Doctor snapped at her. He found the Vortex manipulator around her wrist and grabbed her wrist altogether. "I assume other Me knows where to pick you up because he's from the future! And for the record," he looked at Avalon, "Whatever he did, he's very sorry."

Avalon rolled her eyes at him. "He better be."

The Doctor swooped down to steal a kiss from her. "Plenty more where that came from, I promise."

She blushed at his smirk. "Get us home!" She ordered before he did something else to embarrass her.

"Back to Storm Cage, Doctor Song. Make sure your daughter goes home with the right me!" River laughed before they disappeared with a flash.

The third River returned from outside looking quite crossed. "The light's fine, I don't know what you're talking about!"

And suddenly a third Avalon came rushing through the doors. "Mum, no! We were parked round the back!" The Doctor was flabbergasted to see her in the dark golden dress he tried so hard to get her into earlier. He was right. She did look amazing.

With her came a second version of the Doctor dressed in a black suit. Ironically, he wore the suit Avalon wanted for him earlier. "Younger version…" He said, remembering the moment all too well.

"Well that explains it," River shook her head.

"Hardly but I'll take it!" Avalon beamed. "I've had dreams about this…" She gave both Doctors a promising smirk. The black-suited Doctor glared at her and yet his younger version turned bright red. Avalon remembered it wasn't just them though and glanced at River. "You were not there. Actually, if you could step out-"

"Avalon!" River snapped.

Avalon pouted. "Fine." She curled her arm around her Doctor's arm and leaned her head on him. "But we'll talk."

"No, you will not," he promptly told her.

"Hey, I'm in the dress! I call the shots tonight!" She looked at the younger Doctor with a smirk. "No lip about this, Fairy Tale Man or you'll meet your end. I wasn't going to wear this but then she-" She jerked a thumb towards River, "-saw the dress and said that I couldn't wear it so naturally...I had to wear it."

"My daughter, gentlemen," River shook her head disapprovingly, although there was a smile she was trying to hide. It didn't surprise her one bit that Avalon had done the opposite and grabbed the dress. She would just have to watch her words next time.

"We need to go or we'll be late," the older Doctor told them.

"He's taking us to the Singing Towers of Darillium," Avalon said to the younger Doctor, completely missing the way her version went grim at the mention. She would also miss the recognition flash across the younger Doctor.

She still didn't know?

"He's been promising me for ages," River shook her head. "Changes his mind every time."

"Not this time," Avalon assured her. "C'mon Mum, let's find the other TARDIS. If I remember correctly, other Me will be around soon enough." She let go of the Doctor to take River's hand to walk out together.

The younger Doctor found a moment to smile at them. Avalon had called River 'Mum' as if she'd been doing for centuries. But then it got him wondering if it took her so much time that it was practically too late. "The first time we met River, at the Library, when she…"

"Died, yes," his older version nodded.

"She said the last time she saw us was at Darillium. Is that now?" The Doctor hated to think about the library knowing now what it truly meant to lose River. How could he ever explain this to Avalon? The events that happened were still so confusing.

Never mind that. Just thinking about it, terrified and so much that he could partially understand why his older version hadn't told Avalon about it yet.

"To be honest I might delay again," the older Doctor admitted. "It doesn't feel right taking Avalon to her last trip with her mother when she doesn't know." The young Doctor agreed. "Good luck tonight."

"You too," the young Doctor could honestly say.

The older Doctor headed for the doors and just as he slipped out the first Avalon and River emerged from the corridor. Avalon gasped when she caught a glimpse of the second Doctor slipping out the door.

"Oh, there were 2 of you and I missed it!? I had dreams about this!" She hitched the side of his dress and rushed forwards.

The Doctor wasn't sure if she was attempting to catch up with his older version but he wasn't going to allow it. He caught her and pulled her to him, cupping her face to kiss her. "I love you," he whispered to her.

Avalon smiled softly. Thirty years later and she still never got over the annoying butterflies in her stomach whenever he said that to her. "I love you, my Fairy Tale Man."

He turned her around with a twirl and pressed her back to his chest, leaving one arm looped around her waist. "Right then, Dr. Song, how's about that fantastic planet we promised you?"

"Oh please, leave the formalities behind," River came up to the console. "We are family, right? Even though I did shoot at you."

"Wasn't the first and I imagine certainly not the last time," the Doctor promised her with a laugh.

"My family is so weird," Avalon shook her head.

"You're a Pond, love. That should explain everything," he dropped a kiss to the top of her head.

"He thinks he's so funny when he says that," Avalon rolled her eyes, missing the smirk her husband gave behind her.

"So what was the other you doing here anyways?" River curiously wondered. It had to be a good story considering it was the Doctor.

"Sorry. Can't say!" the Doctor shrugged.

River had narrowed eyes on him. "What's that word you use?"

"Oh! I know! Spoilers!" Avalon was quick to say with snapping fingers. "You say it all the time. It's annoying but fitting."

"I like that word..." River admitted, making the pair laugh.

"You do," they said together.

River shook her head. "You and your secrets. You'll be the death of me!"

"Never," Avalon said on the spot, completely missing the way her husband's expression fell grim at the thought. The future was always coming for them and there he was without a way to change it.

"Please keep her safe. I lost my daughter, I couldn't keep her safe. I don't want Avalon to keep suffering. Please promise me that you will always keep her safe. When Amy and I are long gone, promise me that you'll put Avalon's safety first."

The Doctor's grip around Avalon tightened as soon as he remembered Rory's plead. He could never let anything happen to Avalon. She was his one and only priority in this world and if he could, he would do anything to keep her safe. He made that promise to Rory and himself.

"So when Amy and I are gone, you promise me that Avalon will come first no matter what."

"I swear Rory," the Doctor ultimately said. "Avalon will always come first. Her safety will be my first priority."

Cross his hearts.

[saiilorstars]

Written in the Stars

Sequel to Falling in Temptation • First story: Stars Dance •

Fandom: Doctor Who // Pairing: 11th Doctor x OFC

Story summary: The Silence is gone & newlyweds Avalon & the Doctor can finally see the world. The Ponds begin to travel less with them, though, making the Doctor sadly conclude it's their time to start moving on. But HIS Pond, his wife, is forever & together they will be...hopefully. A mysterious child follows them through space & time to change the world, even predicting EVERY Ponds' departure.

Taglist: @ocappreciationtag​ @arrthurpendragon @anotherunreadblog​ @maaaaarveeeeel​​ @stareyedplanet​ @gloryekaterina @lenonizi @foxesandmagic​

[If you’d like to be added to this specific OC’s stories/edits, send me a message!]

{The cover was made by the fabulous @hogwarts-is-my-wonderland! Thanks so much!}

Ch. 1: The Musical Edition

Ch.2: Prison Break

Ch.3: Asylum of the Daleks

Ch. 4: The Golden Ones

Ch.5: Dinosaurs on a Spaceship

Ch.6: The Bookshop, the Wand and the Heist

Ch.7: Storyville

Ch.8: Amalgamation

Ch.9: Chains of Olympus

Ch.10: Don’t Go Gentle in the Night

Ch.11: The Power of Ponds

Fairy Tale Memoirs (Companion story)

Masterlist to all OCs

Avalon’s Masterlist

[saiilorstars]

Falling in Temptation

Previous chapters • Sequel to Stars Dance •  Fairy Tale Memoirs (Companion story)

Ch. 29: A Pond, a Williams or a Reynolds?

Fandom: Doctor Who // Pairing: 11th Doctor x OFC

Chapter summary: Tying up loose ends means the time has come for River Song to give up her daughter so she'll grow up to become the one and only Avalon Reynolds...who will travel the stars...and ultimately (and inadvertently) lead to her own mother's creation. And, to the Doctor’s misfortune, it’s his task to see it through.

Taglist: @ocfairygodmother​ @anotherunreadblog​ @maaaaarveeeeel​​ @stareyedplanet​ @perfectlystiles​

[If you’d like to be added to this specific OC’s stories/edits, send me a message!]

A newborn baby girl gurgled as a nurse passed her to her mother. Her bright blue eyes were glued to her mother, whose eyes nearly matched, while she listened to her first poem.

'A little fairy comes at night,

Her eyes are blue, her hair is brown'

with silver spots upon her wings,

And from the moon she flutters down.

She has a little silver wand

And when a good child goes to bed

She waves a hand from right to the left

And makes a circle round its head.

And then it dreams of pleasant things,

Of fountains filled with fairy fish

And trees that bear delicious fruit

And bow their branches at a wish.

Of arbors filled with dainty scents,

From lovely flowers that never fade,

Bright flies that glitter in the sun

And glow-worms shining in the shade

And talking birds with gifted tongues

For singing songs and telling tales

And pretty dwarfs to show the way

Through fairy hills and fairy dales.

A little fairy comes at night,

her eyes are blue and her hair is brown

With silver spots upon her wings

And from the moon she flutters down'

"You remember that nursery song?" Amy questioned as soon as River finished the nursery. She sat on the side of the bed while Rory sat on the other side.

"Yeah," River nodded distractedly. She couldn't take her eyes off her beautiful baby in her arms. She so small. It was unbelievable to think who this baby would grow up to be.

"You're alright?" Rory asked her after a few minutes had gone by in silence.

"Father, I am beyond alright," River looked up with a smile. "Look at her, she's beautiful. And she's mine." As if to comment, the baby gurgled at them.

"I know she is," Rory peered down at the newborn with a similar smile. "But I also know, we know, what's coming…"

"And what's happened," Amy finished for him.

River had 'killed' the Doctor and as the law demanded, she was to be incarcerated as soon as the hospital discharged her. Her daughter's fate was still to be decided. Stormcage allowed for a child to remain with their parent until they were of age. River had yet to say what she wanted.

"Have you named her yet?" Amy asked as she reached over to toddle with the baby's small fingers. She looked remarkably like River did when she was a baby, except her granddaughter had that tuft of bright orange hair on her head.

"Well, Avalon," River nodded. "Because of her father. Oliver wanted her to be named after the Arthurian legend. He was such a nerd sometimes…" She felt the tears pricking her eyes but she pushed them away. She didn't want to cry yet, that was coming later. "And Harmony."

"For Melody," Rory smiled, knowing the story all too well. It was so odd watching it happen in front of him.

"Avalon Harmony...Pond," River knew exactly what was coming with that sentence and she laughed when Rory huffed.

"Uuh, no," Rory shook his head, "That would be Williams. She's a Williams," he looked at baby Avalon with a soft smile, "You're a Williams."

"Pond, she's a Pond," Amy said with a dead serious face.

"One would say she's a Reynolds," Lena appeared at the doorway, smiling softly at them. "And she's one wonderful, tough sister." River smiled at her and couldn't help. but try to peek around to see if someone else was with her. Lena shook her head. "Avalon's outside. She says it's too dangerous to be in the same place as her younger self. Plus, she thinks it's weird."

"No, that makes perfect sense," River nodded. That was actually very responsible of Avalon.

Lena came forwards and took a peek at the baby. "She's so cute. Hard to believe she gets a mouth on her later on." Her comment caused a series of snickers between them. "So, what are you going to call her?"

River pulled the pink blanket just a bit from the baby's face. She was falling asleep again. Such an innocent little thing she was. "Well, I want to name her as Avalon Harmony Pond."

"The newest Pond," Amy chuckled when the baby yawned. "And what a sleepy Pond she is!" She fiddled with the tiny hand resting over the blanket.

"What a lovely Pond she will be." The Doctor had arrived in the room with a familiar cot in his hands. Just looking at it froze Any and Rory but River only stared at it, close to tears.

It was getting time to decide; decide what had already been decided.

"Wait, what if...well," Amy started suddenly, exchanging gazes with Rory. "We were talking earlier, and...we sort of came up with an alternative."

Rory agreed with a nod, "We, um...we take Avalon in," he nodded to the baby, "I mean, we have a house, a life on Earth. We could take her and raise her and still bring her to you every day."

River took the alternative into consideration, but her eyes landed on the Doctor. He wasn't saying anything. This was all on her. "If she grows up with you two, her entire history will be rewritten. It's as the Doctor said. She needs to exist so that I can exist...and I need to exist, so that she can exist. We are one complicated space-time loop, aren't we?" Her sour smile helped nothing.

"I just don't want you to go through the same thing I had to," Amy curled her hand around River's arm. "Because that is not a pain you can get over. I look at you now and it still hurts to know that I couldn't raise you."

"I know...but time's already happened." Every time she came to the same conclusion, a deep pain stabbed her heart. "I'm choosing to give her up just like I already had. I am not abandoning my child, I am giving her up so that she can grow up with a much better life. She'll have a family with the Reynolds, she'll have siblings…" She partially looked up to see Lena smiling sadly at her, "She'll have a Mother in Emmalina Reynolds. She'll get to discover that she wants to write, that she would love to travel. I want her to have dreams. I don't want her to be trapped in my prison cell. She didn't commit a crime." And technically, neither had she but the world needed to believe otherwise.

"River, she didn't exactly have the best of lives living in leadworth," Lena felt compelled to remind River seeing as she herself was a big culprit of Avalon's stunted life in the small town. "She had to take care of me, she had to deal with the small headed people of Leadworth."

"I know," River sighed, closing her eyes. Tears still leaked through. "But it would still be a far better life than the one she would live with me until her 18th birthday."

"I guess that's it then," Amy said quietly, rubbing her hand down River's arm. "I'm very proud of you. And I'm very sorry."

River nodded. "Could I just have a moment with her please? Five minutes."

"Of course," Rory nodded. He gave her a side hug and got up from the bed with Amy.

Together, the others left the room but the Doctor left behind the small cot on the side. The only sound in the room afterwards was the small clock ticking and the occasional noises the baby would make.

"It's so unfair that we only just met," Rover said with a sigh. She carefully pressed the baby's hair down. It seemed like even as a newborn, Avalon had already inherited her mother's bushy hair. "But if there's one thing that I need you to understand it's that I'm not abandoning you. I'll always be in the corners, watching over you and making sure you're safe. Every time you wonder why you didn't fall, or why you fell asleep without a blanket and you wake up with one...it'll be because of me. I'll take the long way and wait for you to grow up so I can tell you who I am."

The baby slowly opened her eyes, as if she knew she was on the receiving end of a very important talk.

"I just want you to understand that I love you so much. I know things in Leadworth won't be easy but this is really the best pathway for you. You will be brave and you will be strong. And just so we're clear, if anyone tries to mess with you, you have my full permission to deal with them accordingly." River was able to smile when the baby gurgled. It was like she understood. "One day, you and I will be mother and daughter, I promise. You just have fun in the meantime, maybe travel the stars or something. I think you'd be very good at that."

She held her daughter close to her, careful not to squeeze her...but she wanted to soak up every moment she had. She couldn't imagine what her life would be like without her daughter and she wasn't eager to find out. She wished things could be different but their lives were never meant to be ordinary. The Pond cycle continued.

When the group returned it was a very silent moment. River held onto her baby as much as she could until the Doctor held his arms out for her. He despised being on the other end. He was taking a mother's child away, the exact thing he never wanted to do to either of them. He was responsible for Amy losing her own baby and now he was doing the same again. How terrible was he?

River ultimately let her baby go but it was almost like the Doctor had to rip the infant away because otherwise the moment would've happened for ages. As soon as the baby was in his arms, Amy and Rory grabbed River's hands. She squeezed them as she fought off the stream of tears going down her face. She looked up only once and it was in time to see the Doctor leaving the room with her baby. When the door closed behind him, she burst into sobs.

~ 0 ~

"Big brother, can I come with you?" Lena was already tailing the Doctor down the hospital hallways. The question was a formality.

"Why would you want to be a part of this, baby sister?" The Doctor was making quick strides down the hallway and Lena saw it. He was trying to get the hell out of there as if that would make everything less terrible.

"Because clearly present-Avalon can't be with you right now and Amy and Rory are with River! Someone's got to be there with you, otherwise you're going to blame yourself!" Lena finally understood what Avalon had been trying to do back in Leadworth. The Doctor on his own for 200 years was his own type of punishment that released all the dark, self-loathing thoughts. She didn't want that to happen, not again.

"Lena, I have to do this on my own."

"No, you don't!" Lena finally grabbed his arm to stop him just outside the hospital. He wanted to keep the TARDIS out of the hospital in case there were any Silence nearby. She slowly turned the Doctor around and briefly looked down at the cot in his hand. Baby Avalon was fast asleep again. "You're going to go back in time to see my dad just before I was born so you can give him Avalon. Obviously he can't see me but that doesn't mean I can't be there when you come back to the TARDIS. Someone's got to give you a big hug, right?"

The Doctor smiled softly at her. "Oh baby sister, you are too good for this world."

Lena took that as a "yes". She took his free hand and gripped it. "You're not alone anymore, remember? Avalon said so and you'd be a fool to fight with my sister...your wife." She winked at him and laughed at his reddened face.

They crossed the hospital doors and while Lena followed quietly in that time, she couldn't help make her last question. She could already see the TARDIS poking out from the alleyway the Doctor hid her in. "What's going to happen, now? With...all of us?"

"Well, I think it's time for me to stay away for a while," the Doctor said, "You know, just be quiet and not be too out there. Amy and Rory deserve some time off. And you, I think maybe it's time you started thinking about what you want to do. Didn't you mention that you wanted to be a teacher?"

Lena playfully rolled her eyes. "Maybe. I don't know. But what about Avalon? Present Avalon, I mean…"

"Avalon, well..." he took a breath in, stopping when it got to him. Lena watched him go through the struggle of making yet another decision about Avalon. "...I need you to give her a message."

"A message? Really?" Lena would not hide her disappointment that he's choosing not to face her.

"I'm not strong enough, Lena…please, can I give you a message for her?" Lena was halfway nodding when she shook her head. "Lena—"

"You should just tell her yourself," she folded her arms, wearing a much too smug expression on her face. It was odd, really, but the Doctor followed her gaze behind him and found Avalon standing in front of the TARDIS.

"Did you really think you could get away from me again?" She was smirking proudly. She saw this coming even before the Doctor arrived at the hospital. She wasn't going to let him go like that again.

Lena took the cot from the Doctor and smiled at him. "I'll just head into the TARDIS."

Avalon's smirk faded as she saw her baby self in the cot. Her heart wrenched at the sight. River had given her up and now she was on her way to live with her uncle and aunt...

"You can go see her," the Doctor said once Lena disappeared inside the TARDIS. His voice was quiet as he was unsure of what to say to her. "River, she's...she's fighting it."

Avalon nodded silently. Her thoughts and feelings towards River were all scrambled at the moment. "I'm sorry for her," she managed to say. "And yet I'm thankful for her. They were going to throw me into that suit. I was terrified…" She could remember everything now with the time lines being scrambled and merging at one point. River had made the choice to take her place in the astronaut suit. "She saved me."

"She loves you Avalon and regardless of how you feel about her, the truth is she did not abandon you. She didn't leave you like you thought." The Doctor watched her nod with a clear struggle on her face. She was fighting off her own tears. He pulled her into a hug. She let herself be covered in his arms while she rested her head against his chest. "You've been through so much, Ava. I'm really sorry. I don't think I'll ever finish apologizing."

"I wish you did because it's not your fault. It's Kovarian's fault." She tilted her head up to meet his gaze. "I love you, Fairy Tale Man. I married you. You don't run off on me again."

"I love you too," he cupped her face, wanting nothing more than to kiss her senseless for hours but once again Time was against them. "I have to go for some time." Just as Avalon opened her mouth to argue, he added, "The Silence is still out there, Ava, and they're watching. They would know that I'm not dead if you disappeared with me."

"But I don't want you to leave me again," Avalon gripped his jacket as if he would run out right now. "What if I never see you again?"

"I will come back for you," the Doctor promised her. "You are my wife and I love you. I cannot live without you. I have no idea how I'm going to do it, to be honest, but it has to be done in order for everything to work out."

"But—"

"It's not forever," he leaned his forehead against hers. "It's a...it's just a moment longer. Just hang on a bit more and then we'll be off together."

"Do you promise?"

"I swear it. Cross my hearts." The Doctor pulled away from her to show her how crossed his fingers over his hearts. She smiled at the gesture. "You have no idea where I'm going to take you but rest assured that it will be fantastic!"

Avalon knew it would be. She was a very impatient woman but if he truly meant for them to finally be together then she would wait. It kind of ran in her family after all. Waiting. "Okay," she ultimately said, nodding lightly. She swallowed hard and looked at him. "I'll wait for you but please don't forget me."

"Forget you?" The Doctor almost laughed at the absurdity. "Do you know why I figured a way to weasel out of a fixed point in time?"

"Because you wanted to stay alive?"

"Well, yes, but for you! You, Avalon, made me want to keep living!" He snaked an arm around her waist again and lightly swayed them. "You asked me to find a way and I did my very best to do so."

"A robot," Avalon mumbled and scrunched her face. "I kissed a robot."

"Yeah, that was...interesting," the Doctor admitted, preferring not to think about it. "But here we are and now I just ask for a tiny bit more time."

"Okay," Avalon nodded. "I'll be...somewhere, waiting for you."

"Travel a bit, darling, on your own. Leadworth was never for you. It was a pit stop. Go out and see something," the Doctor smiled at her, cupping the side of her face. "Do things. And write them down."

In another time Avalon would've refused that idea, whether because she would want to take care of Lena or simply because he wouldn't be there, but right now that sounded really good to her. She'd discovered far too many secrets, remembered such terrible moments, that to go back to Leadworth like nothing happened was out of the question. She needed to do something else, she just wasn't sure what it was. Yet.

"Can I just ask for something before you go?" she asked quietly.

"Anything," the Doctor nodded.

"We got married, and even though you were inside a robot of yourself...our kiss wasn't real. You haven't technically kissed the bride yet…" She purposely trailed off for him to finish the idea. She smirked as his eyebrows raised with realization.

"Oh, you are very right…"

"Aha…"

"Can't have that…"

She shook her head. "Nope."

The Doctor straightened up with his arms to his sides. He met her gaze with affection. "Avalon Reynolds — Pond — can I—"

"You may kiss the bride," Avalon nodded, her expression softening with nothing but love for him.

The Doctor didn't need more than that. He held her head and pressed a kiss to her lips. His fingers gently brushed her skin while their kiss deepened. It would be their last kiss for a good while but never the last one, and that's what he worked so hard for to get. They parted slowly and very little. If they spoke, their lips would still meet.

"The end: the epilogue," Avalon whispered with happy tears. This time she knew that it wasn't the end. It was just the break between stories. Their first one had ended and soon they would sound another one. She couldn't wait for that one.

"I have to go," the Doctor said. He was studying her, committing her to memory for the dark moments he would surely go through later on. He couldn't be alone but he would try really hard not to fall into the darkness. He had a princess to come back for.

"See you later," Avalon said, giving him one last kiss. "And stay away from pretty people."

The Doctor laughed. "Right. Same for you. No flirting, especially with that Jack Harkness!"

Avalon laughed with him. "Sure."

"The Sapling will be around."

"I think that'll do me some good...seeing my...our son," Avalon felt different saying that now. While the Doctor was gone, the Sapling would be their companion. He was the only creature in the world that was half her, half Doctor. Their child. And now more than ever Avalon would want him around.

The Doctor eventually let her go and started for the TARDIS. It was a bittersweet moment but far better than the last time they did this. He would come back for her. Avalon waited until the TARDIS de-materialized before turning to the hospital. She had someone to visit.

~0~

"You okay, big brother?" Lena asked once the TARDIS was off. She stood beside the cot when the Doctor nodded and walked over, directly coming for the baby. "She's awake. Kinda fussy."

"Hm, I bet she is," the Doctor mused on what kind of baby Avalon would be. Melody was a sassy one even as an infant, surely Avalon would follow in the same steps.

"Was this really your cot?" Lena asked after a few minutes passed by. The Doctor had just watched the baby with no indication of what he was feeling. He was being tough again!

"Yes," he nodded. "And, once upon a time, my kids' too."

Lena gasped and met his gaze with her widened eyes. "Really? So these were your first stars—" she gently touched the hanging mobile, smiling when Avalon squealed at it, "—and your children's too? Not to mention Melody's...and now Avalon's. It's like a tradition. Wonder if it'll keep going…" She purposely smirked at the Doctor and he did his best to avoid looking at her.

"Very funny baby sister," he murmured then reached inside the cot. "Come here you," he gently picked the baby up into his arms. He couldn't get over how small Avalon was. She was so innocent. There were no thoughts inside that little head of hers except for the basic ones an infant would have. This was surely her quietest moment ever.

Or so he thought.

Lena heard the baby gurgle and suddenly the Doctor was scowling. "Are you seriously making fun of me?" He asked the baby incredulously. "You are a newborn and you are still making fun of me?"

"What's happening?" Lena stared at him like he was crazy.

"Your sister is making fun of my bowtie," he frowned down at the baby. "That is not nice."

The baby gurgled again. 'You're too loud. My Mummy wasn't loud.'

The Doctor huffed. "Would you stop that? I will have you know that I speak at a regular volume!"

'Stop yelling!'

"I am not yelling! You're being mean, Avalon!"

Lena watched the conversation progress into an actual argument and she didn't know who to laugh at first. The Doctor, who was over a 1000 years old, was arguing with a newborn. On the other hand, a newborn who couldn't even hold anything had just picked a fight with a thousand year old man. That was certainly Avalon Reynolds.

The TARDIS hummed to cut the argument short. The Doctor rolled his eyes at the box but it was enough to snap him out of the argument.

"You are definitely Avalon Reynolds," he tickled the baby's stomach. "I've got a story for you, Avalon. Would you like to hear it?"

'My Mummy sang to me. Can you sing to me?'

"Uh, I'm not that good at singing. But you will be! One day!"

Lena watched him go towards the console, deciding to stay quiet as he had his moment with the newborn. He started telling her a fairy tale. She didn't recognize it but now that she thought of it, she did remember that Avalon really liked the fairytale of the Bean, the Straw and the Coal. What really warmed Lena's heart was when he started to sing for a little bit, a very tiny bit just for Avalon. It was a nursery, and if Lena was right, it was the same nursery that River sang to Avalon earlier.

'A little fairy comes at night,

Her eyes are blue, her hair is brown'

with silver spots upon her wings,

And from the moon she flutters down.'

It soothed the newborn self as the TARDIS started taking them to New Earth where they would meet a past version of Ryland Reynolds. The story was about to begin (again).

~0~

Avalon gently opened the door of River's room and found Amy and Rory hugging River. When River saw it was her coming in, her entire face lit up but it soon faded. Avalon wouldn't know if it was because she wasn't that baby anymore or maybe she was just mad at everything that'd been said on the pyramid.

There were no words that came to Avalon in that moment. It was truly the first time she was completely speechless. She had no idea how to act around River and much less in this moment. All her life Avalon firmly believed her biological mother abandoned her. It fueled her anger for years and years. It made her cling to Emmalina even more. What she saw right now was nothing like what she'd been picturing. River was desolate, her face stained with so many tears that her face shined under the room lights. She was clutching her parents arms, truly nothing like the past versions of River that she'd seen. Those versions were always so cool and adventurous, brave beyond belief.

"I'm...I'm sorry," Avalon said. She had barely come into the room, taking caution to stay away from River. She might not even be invited but River had yet to say anything. "I had no idea that this was the way things happened."

"That I wasn't going to abandon you?" There was a slight edge to River's tone but any anger she felt disappeared when she looked up and saw her daughter. She was all grown up. Her baby was gone. "I told you that I wasn't going to do it and I didn't. I gave you up because I wanted you to live happily."

Avalon's eyes flickered to Amy and Rory, their expressions bearing sympathy for both of them. They'd witnessed their daughter giving away her own daughter but they had also witnessed the chaos that their granddaughter had to go through because of that very choice.

"I'm sorry," Avalon bit her lip. She blinked rapidly when the tears started stinging her eyes. "It's always my fault bad things happen to people who care about me. I try to stop it but I just make things worse. All this time I thought I was better off without my mother and the reality is...you would have been much better off without me. All of you."

"That is not true," River frowned. Beside her, both her parents nodded with agreement.

"C'mon," Avalon continued. "If I hadn't existed then you could've just ran from the Silence. Kovarian would've had no leverage on you. Hell, Oliver would've stayed alive. I've been ruining lives even before I was born."

"Avalon, quit talking like that," Rory scolded but it just made her move onto him and Amy.

"Rory, you would've been a rich man if you hadn't used all that money to bail me out each time I got arrested. And Amy would've had less migraines if I wasn't around."

"Get over here right now," River demanded in such a hard tone that Avalon actually winced. "Sit!" She commanded and patted a spot on the bed. "Now!"

Avalon swallowed hard before coming over as directed. She took a seat at the foot of the bed.

"Now you listen. Push all that hair behind your eyes," River actually waited for Avalon to do so. "You are very loved. You have always been. You've got a difficult personality but we all love you senseless. I can't imagine my life without you."

"It's the same for us," Amy agreed. "How could I have gotten through my 4 psychiatrists without you? Or the first date with that one?" She jerked a thumb over at Rory.

"Yeah, and you were the best football player in the field," Rory chuckled. "Definitely the toughest. You've been my Ava way before the Doctor. I can't imagine what life would be without you."

"You're our baby Pond," River smiled softly. "Our new Pond."

Rory groaned beside her. "Williams, dammit. She's a Williams!"

Avalon chuckled as he got into an argument with Amy about it. "I'm a...Pond," she said slowly, letting the name sit in her mouth for a moment. It was an odd thing to see the trio before her and knowing she was truly part of their family. She was a Pond. The Doctor must have had a lot of fun with that. She almost rolled her eyes imagining the secret jokes he had with himself while she didn't know.

"How about we talk for a few minutes?" River suggested to her, though she did it quite nervously. Avalon, however, nodded within the second. It was only fair.

"Will you be okay?" Amy asked her as she got off the bed. River assured her that she would be. Her daughter was right there now.

"We'll be right outside," Rory promised them as they left the room.

"You're going to jail, aren't you?" Avalon's tone had turned meek when she asked the question.

"Yes, I am," River answered her. She wished she could touch Avalon but she knew that her daughter wasn't there yet. It'd be a long time before she was.

"But it's not fair, you didn't do anything."

"Shh, to the world, I have."

"But you took my place," Avalon bit her lower lip. "You did it so that I wouldn't have to."

"And I would do it again," River said, shocking Avalon with the level of determination she said it with. "Make no mistake of that. I'm only sorry for the pain you went through. I'm so sorry about Oliver. He was really excited about you, he loved you."

Avalon swallowed hard when she thought about her father. She has held him during his last moments of life. "Can I...ask how you two met?"

"Well of course," River smiled. "We were students at the university. He was failing mathematics miserably and he was studying in the library. He was so loud that I had to tell him to be quiet. Imagine me, telling someone they're being too loud." Avalon briefly smiled. She could imagine that happening. "Anyways, we bickered for a while and then suddenly he was asking me out for a cup of coffee. He loved this little coffee shop around the university. He played shows in it all the time…"

Avalon's face lit up with recognition. "I know! Uncle Ryland showed me videos of that place. I want to visit it soon."

"I'm sure the owner would recognize you. Oliver must have talked about you in his shows at least a dozen times." River's smile saddened as seconds passed by. "I didn't think I would ever have a serious relationship with him. I just went out on a couple dates with him. You yourself were an unexpected moment." Even when the Doctor had told her that one day she would become Avalon's mother, she didn't think it would happen while she was still in school.

"You mean you didn't plan for me?" Avalon asked quietly, her eyes lowering to the bed sheets. "I was like...a mistake?"

"No!" River snapped. "I said you were unexpected but do you really think that I would call you a mistake? That Oliver would call you a mistake? Avalon Reynolds, for a woman who's the first of her kind - who knows more than most of us - you are quite dumb sometimes." River slowly chuckled at her reaction. She saw Oliver's pout there for a second. "You are my daughter and by far the best thing I have done in this world."

"Are you sure about that?"

"Yes," River answered automatically, leaving Avalon silent. "You are the best of me. I only ask that you please let me be part of your life when you're ready."

Avalon wondered what that would be like. She'd spent so much time hating the fictional cruel birth mother she made up when the truth was from it. River wasn't cruel. She didn't abandon her, she sacrificed herself and gave her up to live a better life. "I...I think I would like that," she said slowly and watched the way River's face brightened. She was very hopeful and it was quite shocking for Avalon. "I don't think I'm at a place to call you 'Mum' though…" She was afraid of what River might do or say to that but she had to get it out before River made any assumptions. She knew now that everything she thought of her birth mother wasn't true but the fact was she had grown up far away from River, always seeing Emmalina as her mother.

River took it with a silent nod of her head. It was a fair starting point for someone who grew up thinking a certain way about her. She could work with that and maybe one day Avalon would call her 'Mum' too.

[saiilorstars]

Falling Temptation

Previous chapters • Sequel to Stars Dance •  Fairy Tale Memoirs (Companion story)

Ch. 21: Orphan 

Fandom: Doctor Who // Pairing: 11th Doctor x Female OC

Chapter summary: The travelers have landed in a planet the Doctor can't quite remember (but thankfully the Sapling can) and possibly find another Time Lord...a Time Child?

Taglist: @ocfairygodmother @anotherunreadblog @maaaaarveeeeel​ [If you’d like to be added to this specific OC’s stories/edits, send me a message!]

"Where's a prefrontal cortex when you need one!?" The Doctor grumbled as he tirelessly rubbed his temples. This was not working. If anything, he felt his mind more jumbled than when he first started.

"Nice tiara," he suddenly heard Avalon remark. The Doctor cracked his eyes open to see her and the Sapling standing in front of him. "How come you get a tiara and I can't?"

The Doctor's face fell flat at the question. "First, this-" he pointed to the Chameleon Arch helmet over his head, "-is not a tiara. And second of all, the last time you saw a crown was Queen Mary's and you tried stealing it!"

Avalon folded her arms, about to make a better argument when the Sapling giggled beside her. "You were trying to borrow it," he said.

"I was?" She blinked suddenly, as if realizing something. "Wait, how come I can't remember that?"

"Because the Sapling remembers it," the Doctor sighed. "Remember, whatever he remembers of our memories we-" he gestured at himself and her, "-can't. He has our memories."

"Right…" Avalon brought a hand to her forehead. Her mind was already conflicted with her memory wipe from Kovarian and other torture mechanisms that it was a lost cause trying to remember what the Sapling could and couldn't remember. In lamens terms, her brain was tired.

"Don't worry Ava," the Doctor got a sense of where her thoughts were running to. Lately, he'd been getting the feeling like his and her memories were just a tad fuzzier than the normal amount caused by the Sapling. It was, admittedly, a long time since the Sapling was created and it meant that he had kept the Doctor's and Avalon's memories for a much longer period than either expected.

The Doctor was getting the feeling that his brain was beginning to try and compensate for the missing memories. He presumed it was the same for Avalon but because of Kovarian's interference, the feelings had to be heightened.

"So what is that thing anyways?" Avalon motioned to the metal helmet again.

"It's the Chameleon Arch," the Doctor let the device rise back into its spot above the console. "It's exactly what it sounds like. Helps a Time Lord disguise them self into anything. Last time I used it, I made myself human!"

"You could do that?" Avalon gaped, her eyes widening at the thought.

"Yup!"

"Were you trying to switch again, then?" The Sapling cocked his head to the side curiously.

"Not exactly. I've been noticing there's some gaps in my head. I've, uh, been forgetting things…"

Avalon stiffened. "The Silence?" It was fairly quick how the color in her face drained. Had they found a way to continue messing with them after all? They'd been so careful not to let their guard down but the fact the Silence made you forget would always be the weakening point.

"No, no, Ava, don't worry," the Doctor brought her into a hug. He definitely knew where her thoughts went to now. "No one's touching you, I swear."

Despite her efforts to appear brave, Avalon let herself be wrapped in his arms. She felt so small whenever she thought about the Silence and what they did, what Kovarian did. She still had a long way before she truly recovered.

The Sapling moved on over to hug them as well. He took every chance he got to hug them, much to his parents' amusement. "You're safe, Mother," he assured her just like the Doctor.

"Can I be honest, though?" Avalon's question came in the form of a whisper.

"Of course," the Doctor nodded and pulled away from her.

"You say...that you've forgotten things?" She watched him nod again. "I-I kind of feel the same and it's not just because of the things Kovarian wiped. I feel...like there's something before Demons Run that I've forgotten. And then...I don't know, I feel like there's something kind of...watching us."

"Yes!" The Doctor snapped his fingers at her, regretting it the moment she flinched. "Sorry. I meant to say that I feel the same way."

"Do you think it's still the Silence? Some lingering effects?"

"It's been a long time," the Doctor mumbled in thought. "But I get the feeling that whatever is watching us will be revealing itself to us very soon."

"Just as long as it's not Kovarian," Avalon felt her skin crawl at the image of seeing the woman again. "When I see her again I want to do it with all my brains so I can shoot her dead."

The Doctor watched her silently, sadly, knowing that she had to be that afraid to truly want to kill someone. He wanted to kill Kovarian and all her Silence for hurting Avalon. He wasn't scared, he was angry, but Avalon was afraid. She was so afraid.

Before he could try to comfort Avalon, Amy and Rory joined them from the corridors. They were eager to see where they would be heading out for today. Each day, they'd been exposing Avalon to new environments to see how her immunity system would take it. They were so grateful to see their granddaughter reacting fine to each trip. It was almost as if she was completely normal.

"Now that's interesting…" the Doctor said just as Rory wondered out loud where they would be taking Avalon. He drifted towards the monitor, prompting Avalon to do the same and eventually the Sapling. They were like a little domino effect and they didn't even realize it.

"What are we looking at?" Avalon cocked her head to the side when she saw the odd readings on the monitor. She was sure that they weren't even in their language!

"Time Vortex energy!" the Doctor gawked.

"Oh my God!" They heard Amy yelp and when they followed her gaze, they all did the same.

The Sapling's neck had elongated to do a semi-curl and move his face closer to the monitor.

"Sapling, stop doing that!" Avalon screeched with the same horror she usually did when the Sapling pulled that stunt. Lately, it'd been happening more and more. He would stretch parts of his body for whatever reason that presented itself.

The Doctor theorized it meant the Sapling was beginning to mature, an act that prompted Avalon to joke and tell him he had to give the Sapling 'the talk'. While the Doctor stammered for a good ten minutes, he also made Avalon realize that the closer the Sapling got to maturing the more danger they could all be in if he decided to follow into his ancestors' primal instinct.

Destroy worlds.

"Time Vortex energy?" Rory moved over with Amy to the monitor. "Isn't that where we are right now?"

"It's coming from a planet in the Ligotti Tract," the Doctor read off from the monitor.

"Zoline, perhaps?" The Sapling asked.

There was a funny look on the Doctor's face when he tried to think of the place. "Zoline...excellent. Um…can't quite remember it."

"But I can!" The Sapling cheered. "Because I have the memories!"

That was great.

"Don't worry! I love that place!" The Doctor zipped to the other side of the console, working fervently to get them to the planet. "Least I think it was!"

"That doesn't sound very promising," Amy made a face but the Doctor was already bringing them to Zoline.

"I'm sure it is! Come along Ponds!" the Doctor exclaimed, internally laughing with his joke. He could truly say it now and mean all of his companions, if only Avalon would know.

"And me!" Avalon rushed to his side, taking his hand. She chuckled at the blush that sprouted on the Doctor's face. Their relationship was still a secret from Amy and Rory and since the Doctor was so worried about what they would say, Avalon thought that 'easing them' into the idea of a relationship would help out when the time came to say the truth. Although she secretly thought that maybe Amy and Rory already had some idea because sometimes they acted just a bit nonchalant about their hand holding and closeness.

"Let's go!" The Sapling zoomed by all of them, heading straight for the doors.

The rest followed and stepped out of the TARDIS to find a gray city full of smoke.

"This, uh, this doesn't look very pre…" Amy started to feel a funny tickle in her throat. Beside her, Rory was bringing a hand to his throat because of the same tickle.

"This can't be ri…" the Doctor cleared his throat several times. Even the Sapling was having trouble breathing.

Avalon reacted worse than all of them. She went into a full coughing fit. The Doctor could see her from the corner of his eye. He reached over for her, intending on practically shoving her into the TARDIS. The air was terrible.

"Doctor! Nothing to worry about, just a slight air quality!" A male dressed in green robes (and wearing a funny tall green hat that seemed to have pipes sticking out from it) ran towards the group. He also wore a transparent green face mask.

Two more robed men came behind him and strapped the same masks to each of the travelers.

"Price of progress I'm afraid!" The same male continued as the travelers got their normal air back.

The Doctor immediately checked Avalon with the sonic to make sure the bad air quality hadn't left effects that would hinder the progress she was making. Her lungs were clear of permanent danger and, thankfully, she was breathing normally again.

"I'm fine," she mumbled to him. The Doctor wished he could kiss her but now there were masks between them apart from, well, other people.

"What kind of place is this!?" Rory was outraged after he could properly breathe again. This was not the place to bring Avalon around!

"I'm Pfortner," one of the men dressed in gray introduced himself. "His excellency imperator Bax's chief Sycophant. Sorry about the informality of the welcome but we only had minutes to prepare once the TARDIS' energy signature was detected."

"It's so good to see you old friend," the man in green looked specifically at the Doctor, but the Time Lord was having trouble placing him. "Well...surely you remember me Doctor. I'm Bax! Imperator of Zoline and her Moons! We seduced Quantum Kelp together off the coast of Revok!"

"Seduced who now?" Avalon shot a sharp look at the Doctor, one that genuinely sparked a bit of fear in him.

"You survived a cage match with my first born son's placenta!"

"He did what!?" Both Amy and Rory chorused together, shooting the Doctor the same wide-eyed look.

The Doctor didn't like being the center of attention for once. He had no idea what the green robed man was talking about and it seemed to be getting him into trouble with Avalon. He needed to put a stop to it before she smacked him. "That all sounds very me but the thing is, that handsome little chap over there-" he pointed to the Sapling who was busy staring up at the smoky skies, "-is currently in possession of a couple of my memories. I don't remember being here."

Knowing he was being talked about, the Sapling moved over to properly greet the green robed man. He knelt down on one knee, amusing the travelers for a moment, as he properly introduced himself. "Greetings Imperator Bax. May your fronds shoulder the sky."

"May your fronds shoulder the sky - have we met?" Bax looked at the Sapling with bemusement, still not understanding what was going on.

"No your excellency. But I remember meeting you all the same. My father is sadly diminished-"

The Doctor's face scrunched into offence, much more when Avalon, Amy and Rory snickered around him. "Rude!"

"-but I can recall his time here perfectly," the Sapling finished and raised his head to reveal a grin.

"Father?" Bax's eyes widened in surprise. "I was not aware you had a child, Doctor."

"And my Mother," the Sapling gestured to the curly-haired ginger beside the Doctor.

"It's not what you think," Avalon quickly shook her head before any presumptions were spoken.

But before any comments could be made about the situation, there was a rumble in the sky. Everyone looked up to see something green coming down on them.

"Quickrain!" one of the gray robed men exclaimed. "Run, your excellency!"

"What? What the heck is 'quickrain'?" Amy made a face when the man took Bax away in a hasty run.

"OW!" Rory suddenly flinched when the green rain dropped on him. It was rain….but with acid. "That hurt!"

"Ow!" Avalon was next on the list and the final one before the Doctor pulled them into a run.

This was definitely the wrong place for his Ava! They followed Bax and his men into a building but they'd still suffered sustainable acid over their skin.

"Earth's acid rain doesn't get anywhere near this corrosive until the mid-21st century," the Doctor remarked as he turned his palms over to see the reddened blotches on his skin.

"Rory, I'm fine! Stop it!" Avalon was fighting off both him and Amy trying to see if her skin was reacting worse than theirs. "Seriously!"

"Mother…?" the Sapling squeezed himself through his grandparents to see Avalon's reddened skin, but he also allowed Avalon to see his.

"Oh my God," she shooed Amy and Rory away and cupped the Sapling's head. "Look at you! Your skin is all red!"

"I will heal, mother," the Sapling assured her but Avalon still called for the Doctor.

"Is he really going to be okay?" She asked while the Doctor let the sonic scan him. Like everyone else, the Sapling's skin was only irritated.

"Just fine," he assured her. He was relieved to know it too.

"But it shouldn't be like this!" The Sapling exclaimed. He pointed an aggressive finger towards Bax. "We must know what has transpired here! The Zoline are not an industrialized people! They're tree dwellers!"

Didn't look like there were much trees out there," Rory mumbled to Amy who nodded in agreement. The city barely looked like it had a sun. Actually, they weren't sure if they saw one now that they thought about it. It was all so gray and smoky!

"Primitives!" Bax huffed. "We left all that behind years ago, creature!"

"Hey!" Avalon snapped at him. "You watch how you address my son!"

"Behold my Imperial Palace! A miracle of engineering and leak management!" Bax gestured to the building they were in. He raised his hands up, making the group realized it was several, several floors high.

But it was all gray.

And slimy green.

It all looked icky like they were in a rundown factory.

"Every expense was spared in its construction!" Bax exclaimed with a proud smile and yet the Sapling looked sO so sad, and terrified.

The Doctor noted it and turned the Sapling to him. "What is it, Sapling?" he crouched in front of the child.

The Sapling's eyes glistened. "I remember Imperator Bax. He was a wise ruler. This was not how the place looked like before." He could vividly remember the Zoline his father visited before. It was all so bright and green and...natural. It was nature. Such an abundance of nature that peace was just one of the common effects one would feel when visiting it. "It was like a beautiful fairy tale forest that Mother would like. The Zoline you met were barely past the hunter-gatherer stage. That was less than 30 years ago."

The Doctor's eyes widened. "Fourth dimensional skulduggery may be afoot there."

"Would it really kill you to speak in English?" Avalon frowned at him. "I mean-"

The building shook like an earthquake was striking. The same green liquid that the acid rain was made of came so rushing down like a waterfall.

"Relax everyone!" Bax raised his hands to calm them down. "Everything's fine! It's just the Golden Triangle conducting one of their experiments!"

"Watch out!" Rory lunged to get Bax out of the way before the green waterfall fell over him.

"Avalon!" The Doctor did the same with the ginger who'd been second on the list of accidental contamination. He shrouded her with his body but somewhere along the way Avalon started feeling like he was the one in need of protecting. His body was shaking and he groaned in pain.

"Doctor, what's wrong?" Avalon wiggled out of his arms, not that he noticed because as soon as she was free he clutched his head and chest.

"Father!" the Sapling rushed to help him as well.

"I'm not...feeling too clever, truth be told!" The Doctor raised his head to reveal a strong golden glow in his eyes that seemed to pour out of him. At first instinct, Avalon pulled the Sapling away.

"What is going on!?" Amy turned on Bax for a full explanation of what was causing this.

The Doctor lost his balance and fell to his knees. The golden energy around him got stronger, blinding the others for a moment.

"Fairy Tale Man!" Avalon cried and rushed towards him only for Rory to pull her back.

"T-th-the Time V-Vortex energies!" The Doctor managed to say in-between his groans. "My b-b-body's saturated with it, so…" He sucked in multiple sharp breaths, "Temporal t-tremors tend to-to- shake it all up like a can of pop!" He raised his head to meet Bax's terrified face. "Where are you keeping it!?" Everyone turned on the Imperator. "Where are you keeping the Time Lord technology!?"

"I have no idea what you're…" Bax was in the middle of denying it when the Doctor collapsed completely.

"LET GO!" Avalon shouted and shoved Rory to the side to hurry up to the Doctor. She dropped to her knees beside his body and listened for a heartbeat. Thankfully, she heard the two but he was completely out cold. "We need to get him somewhere so he can rest!"

"I'll get my personal physician for him," Bax offered and while the group was thankful for it, it didn't save him from the stand off with Avalon.

She had gotten up and stormed right up to him. "You better hope that he wakes up fine because if not I'll make sure you wish you were still a primitive as you said."

"Ava," Rory pulled her away but he honestly knew that there was no making her back down. He only wanted her to calm down and not hurt herself.

~ 0 ~

The next time the Doctor woke up, he found himself in a lovely room and a soft bed under him. He sat up with a groan, only getting a minute before someone gently stroked the tips of his hair. He knew that hand anywhere! A big grin came to his face even though his head was hurting like mad.

"Fairy Tale Man, are you alright?" Avalon was sitting beside him on the bed, her eyes full of concern for him.

"Who stuffed my skull with socks from the lost and found?"

"That's a weird thing to say, father," the Sapling giggled from the foot of his bed.

"Where am I?" The Doctor said after gaining a bit more lucidity.

"In some fancy guest room of the Imperial palace," Avalon explained with a mutter. Bax could give them all the fanciest things he had but it wouldn't make her like him.

"The Imperator put you in here because there's air filtration on the whole floor," the Sapling added.

"Amy...Rory…?" The Doctor soon noticed the couple was missing and panicked until Avalon shushed him.

"They just went to see if they could get Bax to talk about whatever is causing this to you. I really didn't like what I saw, what was that?"

"I need to find it first," the Doctor said as he moved to get out of the bed.

"You can't!" Avalon hurried to keep him down.

"Ava, I have to! Something Time Lord is out there! It's my responsibility to find it!"

Avalon bit her lower lip and watched him continue his efforts to get up despite his body being too weak to do it on his own right now. She was scared that this would turn into another House moment. It could all be a trick that would end up hurting the Doctor. But she knew that no matter what the Doctor would be doing it anyways. She would have to ready herself for whatever was going on.

With a sigh, she got up and helped the Doctor stand up with the Sapling doing the same. Together, they brought the Doctor out of the room where they met Amy and Rory, along with another man, Pfortner, from earlier.

"Did you get anything?" Avalon asked the pair.

"Just this guy," Rory pointed at the man then winced. "Sorry."

"It's alright," Pfortner said. He didn't look too pleased either. It was why Amy and Rory were able to convince him to come talk to the Doctor. Bax wasn't letting anything slip. "Look, I'd be lying if I told you that most of us didn't find the recent tremors a tad discombobulating. Still the Golden Triangle insist that they're perfectly normal. No 'Time Lord' energy is involved."

"That's the…" the Doctor groaned again, "...second time you've mentioned this 'Golden Triangle', Pfortner. What are they? Or...who are they?"

Pfortner smiled kindly, and genuinely. "Oh, they're simply divine. Their genius rivals even yours, Doctor. Three inventors whose break-throughs - so revolutionary, so numerous...led us out of the timeless forest into an age of industry. Nobody knows where they came from or who they were before, but to us they became known as 'the Golden Triangle'. His excellency would never admit it but they are the real power on this world."

"Hmm, I don't suppose anybody ever conducted a medical examination of these chappies, did they?" The Doctor muttered. He didn't want to get that hopeful but all the signs were there. Maybe this time wasn't a trick. Just maybe...

"Not that I know of, why?"

"Well, to ascertain how many hearts they have for starts. Ponds, we're we're leaving!"

"Doctor, we agree but you still need to - GET BACK HERE!" Avalon screamed when the Doctor raced away from them.

"Where is he going!?" Pfortner asked but none of the group seemed to know. Still, they chased after him.

The Doctor snagged a facemask off the first person he met in his run, and with an apology, he went on outside. He had to go out there and find...find whatever Time Lords were out there. It was fairly easy for the rest of the travelers to catch up to him. He wasn't that fast yet but it didn't save him from the smack Avalon gave him.

"You shouldn't be out here!" She angrily said, grabbing his arm but still letting him lead to wherever it was he needed to go.

"You shouldn't be!" He argued. Despite her wearing the mask again, he wasn't comfortable with her exposure to such a horrendous city.

"We're all doing this," Avalon looked back at Amy and Rory. They agreed and helped the Doctor on his other side. The Sapling came beside his mother.

They walked together until they saw a building with a strange golden design on its front. It was a circle with dozens of lines inside it. It was also the building that lost a good chunk of its top after getting struck by a big pink blob.

"Don't you see?" The Doctor swallowed hard, willing the others to keep going straight for it. "There's only one rational explanation for what we're seeing. The Gallifreyan symbol clinches it! If this 'golden triangle' have Time Lord technology, then that means one of them might be…"

They walked into the building only to be targeted by multiple red dots.

"Oh c'mon," Amy sighed. They had just walked in and there were five people already waiting to shoot them!?

"This is as far as you go, Doctor," one of the guards said. "Pfortner warned us you were en route. The Golden Triangle were very explicit: they're not to be disturbed during their experiments."

"Look, I'm feeling a bit peaky so I'll keep it short," the Doctor shuffled a bit to find his sonic. "It may have escaped your notice, but the top of your building just fell off!"

Their response was to point more red dots on him and the others.

"Keep talking, it's going great," Rory shot him a look.

"C'mon, it's a diagnostic thingummy see!" The Doctor waved his sonic in the air. "It's harmless!" He scanned the immediate area for show but did get some interesting results along the way. "Except it's telling me you're going to have to worry about a lot more than this building if you don't let me talk to this Golden Triangle! How would you like to not die in the very near future?"

"Don't be idiots please," Avalon added with a flat face. Thankfully, they spared them the more dramatic parts of the standoff and stepped aside. They were brought into the elevator to finally meet the Golden Triangle.

"It may be temporal bends talking but...is that Kenny G I can hear?" the Doctor mumbled to the group on their way up.

"Yeah, actually," Amy made a face when she heard the familiar tune.

"Thirty billion light years from Earth and I still can't escape smooth...jazz," he blinked though when he started to wonder how nice it would be to have a nice jazz date with Avalon. They would have such a lovely time together, dancing to the jazz music. She was all about the music, after all.

The elevator dinged open like a regular Earth elevator. As it slid open its doors, a soft, warm golden glow slipped in. The Doctor's mouth fell open at the sight before them. Little by little, the same happened to the others.

"I'm not allowed visitors. Are you here to watch the end of the world with us?" A young female Time Lady sat across from them with three robed people behind her. She wore the red robes and golden armor that the Doctor recognized so well.

Everyone behind the Doctor was frozen in their spots. The Time Lady wasn't just a Time Lady...she was child. She appeared to be like a ten year old in Earth terms. Still, there were noticeable differences between her and a human child. For starters, there was something funny going on with one of her eyes. The right eye was completely white and the more the group stared, the clearer the scars on the right side of her face got. A chunk of her hair was missing on the same side as well.

"Go get the TARDIS," the Doctor immediately ordered, startling the group of their thoughts.

"What? No! We're not...we're not leaving you," Avalon frowned at him. Yes, the Time Lady turned out to be a child but who's to say it wasn't a trap? The Doctor was in no condition to be on his own.

"I'll be fine. But I'm gonna need my TARDIS." The Doctor wasn't sure what was going on but something warned him that he would require his TARDIS for whatever reason.

Amy and Rory suspected that beyond the TARDIS, the Doctor wanted a moment alone with the child. No matter what, she still looked like a Time Lord. And the Doctor was still the Doctor.

"We'll be back," Rory said while Amy reached over for Avalon and the Sapling.

Avalon still resisted Amy's pull but she stopped when the Doctor held out his sonic to her. "Why are you giving me that?"

"So you can follow the signal back to the TARDIS and because it gives you a reason to come back to me," the Doctor offered her a knowing smile that, even though she didn't want to, got her to smile for him. He wasn't leaving her nor sending her away like he tried to do to Amy and Rory when they were in the pocket universe.

"Please be careful," she whispered as she took the sonic from him. He nodded at her, at least silently promising he would do his best. These were one of the moments she wished she could kiss and hug him. One of these days she might just skip over the 'easing Amy and Rory into the idea' thing and kiss her Doctor whenever she wanted. But for now, she gripped his sonic in her hand and let Amy pull her back towards the elevator.

Despite her reluctance, Avalon let Amy take her away.

~0~

"I'm not sure that was a good idea," Avalon huffed on their way into the TARDIS. The Doctor's sonic was lead them right to the blue box.

"Either way, he didn't want us in there," Amy said, keeping a tight hold around Avalon's arm despite knowing that if she really wanted to, Avalon could rip away with ease. They truly understood now that Avalon's 'freakish' strength wasn't freaky at all. It's a natural part of her unique DNA.

"I'm sure Father can handle it," the Sapling chimed in to cheer his Mother up. "The Time Lady is a child."

"Doesn't mean she's not a weapon," Avalon muttered before it truly hit her. Her eyes widened as she looked over to Amy and Rory. "I'm sorry! I meant…"

"We know what you meant, Ava," Rory assured her. Their daughter was part Time Lady and it was used as means to weaponize her.

"I'm just scared that it's still going to happen," Avalon admitted. She found it easier to share with them than the Doctor. He didn't know what they had seen at Lake Silencio. "The Silence are still out there and since they don't have neither me or River, who's to say they didn't come up with something else?"

"I think this is something completely different," Amy said. They were picking up their speed and could already see their blue box from a distance. "If this had been the Silence, they would've done something on the spot. I think we've angered them all a bit too much for them to be patient again."

"Let's just get the TARDIS back to the Doctor and hopefully clear all this mess up so we can go!" Rory was on the urgent plan that they really needed to leave. This was a terrible place for his granddaughter who was only just healing. He didn't want to see her have a setback.

"Right," Avalon bit her lip and turned to the console, her eyes lingering on the Time Rotor. She handed the Sapling the sonic, once she made sure he understood he was not to play with it, and started working the controls.

Her grandparents had the time of their lives watching her hands smoothly glide over the controls like she practically owned the TARDIS. Of course the TARDIS was letting her work like she was a pilot, because Avalon practically was. Amy and Rory wondered if Avalon truly realized just how much the TARDIS had bonded with her in these last months. It was touching, really.

The TARDIS had separated all of Avalon's favorite rooms again since there was no need to keep her in bed all day, but she still only put them in separate rooms in the same hallway as Avalon's bedroom. Her piano room, the media room and the library were all just seconds from her bedroom. Avalon had no idea why the TARDIS was that involved in making her life easier but she loved the attention. She took it as 'I'm the TARDIS' favorite' and she was.

She just didn't know how much deeper it went.

~ 0 ~

The Doctor felt his head pounding as if someone was actually hitting him with bricks. Little by little, it got stronger and he had a pretty good idea of why it was.

The Time child, who had introduced herself as Orphan, stopped talking when she heard the Doctor mumble something under his breath. Even she knew he wasn't looking well. "Are you okay, Doctor?" She leaned forwards on her seat.

The Doctor seemed to be sinking away in his chair. He brought a hand to his forehead and rubbed circles over it. "Yes, yes, I'm fine. Nothing to worry about. Just a...very minor anoxic seizure. Where were we, Orphan?"

"You were asking me about my memories."

"Ah, yes! What's the very first thing you remember?"

"War," the child said distantly. "I remember war."

"War, that makes sense," the Doctor sucked in a breath and leaned forwards to meet the child's face.

Orphan didn't seem to remember a lot about Gallifrey, much less about herself. She suffered a type of amnesia but the Doctor was fairly sure there was something else going on, he just needed his sonic first. She remembered the planet's environment, its people, but when the Doctor asked her specific questions about herself, she went blank. She seemed kind, she seemed...like a child. She was a very mature child, more than the Sapling was. That was normal given Orphan's age. She was a bit past 100...she couldn't remember the exact number. And she genuinely wanted to remember who she was.

The TARDIS materialized outside the room, just as the Doctor hoped. He had barely gotten up from his chair, albeit wobbly, when the doors opened and allowed the others in.

Avalon came rushing in first, once again holding the sonic in her hand. "You're not supposed to stand!"

The Doctor playfully rolled his eyes. He supposed this was how everyone was acting with her. He could understand the annoyance that came with it. "Thanks Ava, but I'm fine." He took the sonic from her and turned back to Orphan.

"So...what's happening?" Amy quietly asked while they watched him sonic Orphan. The child sat motionless, only blinking at the sonic in front of her.

"Do you know who I am, then?" The child asked when the Doctor pulled the sonic away, taking a look at the readings he'd gotten. "You said there was a possibility that we might be related."

Everyone behind the Doctor went wide-eyed. Could they be related? Could it be…

"Is that one of his kids?" Rory whispered very quietly to Amy. They knew that the Doctor had once had children of his own and that they died as adults in the War…

...or so the Doctor thought.

Avalon swallowed hard and stepped back. What if the child really was his? That would be wonderful news for him, that one of his children had survived...but that left a lot of questions. Did it mean the child had regenerated into a child during the War? And if so, why was it only now that the TARDIS picked up on their signal? It was all just a bit too odd.

"I'm sorry Orphan, would you excuse us for just a minute?" The Doctor smiled at the child and turned to the others, his smile dropping. They needed to follow him.

"Doctor, where are we going now?" Amy asked as they crossed through the doors.

"I need to see the Golden Triangle now!"

"Right, but what about her?" Avalon stopped him for a moment. She suspected he was on his fast pace plans again and his body wasn't quite up to it. "Is she...you know...your daughter?"

"Do I have a sister, Father!?" The Sapling beamed at the idea of having a sister. The could have so much fun together!

The Doctor visibly tensed. "I need to see the Golden Triangle," he repeated.

Avalon inwardly sighed. He wasn't going to tell them one bit until he talked to those people. "Fine. But please don't run. You still look sick!"

"I feel sick," he corrected as if it was a point for him.

"So you need to slow down," Rory exclaimed, his nurse side coming out.

"Quite the opposite Rory, I need to be faster! It's the Temporal Quakes! If they don't stop soon then my body will try to regenerate! And the problem with that-"

"-besides the fact you'll be regenerating?" Avalon folded her arms over her chest. What more could there be than that!?

"Well...I don't really have any regenerations left."

Avalon's eyes widened. That. That was worse! Her arms dropped to her sides out of shock. "What...what do you mean you don't...you don't have any left!? You said you could regenerate!"

The Doctor cursed himself for choosing this moment to have that type of talk with her. There were so many things he needed to discuss with Avalon now that he knew who she was and who her family was...but it just wasn't easy. How could he bring up his regeneration count? Her mother''s own life?

"Doctor, you're kidding right?" Amy asked, trying to ease up the tension with what she hoped would be the beginning of 'Of course I am, Pond'...but it wasn't.

"Father is telling the truth," the Sapling spoke up. "He only has 12 regenerations and he is at the end of the cycle."

"Thank you Sapling," the Doctor sarcastically smiled at the child. He was trying to be delicate about it but the Sapling, really being just a child, couldn't see that. "Avalon...I didn't know how to tell, there was no right time with everything…"

Avalon shook her head, pushing away everything that she was thinking to focus on the most important thing right now: keeping him alive. Because if he stayed alive then she could kill him afterwards for not telling her about the regenerations

"Let's go," she snagged his hand and pulled him down the corridors.

They found the Golden Triangle in the only room with its door wide open. They were waiting for the group, or more so the Doctor.

"We're delighted that you've finally deigned to meet with us, Doctor," one of the trio said as the group walked into the room. "The Golden Triangle is always happy to meet a peer."

"Yes, even one who dismisses us from our own conference room," the second of the trio said somewhat sourly. The Doctor hadn't been too kind asking them to leave him alone with Orphan.

"I am Beaback, Doctor," the only female of the trio introduced herself. "Such a pleasure."

"And I am Sendham," the first male went next. "We met when I was just a boy actually."

The Doctor didn't remember that detail.

"Shriven," the last of the trio said. "Are you enjoying our friend? She's been helping us with our experiments for some time now."

"Yes, yes, charmed. Which one of you gave her the name 'Orphan'?" the Doctor started going around the room on his wobbly feet, trying to find something the others weren't sure of.

"Ah, it's the only thing she could remember when we found her injured in the forest all those years ago," Beaback said.

"Lovely story," the Doctor's sarcasm was very noticeable. He was shooting down everything they were telling them. "An amnesiac Time Lord foundling...kindly scientists. Shame it's all poppycock of course."

Avalon watched the trio go from outrage to shifty in two seconds. "Oh, are you lying?" She smirked. "Somebody just got caught."

"How dare you!" Senhdam exclaimed but the Doctor paid him no attention. He had found what he was looking for. The sonic had found a hidden compartment in the wall.

"What are you doing, Father?" the Sapling scurried over to him while he pushed the compartment open.

The Doctor reached inside to pull out a small pyramid with silver metal outlining it. "Oh you silly, silly, sausages. You have no idea what this is, do you?"

"None of us do, actually," Rory pointed that out for him.

None of them noticed a small figure peeking their head into the room.

"What about Orphan? Does she know?" the Doctor demanded from the Golden Triangle.

"Know what?" Avalon dreaded to ask, but they would need to know anyways.

"That she's not real."

"What?" A child's voice asked, claiming the entire group's attention. Orphan had found them and had tears pooling in her eyes. "I'm not...real?"

"Oh Orphan, I'm so sorry!" The Doctor exclaimed and moved towards her only to feel that same pain course through his body. The same golden energy was striking the right side of Orphan's face, sparking up into the air.

"Not again!" Avalon rushed to help the Doctor stay on his feet, but she had to take away the pyramid and hand it to the Sapling instead.

"Orphan! You don't need...ah! Orphan!" the Doctor extended a hand towards her but she was already turning away.

"Help me!" Avalon motioned to Amy and Rory. The Doctor was slouching in his attempt to chase after the girl. Between all of them, they brought him into the hallways after Orphan.

The child was nearing the TARDIS but she stopped. Her body was flickering. She raised her left hand and saw it...disappearing?

"Why does she look like that?" Amy crinkled her nose. It almost appeared like she was losing her hand in bits that kept disappearing in the air...like she was disintegrating.

"I...I know this box," Orphan said at the sight of the TARDIS. "I don't understand I'm real!"

"Of course you're real," the Doctor said once they were behind her. "You're just...not like me. You're not like anyone. Trust me, that's not the first time I see it happen." He had someone just like that helping him stand and she had no idea.

"Father, do you need this?" The Sapling presumed once the Doctor had straightened up on his feet, though he was still a bit rockish.

"Yes!" He moved towards Orphan and gently turned her around, making her face the pyramid and the others. The Golden Triangle had come after them but remained a cautious distance from them.

"What is that thing?" Orphan stared at the pyramid in fear.

"It's...well, it's you, Orphan," the Doctor said, gently bringing her a bit closer to it. "You're the user interface for it."

The closer Orphan got to the pyramid the brighter her body became. The others had to shield their eyes every now and then.

"It's a...weapon. A terrible Time Lord weapon," the Doctor swallowed hard. It was far too similar to the Moment. Even its structure resembled it. "The Orphaned Hour was part of the Time Lords' Omega Arsenal. It was deployed during the Time War. It worked by hurling everything within a defined radius back in time. Imagine being able to make an advancing army disappear simply by resetting your surroundings. Wildly destructive even in the right hands. The weapon was designed to protect users from its effects, but they were still vulnerable to the external threats. Last I heard, the Orphaned Hour had been damaged in the war. It - you - must have been flung clear of the…"

The Doctor shut his eyes terribly hard. He used the Moment, he needed to accept that and own up to each time it came up. He used the Moment and just before chaos descended, the Orphaned Hour must have been thrown off planet and landed in Zoline.

Orphan gingerly took the pyramid from the Sapling and held it with shaky arms. She was glowing. "I'm...I'm not a weapon!" she frowned. "I feel! I think!" She let the Sapling take the pyramid back and turned to the Golden Triangle, eyes blazing with fury. "Is this true!?"

"Ah, well...its complicated," Bearback said nervously.

"You said you were my friends!"

"Of course we're your friends, Orphan! You've known us since were children! We treat you like a princess!"

"Oh, shut up!" snapped Avalon, shooting a similar glare at the trio like Orphan. "That is not how you treat a princess! Actually, that might not be as true. You do, you just treat her like Rapunzel. Keeping her locked away."

"Preposterous!" Sendham snapped.

"Yeah?" she arched an eyebrow. "How many times have you let her go outside? Out of the room we found her in?"

Silence.

"Mhm. She's like a caged bird and you are the evil stepmother, only worse!"

"It sounds like you just used her," Amy frowned.

"Because they did," the Doctor reiterated, feeling terrible when Orphan looked back at him with fresh tears in her golden eyes. "You three found a broken magic box that magically resets your world every, what...thirty years? You correctly deduced that close proximity to the Orphaned Hour would protect you from its effects. Then every time this planet got reset by a few decades, you kept the technological innovations made by others during the last cycle. You claimed these innovations as your own and then waited for real geniuses to build on them so you could steal their ideas too and so on. Finally, you invested in life-extension tech so you could continue fleecing these poor people indefinitely, isn't that right? Zoline's great minds? Don't make me laugh! You're cheap con artists who lucked into the ultimate scan!"

"Uh, Doctor…?" Rory was the first to catch the Doctor's flashing gold. Avalon and Amy each gasped when the same gold spread over his body.

"Unfortunately for you, this gizmo wasn't designed to be triggered multiple times. You're lucks run out. This broken bomb's gonna blow!"

"So let it go!" Avalon snapped when the Doctor took it from the Sapling hands. He groaned and fell to his knees with it. "Dammit, Doctor!" She ran to help him stand with Amy's help while Rory and the Sapling took Orphan's weakened self.

The Doctor pointed them towards the TARDIS so they helped them in. "You lot better not move!" He yelled to the remaining trio behind.

The trio huddled together as another tremor shook the ground. A few seconds later, the TARDIS doors re-opened only for a book to be thrown directly at them. It fell to the ground where it remained until the Doctor stepped under the doorway and pointed at it.

"Pick it up," he ordered with gritted teeth. "Come on, chop chop!"

Shriven grabbed the book off the ground and opened it up to a random page. "I...I can't read this!"

Carbon Sequestration For Children: A Beginner's Guide was freshly printed on the title cover.

"It's p-printed on semi-psychic paper!" the Doctor clutched his chest with one hand. "Give it a few seconds and it'll translate into your language."

"What are we supposed to do with this!?"

"You have the money and the resources, so you're going to - ah! - roll up your sleeves and fix this mess yourselves! No resets, no do-overs!" He wouldn't tell them he'd be checking up on them later on to see their progress. They would most likely wait for him to come and fix everything and he was not going to do that!

"That book's a got a cool pop-up section!" The Sapling poked his head from around the Doctor. "I love it!"

"Doctor!" Avalon called from inside.

"Fix it!" The Doctor left the Golden Triangle with those parting words. He let the doors close behind him as he rushed to the console.

Orphan was continuing to disintegrate.

"What's happening to Orphan?" Rory asked once the Doctor joined them. He would try to be a nurse once he knew what the problem was exactly.

"The weapon's disintegrating which means she is too!" The Doctor ushered them away from her, leaving only himself around.

The TARDIS hummed a second before a lever on the console was pushed down. She was bringing them back to space, off Zoline.

"Did the TARDIS just move us?" Amy blinked. Funny, the box hadn't rocked them this time. The Doctor truly was that bad of a driver.

"Yes, but…" the Doctor groaned, lurching forwards.

"The weapon!" The Sapling gasped at the pyramid. A fierce golden light was slicing through the thing.

"Doctor!" Avalon forgot all about staying away when she saw the Doctor collapsed on the ground. "N-n-n-n-no! You gotta get up!"

"He's dying!" Amy frantically looked at Rory but neither of them knew what to do.

"Shut up, no he's not!" Avalon had heard that far too many times in this year alone. Why was the universe so hell bent on taking him away from her? From the entire world!?

Orphan picked up the pyramid from the ground and desperately looked over to Amy and Rory. "Please...I don't want to hurt anybody. What do I do?"

Neither could answer her but the TARDIS could. The console shined bright in a white light, pulling the Orphan's attention. "What?" It was like she could understand what the box was trying to tell her. She gave a firm nod. "Yes...yes of course. The Heart of the TARDIS."

Hearing those familiar words made Avalon raise her head from the Doctor. "No, wait! I know that!" But the Orphan was already coming towards the console.

"Don't...don't let her…" the Doctor struggled to get up. He felt terrible (apart from his biological pain) using Avalon like a pillar to stand up, but he couldn't let Orphan get any closer.

"Will it hurt…?" Orphan seemed like she wasn't even in-tuned to their world. She was in a little bubble, talking to the TARDIS who kept calling her forwards.

"Orphan, you can't do that!" The Doctor argued once he was back on his feet but try as he might, he couldn't get closer.

"It'll kill you too!" Avalon exclaimed. Orphan's body was already more than half disintegrated.

"The TARDIS says this is the only way to keep everyone safe," Orphan reasoned. "I am not a weapon for destruction. I can do good." Her voice started to echo as her body truly began to lose form and turn into white particles. "I think...I would have enjoyed being a Time Lord, Doctor. Shame."

"Orphan, no!"

The Sapling wrapped his branch arms around the Doctor to keep him in his spot. They couldn't get any closer without getting hurt themselves. Orphan was sacrificing herself for them! They couldn't let it be in vain! Soon, the white light faded and it was like nothing happened.

"Sapling, let me go!" The Doctor untangled himself from the branches but wasn't free until the Sapling listened. "I could've fixed this!"

"It didn't look like that," Amy frowned at him. "You were dying too!"

"I could've done something!"

"No, you couldn't have!" Avalon stepped towards him. She wasn't going to stand there and let him blame them for something the Zolines did and much more for wanting to keep him safe and alive! "You were dying if you forgot!"

No, of course he hadn't forgotten. That was still a pending conversation to have with her. The console suddenly sparked, starling all of them, before a wicked groaning came from the Time Rotor.

"What...was that?" Rory asked slowly.

The Doctor hurried up to the console to find the problem. "Well...the TARDIS just euthanized the Orphaned Hour by absorbing it into her core. I don't think she thought it through!" He yelped when the Time Rotor burst, shooting out white electricity all over.

"What's happening to her!?" Avalon shrieked when an electric shock just narrowly missed her side.

"We're going to lose her! We're coming apart!" the Doctor had to step back from the console, or what was going to be left of it.

"I thought you said she could withstand the heat of a star!?"

"I don't know what that means but she just digested a Time Lord weapon of mass destruction! That's bound to make things harder!"

Amy fell against one of the railings. "Doctor, what do we do!? What do we do!?"

The Doctor put his hands together and thought. He really thought. This was the first time something like this was happening and he had nothing to keep it from tearing apart!

Actually…

The Doctor shook his head. No, that was...that was a terrible thing to ask…

"RORY!" Avalon screamed when Rory toppled down the staircase leading to the corridors. She tried running towards him but Amy yanked her back.

"I'm fine!" Rory called from his spot, but who knew how long that would be true.

The Doctor closed his eyes. He had to. It was the only way to keep all of them safe. "Sapling!" The child raised his head at the call of his name. "I...I need you to put down roots again, right now!"

The Sapling naturally hesitated. "But...I will lose myself among my leaves, Father!" That's what happened the last time he grew so tall and wrapped everything in his arms. He ended the hippie party but he nearly got lost! What if this time he stayed lost forever!?

"Doctor, you can't make him do that!" Avalon wobbled on her feet to get to the two. She almost fell but she was close enough for the Doctor to grab her and pull her up to him.

"Ava, tree roots stabilize crumbling riverbanks, shifting sands...the Sapling can hold the TARDIS together!"

"But he's just a child!"

"I know that!" He snapped, startling her into silence. He held her closer, really close, enough for him to feel her heart beating rapidly. She was terrified. "I always do things like this and I'm sorry but this is the only way to keep everyone - to keep you - safe."

Avalon's eyes teared up. She shook her head and looked at the Sapling. "You don't have to," she whispered. "You're just...you're just a child."

The Sapling swallowed hard. He believed his mother when she said it was his choice, but he also believed his father. The only way to keep everyone safe was to sprout his roots. He didn't...he didn't want to let anyone die, especially his parents. But he was just so scared. He wasn't brave like them.

But he had to try.

"Will I...will I still be me when you have saved us all?" He asked in a frail, child, voice. "What if I disappear like last time?"

The Doctor shifted so that he could face the Sapling and still keep hold of Avalon on the side. "Sapling you listen to me, we are family. That means that wherever you are, I'll find you and bring you home."

A smile took over the Sapling's face. "That's what you said to aunt Amy and Mother...and you found them." It took them a long time to find them but they did, so that meant that they would find him no matter what.

"Sapling…" Avalon reached for him but didn't have to move a step. The Sapling ran up to her and the Doctor, throwing his arms around them. He hugged them tightly.

"Sapling, I swear we'll find you," the Doctor told the Sapling when he looked up at them. This was the last time he would ever say that to anyone. He had to stop putting them in danger like this, making them get taken away.

"Yeah?" The Sapling asked.

"Yeah, cos I'm going to help," Avalon smiled strongly for him. "And you know what they say, mothers always find what they're looking for."

The Sapling giggled. "You're funny." And that was his Mother, whether she was sure of it or not. He took a deep breath and stepped back. He looked down at his feet and saw them started sprouting the roots on the ground.

His body started stretching out into huge, thick branches that went to cover every inch of the room.

Outside the TARDIS, something was beginning to peek through the shattered windows of the door. "Yesssss, finally….I wassss right all along. Faaaame issss chiefly a maatter of waiting for the rrright door to open."

The Scream smashed a hand through the last window of the door to squeeze right in. "Doctor, I hhhhhave finally fooound youuu."

[saiilorstars]

Metamorphosis

Ch. 1: A New Beginning

Current Masterlist // Previous Story //

Fandom: Doctor Who

Pairing: 11th Doctor x Female OC

Taglist: @ocfairygodmother @anotherunreadblog @maaaaarveeeeel​

[If you would like to be added to this specific OC’s taglist, let me know!]

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Author's Note: Hello! Welcome to my 3rd OC/Doctor pairing story. This is the second story of the 'Home Saga' involving my Time Lady OC Renata and the (now) 11th Doctor. I recommend that you go back to the first story "The Beginning of Everything" listed on my porfile for a better understanding of Renata's history and her story with the Doctor. Now this story will be a rewrite of Season 5 and some canon Doctor Who comic stories as well as my own original chapters. This story will also feature a canon Latinx Doctor Who comic companion, Gabby Gonzalez. She is NOT my creation.

Couple of fun things: Renata's and the Doctor's main theme song is "Home" by Gabrielle Aplin. Renata's personal theme song is Butterfly by Luna Mae. (There's a specific playlist for them on my profile)

Chapter summary: Renata and the newly regenerated Doctor have crash landed into a little girl’s backyard where they dive headfirst into another adventure.

Renata had never seen a more disastrous regeneration unfold. Of course only the Doctor could make that happen. She shouldn't even be surprised. It was only a matter of time until one of his regenerations caused the TARDIS to nearly explode. She furiously ran around the console, trying to calm the box without getting her hands burned in the process. Parts of the console room were still in flames and where was the culprit!?

"DOCTOR!" Renata's yell could almost go above the thuds and sparks from the lit console.

"Busy!" the newly regenerated Doctor called back only to have Renata snap.

"No you're not! You're…" she trailed off after poking her head around the console to see the Doctor pulling himself back inside the box.

"You left me dangling out there!" He exclaimed, flapping a hand at the open doors. The TARDIS had lurched to the side, throwing him out like a ragdoll.

Renata's dark eyes widened indignantly. She huffed and stepped away — or stumbled away because of the bouncy ride — from the console. "I did not! I'm trying to fix your mess! You can't even regenerate properly!"

Now it was the Doctor's turn to be offended. "What!? Excuse me for not dying the right way!"

Renata stalked over to him, intending on pulling him away from the doors that he irresponsibly left open as well. "The TARDIS needs to land so it can properly repair itself but I can't do that because—oh no!" She had gasped at something past him out the door. The Doctor whirled around to see them about to hit Big Ben. He used his sonic screwdriver to pull them to the side, a rather harsh turn that sent them both flying.

Only this time it sent the Doctor away from the doors and Renata out the doors.

"Renata!" the Doctor panicked. Oh, if he killed her, she would definitely kill him.

Like him, Renata had managed to hold onto the edge of the entrance. Now she dangled and was terrified for her lives. "GET ME UP! I HATE HEIGHTS!" she cried.

The Doctor scrambled to the doorway and looked down at her. He felt absolutely terrible because this wasn't the first time she was in this situation. She had her eyes screwed shut and her hands gripping the TARDIS as much as she could.

"You need to stop doing this to me!" she shouted when she felt his hands grab her arms. Last time she dangled from a terribly high height was on the first day she met Donna Noble in the Adipose building, and just like then she screamed for help now.

"Up you go!" the Doctor pulled her up and into the TARDIS. She was far too terrified and wrapped her arms around his neck as if he would stop her from falling again. Despite her clinging to him, the Doctor managed to shut the doors behind them.

The TARDIS continued to spin and lurch, throwing the two against the door. Renata's back hit the door with a thud and because she still held onto the Doctor, she brought him with her. Now she was locked between him and the door.

Despite their situation, the Doctor still found time to smile at her. "Hello," he greeted her for the first time since regenerating.

She was right, he hadn't regenerated properly. All the physical injuries he sustained in his previous incarnation carried over and it meant that the regeneration process had to work twice as hard to heal everything. The poor TARDIS never stood a chance and Renata had to work hard to keep them alive. There'd been no time to say hello and make sure she was alright. He would take these few seconds to do at least one of those two things.

Renata froze under that new gaze of his; she swallowed out of nervousness. Though he had a younger face, his emerald green eyes still held all the love and intensity he confessed before regenerating. It was still enough to calm her in the midst of a scary situation. But the TARDIS shook them again, reminding her pilots that she needed help or else they were all goners. The pair headed — a bit zig-zag from all the lurches — towards the console. They had to stop it before somebody got hurt. As it was, there was somebody below them who was asking for help from a higher power...the only higher power a seven year old could think of.

Little Amelia Pond didn't know what else to do with the ugly crack on her bedroom wall. It didn't look right and it didn't sound right either. Cracks shouldn't be making sounds. That's why she was scared of it. If it was a normal crack like her aunt Sharon told her it was, then she wouldn't hear noises from it.

Santa Claus had to help. She was just so sorry that she was waking him up during Easter. But just as she was once again asking for his help, she heard a crash in her backyard yard. Her ginger hair whipped to the side when she made the quick turn. She dashed to her window and looked below to see a dark blue box on the ground. She didn't understand power a lot, but she thought if Santa sent them then it must mean it was good enough to help her with the crack. Now she just had to be brave enough to go see it up close.

She grabbed her red jacket and the first shoes she saw - a pair of wellies - then ran out of her room. She ran as fast as she could down the stairs, thinking if she delayed then the box would disappear and she would be back to step one with the crack. She had just made it into the yard when the doors of the box flung open. The grappling hook that was thrown out and latched onto her lawn roller stopped her for a moment. What kind of box did that? Then she saw hands grabbing onto the edge of the box. A man's head popped out first, revealing incredibly wet hair.

"Can I have an apple?" he asked as soon as he met the girl's gaze. That was the first thing that his mind had thought of after such a ride. It was odd what regeneration did. "All I can think about - apples. I love apples. Maybe I'm having a craving. That's new - never had cravings before!"

Amelia swore she heard somebody screaming from inside the box. She was sure when the man flinched and looked below to respond to whatever had spoken inside the box.

"Sorry, love," he climbed out of the box then reached for something inside — somebody inside.

Amelia blinked when he pulled out a dark-haired woman from the box. Like him, she was soaking wet. "Are you okay?" the question blurted from Amelia's mouth.

"No! I am not!" Renata answered without even looking at the girl. She didn't even register that the Doctor hadn't been the one to ask the question. She wouldn't straddle the TARDIS like the Doctor was, she wanted to step on actual ground. She wanted to confirm that she was no longer dangling in the air.

"It is freezing out here! Where are we!?" Renata hugged herself wet body and began to look around. With such a landing, she didn't have the opportunity to see where the TARDIS had deposited them in. All she saw was water from the swimming pool.

They were in a garden, probably a backyard, that could honestly use some work. The grass was unkempt which meant somebody had neglected to give it a proper mowing. There were abandoned tools to one side — she winced when she realized that they had inadvertently smashed the shed — and then a park bench that could use some cleaning. Finally, she saw a swing set…

Oh. Renata glanced at the girl, eyes wide when she finally realized there was a child present. A child had asked her if she was alright and she'd been so rude. "So sorry," she quickly apologized. "Uh...bit off my rocker thanks to…" she threw a sharp look at the Doctor who couldn't seem bothered. His grin was a sign alright.

Amelia looked between them and wondered how Santa thought they were capable of helping her. Then again, if they were this strange then perhaps they were the right ones to handle a strange crack with noise. "Seriously, are you okay?"

"We just had a fall," the Doctor said, patting the TARDIS under him. "All the way down there, right to the library. Hell of a climb back up."

"Yes, my library is ruined now," Renata came back to the box and peered inside, though as soon as she did she pulled away. It was an outright mess in there. "And Gabriella's going to be furious that her art room is basically nonexistent."

The Doctor winced. Up until now, their companion Gabriella Gonzalez hadn't ever been properly angry with him, so he was really hoping that he could keep that streak when they went back to pick her up.

Amelia hadn't understood what they were saying, but she could still make sense of what she saw. "You're soaking wet."

"Yes, we are," Renata glared at the Doctor again. She hugged herself and cursed the dress she wore.

"Yeah, you are," the Doctor repeated but he wasn't so upset like she was. He was staring at her with a growing smirk.

Renata blinked when she finally caught on to the fact he was checking her out. Her pretty flower-patterned dress was hugging her body in just the right way. He was loving the fact he could see her curves, her new curves that she would otherwise probably never show.

Her face went mad red, probably almost the shade of Amelia's hair. She turned away in an attempt to focus on Amelia, but there was a tingling feeling running up her backside. You are not going to do that right here, she scolded herself. But she may have sneaked a glance at the Doctor. He was still staring at her appreciatively.

Renata bit her lower lip and forced herself to pay attention to Amelia for real this time. "I am so sorry for the mess we've made here. I, uh, can tell that you've worked hard to keep this...garden clean…"

Amelia smiled in amusement when Renata had to practically force herself to finish that sentence after checking out the garden again. "Nobody takes care of the garden. But how come you're wet?"

"We were, uh, in the swimming pool," Renata walked back to the TARDIS, discreetly pinching the Doctor's arm. When the man yelped she smiled sweetly at him. He needed a good snap back to reality.

"You said you were in the library," Amelia reminded after she herself thought over the last statements the pair had made.

"That's because my library is now ruined as well because the swimming pool is inside it," Renata folded her arms again.

"Are you police?"

That question was enough to reel the pair in. They stared at the little girl who shifted on her feet, anxiously waiting for their answer.

"Why? Did you call the police?" the Doctor asked her.

"Not exactly, but I did want help. Did you come about the crack in my wall?"

"A crack?" Renata repeated, giving the girl a strange look for her question when suddenly the Doctor yelped in pain, falling to the ground.

"Agh!" the Doctor pulled himself up but was only able to kneel in the meantime.

Renata was at his side in a second, trying to ease his lingering pain. "You haven't regenerated properly thanks to the little old flight we had."

"Are you all right, mister?" Amelia asked, staying right where she was. Usually adults didn't want kids around when one of them was sick. Plus, the dark haired woman seemed to be on it.

"No, I'm fine, it's OK. This is all perfectly norm…" the Doctor trailed off and had the urge to open his mouth. When he did, regeneration energy drifted out.

Renata sighed. "Yup, definitely wrong. You'll need to rest."

"Did you?" the Doctor asked. By his calculations, it'd been about two days since she regenerated and he didn't see her taking a rest. She rolled her eyes at his weak attempt to argue.

"Who are you?" Amelia couldn't help herself from asking. They were so strange, especially the man.

"By the time we finish explaining, you'd be an adult," Renata offered the girl a soft smile.

"And to be fair, I'm still cooking," the Doctor was proud to announce. That was the one good thing he could remember from each regeneration: the thought of who this incarnation would turn out to be. What would he like? What wouldn't he like? What would his personality be like?

"Are you afraid?" Renata asked the child.

"No, it just looks a bit weird…" Amelia's gaze lingered on the Doctor as if he would release more energy.

"Well, that's good to hear, but I was talking about the crack you mentioned."

The answer was evident before Amelia even answered. She looked over her shoulder up to her bedroom. "Yes."

The Doctor jumped from the ground, missing Renata worriedly trying to stop him from doing anything else. "Well, then, no time to lose. I'm the Doctor, this is Renata. Do everything we tell you, don't ask stupid questions and don't wander off."

"Doctor…" Renata tried stopping him again but she was too late. He'd walked straight into a tree. She gasped at the terrible smack she heard. That's the last thing he needed!

The Doctor had fallen to the ground on his back, a terrible headache soon to come. When he opened his eyes, he saw Renata already with him while Amelia stood behind his head. "Early days. Steering's a bit off," he excused himself but winced with Renata's scoff.

"Think it's more than just early days," she mumbled as she helped him stand up. Though before she completely let him go, she grabbed his head and pulled him closer to inspect any scratches or cuts on his face. She ignored - or rather did her best to ignore - the Doctor's following eyes on her.

"What's your verdict, my nurse?" he asked her quietly.

She blushed and let him go. "You're fine. But do me a favor and try not to crash into anything else. I will need you when I go back for Gabriella. Don't want to explain to her how you died once more by running into a door."

The Doctor grinned. "Yes, ma'am."

~0~

Amelia had brought the pair into her house, an action that Renata wasn't sure how to feel about. Did nobody teach this child never let strangers into her house? Amelia came into the kitchen with two towels for them to dry up. Renata gratefully took hers while the Doctor practically snatched his distractedly. He was busy studying the solitary kitchen.

"If you're a doctor, why does your box say "Police"?" Amelia asked him before glancing at Renata. "Are you a policewoman?"

"More like his caretaker," Renata dried her hair and flashed a smirk at the frowning Doctor.

"Lies," he promptly said. "Where's my apple?"

Amelia went off to the fridge and hid her smile when Renata scolded him for not saying 'please'. She came back with an apple in hand but once the Doctor took only one bite, he spit out in disgust.

"That's disgusting. What is that?" he wiped the lingering remains off apple from his lips.

Renata was frowning at him for that bit. "You've been asking nonstop for an apple - what do you think she gave you?"

The Doctor heard her, he did, but he also heard his taste buds and they did not approve. "Apples are rubbish. I hate apples."

Amelia could not understand how easily he could change his mind. "You said you loved them."

"No, no, I love yogurt! Yogurt's my favorite. Give me yogurt!" the Doctor rubbed his hands together at the thought of creamy yogurt.

Beside him, Renata watched Amelia run back to the fridge to get the yogurt. Just like before, Amelia returned with what the Doctor asked.

"Thank you," Renata was about to take the container so Amelia could get a cup but neither ever got the chance. The Doctor snatched the container from Amelia's hand and ripped the container off to pour a massive amount into his mouth.

Renata gaped that it almost looked like her mouth would hit the floor. "Doctor!"

The Doctor spit the yogurt out as well. "Ugh! I hate yogurt, it's just stuff with bits in!"

"You said it was your favorite!" Amelia frowned. Some of the yogurt was on her wellies!

"Doctor, you are being very rude right now!" Renata was so close to smacking him. This was too much, even for him!

"What? New mouth, new rules!" He sloppily wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. Renata shuddered.

Amelia chuckled. Renata looked incredibly funny right now.

"It's like eating after cleaning your teeth, everything tastes wro—agh!" the Doctor insisted but Renata grabbed him by the tie of his shirt and pulled him up to her.

"Stop making up stupid excuses and—" But the Doctor had another fit, ending whatever threat she'd been about to make. Renata let him go with a gasp. "Are you okay!?"

"What's wrong with him?" Amelia watched Renata lean the Doctor against the cabinets behind them. One moment he was arguing and the next he was sick? That didn't make sense.

"Oh, he, uh, just has—" Renata meant to construct a good reason that wouldn't scare Amelia off, but the Doctor had a very different idea in mind.

"Wrong with me? It's not my fault!" the Doctor exclaimed as he got off the wall. "Why can't you give me decent food? You're Scottish - fry something!"

"Doctor!" Renata scolded him while Amelia once again went to the fridge. "You don't have to, sweetheart!" she quickly told the girl but she was already pulling out a pan.

Amelia was a quick cook and in five minutes she presented the Doctor with two strips of bacon.

"Ah! Bacon!" the Doctor, to his credit, did look excited about this one.

However Renata wasn't very fond of the scent she got from it. I guess this incarnation won't like bacon, she concluded.

The Doctor agreed. He took one bite from a strip and spit it right out. "That's bacon. Are you trying to poison me?" he shot an accusing look at Amelia.

This time the girl took it a challenge. There had to be something this man would like and she would find out.

Meanwhile, Renata was close to steaming. "You are being incredibly rude!" she hissed at the Doctor as Amelia brought baked beans to them. "She's a child making food for you!"

"Well let's see if this is it!" the Doctor said. "Plus, you need to eat as well. When's the last time you ate since you regenerated?"

Renata rolled her eyes. Truth be told she didn't remember when she last ate. Things had escalated pretty fast after returning to Earth and finding the Master.

"Ah, you see, beans!" the Doctor happily exclaimed when Amelia came around with a plate. He took a spoonful of it and immediately decided she'd gotten it wrong again. He spit it back out on the plate and marched to the sink to throw it all away. "Beans are evil. Bad, bad beans!"

Amelia made a face and glanced at Renata. "What does he like?"

"At this point...not living!" Because with the glare she had on the Doctor, he might have just met his end.

Amelia sucked in a sharp breath and marched towards the cabinet. Her next attempt was simple. Maybe he was a simple man who liked simple food.

"Bread and butter. Now you're talking!" the Doctor rubbed his hands together as he prepared to eat.

This time, he thought it was so bad that the contents shouldn't even stay inside the house. He stormed towards the backdoor and threw the plate out. "And stay out!" he yelled as if it would really come back.

Amelia was frowning by this point.

"You are about to die again," Renata warned him when he returned. "She's done making food for you!"

"I just need something!" the Doctor argued as he went for the fridge.

Amelia followed him, offering other things she had in the fridge. "We've got some carrots?"

The Doctor scoffed. "Carrots? Are you insane? No, wait, hang on!" He flung open the freezer and searched through the contents. "I know what I need. I need... I need... I need…" He concluded that he needed two items that, if it wasn't for him, would never see each other. "Fish fingers and custard."

Both Renata and Amelia crinkled their noses with disgust. The Doctor happily went ahead with his odd creation.

"This time I get to make dinner for you," he proudly said to Renata when they sat down.

Renata tried her best not to look so disgusted at the bright yellow liquid inside the bowl. "Um...thanks?" Part of her laughed because he was actually trying to make dinner for her, but he'd chosen such a wrong combination. "You're so proud, aren't you?"

The Doctor dipped his fish finger into the bowl, eyes practically dazzling as he saw the gooey custard spill back into the bowl. He took a big bite and hummed with approval. "Good!"

Amelia chuckled from her spot. She'd chosen ice cream as her midnight meal.

"Oh, you are leaving quite an impression," Renata propped an elbow on the table to rest her cheek against her hand. The Doctor smiled proudly. He thought he was making a good one.

"Have some," he picked up a fish finger for her.

"Look Doctor, I appreciate your intention but...that does not look appetizing," Renata chuckled at it.

"But it's good!"

"Fish fingers and custard? I don't think so," Renata playfully rolled her eyes. The Doctor dipped the fish finger into the custard bowl as she went on. "I think I'll just grab an apple or something but you will not have me trying—" the Doctor had popped a fish finger into her mouth. Her eyes widened in alarm, quickly flashing anger at him. "Doc…"

"Ah! Chew!" the Doctor pointed at her with a wagging finger. "You always say you chew your food and swallow before talking at the table."

"That's what aunt Sharon says," Amelia said.

"See, Renata is very fond of routines and rules so I hope she wouldn't break them because it's her," the Doctor set a very smug smile on the Time Lady.

She returned the gesture with a sarcastic smile, but she started to chew to get rid of the foul combination. And then suddenly...she cocked her head and began chewing slower. When it came time to swallow, it wasn't forced at all.

"Well?" the Doctor asked, even though he had already assumed her opinion changed on the meal.

"Uuh...that was...that was actually kind of good," Renata said slowly as she was still trying to wrap her head around the fact. "That can't be right. It shouldn't work!"

"The oddest things sometimes work," the Doctor reached over with a thumb to clear off a lingering spot of custard on her lips. "Sound familiar?"

Renata blushed. "You think you're so smart, don't you?"

"I like to think I'm a genius," the Doctor said as he returned to his bowl.

"You are so modest," Renata sighed and reached for another fish finger, completely ignoring the Doctor's smug smile widening. She wouldn't hear the end of this one, she knew! She checked on the little girl who, up until now, hadn't shown any trauma from everything they'd put her through. "What's your name, sweetheart?" she asked when she realized they hadn't even asked her yet. They were there, sitting at her table, eating her food, and they didn't even bother asking her what her name was!

"Amelia Pond," the girl said.

"Ah, that's a brilliant name. Amelia Pond, like a name in a fairy tale," the Doctor said, making the girl smile a bit wider. Everyone always seemed to pick on her for her odd name, but what could she do about it?

"Are we in Scotland, Amelia?" Renata asked. She didn't even know where they were because of the TARDIS' crashing.

"No. We had to move to England. It's rubbish," Amelia crinkled her nose as if she'd only just moved in yesterday.

"So what about your mum and dad, then? Are they upstairs?" the Doctor leaned a bit in his chair to catch sight of the stairs. Up until now, no one had come down to check on them. "Thought we'd have woken them by now."

"Oh, what would make you think that?" Renata sarcastically asked him. "You screaming at a plate of beans? Or how about the big old box crashing in the garden?"

The Doctor rolled his eyes at her. "Oh, we'll fix that for them."

"The least we could do," Renata mumbled.

"I don't actually have a mum and dad. Just an aunt," Amelia answered when she thought they were done bickering again.

"We don't even have an aunt," the Doctor said, giving her a wink.

"You're lucky!"

Renata gave an odd look at the girl. "Why would you say something like that? Is your aunt not nice?"

Amelia didn't answer right away, but Renata could tell the girl was upset by something. "She's nice, but...she's not here, is she?"

Renata hummed as she looked around. "Right. Of course she wouldn't be here. She really leaves you alone?"

"I'm not scared," Amelia raised her head up high, making the pair of Time Lords smile.

"Ooh, we know," the Doctor said. "You're not scared of anything! Box falls out of the sky, man and woman fall out of box, man and woman eat fish custard, and look at you, just sitting there. So you know what I think?"

"What?"

"Must be a hell of a scary crack in your wall."

Renata agreed with a silent nod. And if she was guessing, Amelia must have told her aunt about this crack but the aunt hadn't listened. Amelia must be terrified and yet the aunt still left her alone!?

~ 0 ~

Amelia brought the Doctor up to her bedroom when they were done with dinner. Renata had insisted on washing everything before she could join them. How could they have dinner in someone else's home and not clean up after themselves? So, the Doctor began examining the crack on the wall by himself. At first glance, it did look like any ordinary crack. He might have even turned away if he'd only looked at it for a few seconds.

"You've had some cowboys in here. Not actual cowboys, though that can happen," he murmured as he worked along the crack.

"How are we doing?" Renata walked in a few minutes later and dropped an apple into Amelia's hand. "No seven year old should have ice cream at midnight. Have one."

Amelia scrunched her face at the apple she now held, though she did smile when she saw a carving of a butterfly on it. "How'd you do that?"

Renata smiled secretively as she bent down in front of the girl. "You want to know a secret? I'm like the Mother of butterflies." She turned her palm around and let golden energy rise from her skin, gently swirling until they formed miniature butterflies."

Amelia's green eyes expanded to the point of bulging from her head. She was enchanted with the butterflies flying around her. "That's so cool!"

Renata chuckled. "You think so? You want to know another secret?" Amelia nodded excitedly. Renata leaned a little closer and whispered, "I just learned how to do that downstairs."

The Doctor looked from the crack to see the sight. He smiled softly at the two. Renata was just so good with children, with people in general, that it seemed like no matter what incarnation she was in, this was a part of her core personality.

Renata straightened up on her feet and turned to the Doctor, catching him in his act of staring. She raised an eyebrow at him, questioning why he was wasting time, but he just continued to smile at her. Before she could blush again - she was beginning to think that this body would be doing that a lot easier now - Renata cleared her throat and walked up to the wall. "So, have we got anything on this menacing crack?"

"Uh, sort of…" the Doctor gave the crack all of his attention now. "This wall is solid and the crack doesn't go all the way through it. So here's a thing - where's the drought coming from?"

"Let's find out," Renata reached for her sonic screwdriver in her dress' pocket and aimed it at the wall. The Doctor took the chance to scoot closer to her, letting his chin rest on her shoulder while she took in the readings. Renata concentrated really hard on the sonic and not the sensation she was feeling from his closeness. "Interesting…"

"What?" Amelia wanted to get closer but she still was kind of afraid of the crack.

"Wibbly-wobbly, timey-wimey!" the Doctor thought that was the perfect explanation. He moved away from Renata and stopped at the start of the crack. "You know what the crack is? It's a crack, clearly." He began to run his fingers along the crack, bringing him back to where Renata stood. "I'll tell you something funny. If you knocked this wall down, the crack would stay put, 'cos the crack isn't in the wall."

"Where is it, then?" Amelia made a face. Half of his words weren't making sense, but she was pretty sure that the thing on her wall looked like a crack.

"It's everywhere," Renata said quietly, her face growing more grim by the second. "In everything. It's a split in the skin of the world. And that is not right. Two parts of space and time that should never have touched, pressed together...right here in the wall of your bedroom. How could that happen?" she glanced at the Doctor for some ideas, not that she didn't have her own.

Her first assumption was that this was a direct consequence of the Master and the Time Lords breaking out of the Time Lock. There was too much tampering with that time period, from both sides, that perhaps Time itself finally had enough.

"Sometimes, can you hear…" the Doctor actually meant to think this but since he said out loud, Amelia quickly jumped in with the answer.

"A voice!? Yes!"

Both aliens paused to look back at the anxious girl. It was clear that she'd been waiting for somebody to believe her.

The Doctor reached for a glass of water on the nightstand. He chucked the water to the side and pressed its rim against the wall. Soon as he put his ear against the end of the glass, he heard an echoing voice on the other side.

'Prisoner Zero has escaped'

The Doctor stepped away, nose crinkling as he repeated what he heard. "Prisoner Zero?"

Amelia once again jumped in. "Prisoner Zero has escaped. That's what I heard!" She wasn't the only one hearing the voices now! If they believed it then it meant things would finally get fixed. "What does it mean?"

"Be subtle," Renata whispered to the Doctor. This was still a child they were dealing with and they shouldn't terrify her.

Of course that's what Renata thought, because despite her warning the Doctor still went ahead and answered with the blunt truth. "It means that, on the other side of this wall, there's a prison and they've lost a prisoner." Renata rubbed her forehead wearily. So that incarnation also had a loud mouth. Great. "You might need a better wall," the Doctor concluded as he went for the desk nearby. He pulled it away so that the wall was free of any furniture. "The only way to close the breach is to open it all the way. The forces will invert and it'll snap itself shut. Or…" Renata once again made an attempt to remind him Amelia was still a child. This time it seemed like he got it. "You know when grown-ups tell you everything's going to be fine and you think they're probably lying to make you feel better?"

"Yes," Amelia nodded with a roll of her eyes. That was so annoying.

"Everything's going to be fine."

Amelia's face fell flat.

Renata shut her eyes for a moment, wondering which one of his lines was worse.

"Renée?" the Doctor called to her, in the process letting it be known that he would still be using that nickname for her as well. He was holding his hand out for her.

"Yeah, alright," the Time Lady moved up beside him and took his hand. Funny, it seemed to slip in so easily with his. Renata then glanced back to where Amelia stood and did the same like the Doctor. "Amelia?"

The girl grinned when Renata offered her other hand to her. She moved around the bed and took Renata's hand.

"Alright then, let's get this big, bad wall shut!" the Doctor held his sonic to the crack.

Amelia turned her head at the sonic when it started making that whirring noise. Renata's sonic hadn't made that noise, she wondered why the Doctor's did. Amelia soon forgot about that detail when a bright light started shining through the crack. It was opening! While Amelia shielded her eyes, Renata squinted hers to see prison cells on the other side. Her hand squeezed Amelia's when she realized that the child had been sleeping next to a prison, an alien prison.

'Prisoner Zero has escaped,' a voice announced on a loop. 'Prisoner Zero has escaped.'

The Doctor took a step towards the crack, hoping to end things without much trouble. "Hello?" At the second call, a giant blue eye surprised him and the others.

"What's that?" Amelia frowned at the creature. It kept swiveling its eyeball at them.

Before either Time Lord answered, a ball of light shot out from the crack and struck the Doctor. He landed against the bed just as the crack sealed up.

"Doctor, are you alright!?" Renata let go of Amelia's hand - though she ushered the girl away from the crack - and rushed to the Doctor.

He was getting back on his feet with a bit of struggle. The regeneration was still going. "There. You see, told you it would close. Good as new."

Amelia wasn't sure if she was supposed to be relieved or scared. But at least the crack was gone. "What was that thing? Was that Prisoner Zero?"

"No. I think that was Prisoner Zero's guard. Whatever it was, it sent me a message." The Doctor pulled out his psychic paper from his pant's pocket. "Psychic paper, takes a lovely little message. 'Prisoner Zero has escaped.' But why tell us?"

Renata dreaded the answer as she glanced back at the wall. "Because maybe this is where he escaped through…" If the crack truly was what they thought it was, then this was a weak point in Time. Anything could get through if it tried.

"But he couldn't have. We'd know!" the Doctor argued initially. They would have noticed something like that.

"No, we wouldn't," Renata said calmly to him. "It's like you said. I just regenerated 2 days ago and I haven't slept or ate since before and you just regenerated an hour ago. We're not functioning the right way."

The Doctor would concede with that point, several points. "Brand-new me, nothing works yet," he mumbled with annoyance as he headed out of the room. "Still, I feel like there's something I'm missing…" he stopped by the staircase banister and thought, "...in the corner...of my eye." He and Renata jumped at the sound of the cloister bell ringing.

"Oh, great," Renata sighed while the Doctor broke into a race for the TARDIS. She and Amelia hurried after him into the backyard.

"We've got to get back in there!" The Doctor exclaimed as he came up to the TARDIS. "The engines are phasing, it's going to burn!"

Amelia couldn't quite see that happening since it was just a box. "But... it's just a box! How can a box have engines?"

The Doctor struggled to free the grappling hook while Renata hurried to gather the rope around them. "That's because it's not a box. It's a time machine, sweetheart," Renata explained as she returned to the Doctor's side with the role in her arms.

Amelia blinked at her then checked the box again. "What, a real one? You've got a real time machine?"

"It's his, not mine," Renata gave a nod at the Doctor. "Mine wouldn't have landed like this."

"Oh!" the Doctor stopped working altogether to frown at Renata. "It's not like I planned this! I didn't see you doing a better job!"

"What!?" Renata dropped the rope with an indignant cry. "Your spasm of regeneration didn't exactly give me the time! Honestly, I have never seen a messier regeneration!"

Amelia's head once again turned from Renata to the Doctor as each of them took their turn responding to the other's comment. She smiled, though, when Renata sprouted golden butterfly wings. It definitely halted the argument.

"So...that's a thing now?" the Doctor was just as surprised as Amelia. He eyed the admittedly beautiful golden butterfly wings that were made out of pure Vortex and Osiran power. To Amelia, it looked more like fairy dust (Renata just needed to be blonde to be like Tinkerbell!). Bright, golden sparkle dust!

Renata was mortified to see them back. She looked over her shoulder with a loud groan. "Go away!" She shouted at them as if they actually had ears.

The Doctor chuckled at her. "C'mon my beautiful butterfly," he tugged her towards him by the hand. "We really have to get the TARDIS stabilized. I think a 5 minute hop into the future should do it."

"Yeah, I suppose you're right," Renata forgot about the silky argument and gathered up the rope she let fall.

Amelia watched the two work together like they hadn't been arguing a minute ago. It was rather funny. They were funny. Nothing around her was ever funny. She always spent most of her time alone. Who could she be funny with? Definitely not aunt Sharon. "Can I come?" she asked the two after they'd looped the rope through the door handle.

"Not safe in here, not yet," the Doctor told her, making her hopeful smile falter.

Renata walked over to the girl with a soft smile. "Listen, it'll just be 5 minutes and then we'll be back, right Doctor?"

"Absolutely!" he gave a thumbs up in the air.

"People always say that," Amelia frowned.

The Doctor walked over as well and looked her in the eyes. "Am I people? Do I even look like people? Trust me, I'm the Doctor. And, if you want extra assurance, that's why I have Renata."

Amelia's hope returned. "Really?"

"Have you ever seen a star in outer space?" Renata asked her and couldn't help chuckle at Amelia's widened eyes. She really did have big eyes. "Start picking a constellation. We'll work out permission with your aunt after." She had quite a few words to exchange with that Aunt of hers who just left her on her own.

The Doctor led Renata back to the TARDIS. They climbed over the edge again and, with one last look at Amelia, they jumped inside.

"Geronimo!" Amelia heard the Doctor's scream before the TARDIS doors closed. A few seconds later, the box disappeared into thin air.

Amelia continued to grin and hope for their return as she ran back home to collect her things. She had no idea what she would need to see a star in outer space but she would be very prepared!

~0~

The TARDIS returned to the same spot as before, but its inhabitants wouldn't notice straightaway something truly important. Renata came out of the TARDIS first - shoved out by the Doctor - coughing from the smoke billowing out of the box.

"We've got to let her repair!" Renata said in the midst of her coughing. The Doctor could only nod for a moment as he got over his coughing. "It's day time…" Renata realized as she looked up at the clear, blue sky. "Oh my God...it's day time! We told her 5 minutes — Amelia!" She raced into the house with the Doctor right behind her.

They hollered for Amelia to get out of the house. For this one moment, Renata would forget her rules about breaking in for the sake of Amelia's well being. They went directly to the one door they couldn't catch before but this time the sonic wasn't working.

"Is she at school!?" Renata tried to guess with the most logical idea. If it were that then at least she would be safe.

The Doctor struggled with the door but stopped when he heard a loud smack behind. He spun around and barely got a second to see Renata on the floor before he too was whacked across the head.

The next time they came to, the pair found themselves handcuffed to a radiator. A female police officer in a short skirt stood off to the side, speaking into her radio.

"White male and female, mid-20s, breaking and entering. Send me some back-up, I've got them restrained." The woman shot the pair a glare. "Oi, you! Sit still."

"Cricket bat. I'm getting cricket bat!" the Doctor felt the throb where the bat had hit him, but he was more angry at the fact Renata had also gotten the hit.

"Call me crazy but I think…" Renata paused to scrunch her face at the lingering pain she felt on the back of her head, "I think that was some uncalled police brutality." She tried moving her hand and found she was handcuffed to the same handcuff the Doctor was. "Oh, really?"

The Doctor nodded over at the policewoman. "I don't carry handcuffs, love!"

"You were breaking and entering," the policewoman said in a manner that would leave clear she used the appropriate amount of force against them.

Renata gasped with offence. "I have never broken into a place! Usually he—" she pointed at the Doctor with her free hand, "—is the one that drags me into it! My record with the authorities is clean!"

The Doctor stared at her with a flat expression. "Thanks, dear. Really appreciate your defense right now." His voice suddenly turned into a shout that startled the police woman but not Renata. "I literally died 2 hours ago and some woman just hit me with a cricket bat! You're not even going to mention that fact!?"

"What do you want me to do about it!? Kiss it and make it better!?"

The Doctor opened his mouth to snap when he suddenly tilted his head with consideration of the proposal. "Actually yes, that would make it so much better." Renata rolled her eyes but she turned her head away to hide her smile.

The police woman banged a hand against the staircase banister to get their attention back. "Do you want to shut up now? I've got back-up on the way! You both broke in!"

"But what are you doing here? Where's Amelia?" the Doctor asked, or rather demanded. He doubted this was the aunt Sharon that Amelia mentioned.

The police woman tilted her head at them. "Amelia Pond?"

"Adorable little Scottish girl," Renata said. "Where is she? We promised her five minutes but the engines were phasing." She craned her head up at the window where the sun was shining was through. "I suppose we must have gone a bit far. Perhaps a day? Has something happened to her?"

The officer folded her arms, seeming like she was enjoying their momentary panic. "Amelia Pond hasn't lived here in a long time."

"How long?" the Doctor dared to ask. Renata had assumed they'd been late by a day but if turned out to be more, he wasn't sure Renata could take it.

"Six months."

Renata gasped. "No, no, no! We can't be six months late! We said five minutes. We promised!"

The police woman turned away with zero interest in their guilt.

"What happened to her? What happened to Amelia Pond?" the Doctor now demanded from her.

"Sarge, it's me again," the police woman spoke in a hurried, hushed tone into her radio "Hurry it up, this guy knows something about Amelia Pond."

"What!?" Renata fully panicked now. Why would the police woman say something like that? Had something happened to Amelia!? What if she got hurt while waiting for them to come back!? Had she wandered off into the streets on her own to search for them!?

"Renée? Calm down," the Doctor struggled to move his cuffed hand closer to hers. He could see her beginning to panic and he wanted nothing more than to ease her. His free hand was the one to finally touch her face. "This face will be easier to read." He noted her widened eyes and the way her light skin paled up a bit.

"We told her 5 minutes and now something might have happened to her," Renata whispered. She directed her eyes to the police woman. "Please, you have to tell us what happened to Amelia? Is she missing?"

The police woman seemed to shift under those soft eyes of Renata. The Time Lady was so concerned, her voice cracking as if tears would roll down her face anytime soon. "Well…"

"Look, we need to speak to whoever lives in this house now," the Doctor cut in sharply. "And I'd like some information on Amelia Pond as well."

"I live here," the police woman snapped.

"But you're the police!"

"Yes, and this is where I live. You got a problem with that?!"

"I've got a problem with the fact you're keeping your mouth shut about Amelia!" snapped Renata. "So here's a little something for you, dear, how many rooms you got in this house?"

The police woman rolled her eyes. They were just trying to have her, weren't they?

"How many rooms?" Renata repeated the question, her tone growing harder by the second. "On this floor. How many rooms on this floor? Can you count them for us?"

"Why?"

"Because it will change your life," the Doctor left it at that. She didn't know what was living next door to her and once she realized it, she'd be in for the shock of her lives.

The woman decided to humor them. So she turned around and started counting the doors. "Five. One, two, three, four, five."

"Wrong," snapped Renata, making the police woman flinch. She sounded like a teacher.

"Six," the Doctor said, softer than Renata but it wasn't like he didn't understand her current feelings.

"Six?" the woman shook her head. "What do you take me-"

"Just look!" Renata insisted.

"Look where?"

"Exactly where you don't want to look," the Doctor told her, nodding at something behind her. "Where you never want to look, the corner of your eye. Look behind you."

The police woman sighed and turned where he was pointing to. She was about to chalk them off as crazy when she finally realized they were right. There was a door right there. "That's...that is not possible. How's that possible?"

"There's a perception filter round the door," the Doctor began to explain. "Sensed it the last time I was here. Should've seen it."

"But that's a whole room. That's a whole room I've never even noticed."

"That's because the filter stops you," Renata told her. "Something came a while ago to hide. It's still hiding. You need to uncuff us now!" She yanked on the handcuffs, hissing each time the metal dug into her skin.

"I don't have the key. I lost it." Because she was walking towards the door, she missed Renata's and the Doctor's dumbfounded faces.

"How can you have lost it?!" Renata shouted in outrage. She yanked on the handcuffs again, ignoring the Doctor's cry for her to stop doing that.

"Hey you! Stay away from that door!" the Doctor shouted at the police woman who was just going straight for it. "Do not touch that door! Listen to me! Do not open that-" the woman turned the knob and effectively opened the door. "Why does no one ever listen to me? Do I just have a face that nobody listens to?" He met Renata's gaze and saw her teasing smile. "Again?" he asked, disheartened over the problem repeating itself in a brand new incarnation.

Renata laughed. "I think that's just part of your personality, my dear."

The Doctor would've smiled more if he hadn't remembered the police woman wandering into the forbidden room at the end of the hallway. "Hey!"

"Sonic!" Renata exclaimed. "Mine must have dropped with that tumultuous TARDIS trip!"

The Doctor came up short with his own sonic. "My screwdriver, where is it?"

"Oh, great!" Renata rolled her eyes. Maybe her luck was beginning to change into something similar as his. That wasn't good at all!

"Silver thing, blue at the end. Where did it go?" the Doctor continued searching his pockets to no avail.

"There's nothing here!" the police woman called from inside the room.

"And who told you that it would let you see it!?" Renata snapped. She tried turning her body to where she would be able to see a bit into the room, but the only thing she did was lean on the Doctor too close.

"Seriously, you could keep doing that," he wasn't at all shy to say.

Renata paused to give him a sharp look. "Well, this new you certainly has no problem flirting."

"I said I learned my lesson last time," he said, referring to his last words before regenerating. He was done wasting time with Renata and because he knew how shy she was, he would be the bold one (not that he ever had a problem with that). He would be the one to flirt with her, do the touching until she learned how to come out of her shell - or cocoon, given her butterfly abilities - and do the same. Renata was too used to hiding herself, hiding her feelings and not expressing how she felt at moments. It was the way she was raised on Gallifrey and after 11 regenerations, it would be a hard habit to break, but not impossible.

"You said silver, blue at the end?" the police woman's call cut into the pair's moment. They looked at the open doorway and saw she was way too inside.

"My screwdriver, yeah…" the Doctor said slowly.

"It's here!"

"Must have rolled under the door," Renata reasoned but the police woman said a very interesting response.

"Yeah. Must have," the policewoman said. "And then it must have jumped up on the table…"

"Get out of there!" the Doctor yelled frantically.

Renata started yanking on the cuffs again. That policewoman really was naive to think she was safe and sound in that room. She frantically pulled and pulled, feeling desperate as the Doctor vainlessly called to the woman to get out. Suddenly, her golden energy tangled around the cuffs, snapping them in two. "Ha!" Renata laughed, totally surprised but loving the fact she could do that. The Doctor was stunned but he would take whatever worked right now. Without thinking, she grabbed the cuff still around the Doctor's wrist and watched as once more the energy wrapped around it to break it.

"Loving it!" the Doctor exclaimed and scrambled up to his feet. Just as he helped Renata up, they heard the police woman scream from the room.

The police woman ran out of the room, terrified by whatever she saw in there. The Doctor marched over the rest of the space between them and snatched his sonic from her. "Give me that!" He used it to lock the bedroom door.

"Will that door hold it?" the police woman asked them, still slightly out of breath from bolting. The creature had stared her in the face!

"Oh, yeah, yeah, course! It's an inter-dimensional multi-form from outer-space - they're all terrified of wood!" the Doctor sarcastically snapped.

A bright light flashed around the edges of the door.

"What's that? What's it doing?"

"It doesn't matter, just go!" Renata ushered the woman towards the staircase. "Your back-up's coming, we'll be fine."

The woman spun around, forcing Renata back. "There is no back-up!"

"What? But we heard you on the radio, you called for back-up!"

"I was pretending. It's a pretend radio!"

"What!? Impersonating a police woman is a crime!"

The woman rolled her eyes. "I'm a kissogram!" she pulled her hat off and revealed her bright ginger hair that fell over one shoulder.

Renata was stunned but then a new thought popped in. "What's a kissogram?"

At that moment, the door of the room fell down to reveal a man in blue overalls holding a leash to a very large Rottweiler.

The ginger woman blinked at them. She had no idea how those two got into her room, but they at least seemed harmless. "But it's just…"

"No, it isn't. Look at the faces," the Doctor knew what the woman had been thinking and urged her to pay better attention.

The man was growling and barking instead of the dog.

The woman couldn't take it. "What? I'm sorry, but what!?"

"It's all one creature. One creature disguised as two! Now you really must go!" Renata tried turning the woman away, missing the way the man and the dog turned their head at them.

"Are you kidding!? I'm not leaving that there! In my house!"

"I am curious how it's pulling that psychic link if it needs a live feed," the Doctor admitted while he continued to study the man and dog. "How did you fix that?" He got a snarl as a response, followed by a threatening step towards them.

Renata yanked him back. "Please don't question the enemy when it can kill us! Am I also going to have to constantly repeat that in this regeneration!?"

"Well, I won't lie…" the Doctor swayed his head, figuring this was just another core personality trait for him.

'Attention, Prisoner Zero. The human residence is surrounded. Attention Prisoner Zero. 'The human residence is surrounded.'

The ginger woman's eyes widened in alarm. She spun around trying to find the source of the voice until Renata stopped her. Good thing she did because the woman was near dizzy. "What's that?"

'Prisoner Zero will vacate the human residence or the human residence will be incinerated.'

"Okay, now we run!" the Doctor ushered Renata and the woman down the stairs. He used the sonic to lock the house door, hoping that would buy them some time.

Renata studied the woman while the Doctor made sure the door was actually locked. His sonic was acting a bit wonky. "Seriously, what's a kissogram?" She eyed the odd uniform, bobbing her head side to side. "And does it always involve short skirts?"

The ginger woman gave her a look. "Seriously?"

Renata innocently shrugged. She had only lived on Earth from 1913 to 1969 and the one year in the modern world that she spent with the Master against her will — she was mostly locked away. She didn't have a lot of time to truly get to know the humans in modern times.

"I go to parties and kiss people!"

Renata cocked her head to one side. "And you get paid for that?"

"Yes!"

Renata considered what that must be like and she soon crinkled her nose when she decided that would not be a job she would be interested in. "And the costume is from these parties?"

"You broke into my house! It was this or a French maid!"

"Makes sense," Renata concluded. The Doctor finally got some handle on the sonic and yanked her and the woman away from the house.

"What's going on? Tell me! Tell me!" the woman rightfully demanded as they crossed the yard towards the TARDIS.

"An alien convict is hiding in your spare room disguised as a man and a dog, and some other aliens are about to incinerate your house. Any questions?"

The woman flipped her head to Renata, but the Time Lady confirmed the story with a nod. "Sort of it, sorry."

The Doctor groaned at the TARDIS who wouldn't open her doors. "No, no, don't do that, not now! It's still rebuilding, not letting us in!"

"Well what'd you expect after the number we put her through?" Renata gave the TARDIS and sympathetic glance. "We'll just have to make do until she's ready."

'Prisoner Zero will vacate the human residence or the human residence will be incinerated.'

The Doctor flapped an arm at the house behind them. "We need the TARDIS! How can we stop them if I don't have the TARDIS!?"

"Never stopped you before," Renata smiled at him. The Doctor stopped fussing with the TARDIS to meet her smiling gaze.

The woman groaned at them and grabbed each of the pair's arms. "Come on!"

The Doctor would've let her take them to the street had he not seen the new-looking shed on the side of the garden. "No, wait, hang on, wait, wait, wait. The shed!" he got loose from the woman's hold and rushed up to the shed. Renata blinked at the sight of it as well. "We destroyed that shed last time we were here, smashed it to pieces!"

"So there's a new one. Let's go!" the woman tried pulling Renata with her but now the Time Lady was suspicious as well. She pried the woman's hand off her wrist and studied the shed.

"It might be new but it's also old," Renata said as she noticed the darkened spots of the shed's wood. The Doctor ran a hand down the wood. "It could be—" she stopped mid-word when the Doctor licked his finger to taste the wood. Renata scrunched her face, eyes shutting close. "Doctor—"

"12 years!" the Doctor whirled around with the right answer, stunning Renata in the process. He marched back to them, specifically to the ginger woman. "We're not six months late, we're 12 years late!"

"It's been 12 years," Renata felt her stomach churn wondering how angry little Amelia must have been with them. They broke their promise to her!

Meanwhile, the woman seemed more nervous than a few seconds ago. "He's coming!" she made a nod at the house still in danger of being incinerated.

"You said six months. Why did you say six months?" Renata got right in her face, demanding to hear the truth. She knew that the woman was hiding something. She knew the way people kept secrets because that had been her main job not too long ago.

"We've got to!" the woman insisted but Renata grabbed her arm tightly. The woman knew something about Amelia, what with those big eyes—

"The big eyes…" Renata whispered with her own wide eyes.

The woman only stared at her, mildly confused, but otherwise still nervous. "Look, we've got to go!"

"Not until you tell us!" the Doctor exclaimed. "Why did you say six months?"

The woman's thin eyebrows furrowed together as pain flashed across her face. "Why did you say five minutes?!" she shouted at both of them, pulling her arm out of Renata's hold.

"What?" the Doctor practically froze in his spot, only moving his head to see Renata staring sadly at the woman.

"She has the same big eyes," she told him. "Amelia's big eyes."

The woman, who was indeed Amelia, glared at her. "They are not big! C'mon!" She led the way out of the house, figuring if they wanted to continue with the conversation they would follow her into the street.

"You're Amelia!?" the Doctor was right behind the woman, forcing her to stop just to look at her again.

"You're late!" hissed Amelia and continued to walk.

"You were a little girl," Renata did her best to keep up with Amelia's fast pace. "Amelia Pond!"

"I'm Amelia and you're late!" Amelia hissed directly at Renata's face, eyes blazing with anger. "Five minutes my a—"

"I'm so sorry!" Renata threw her arms around the woman, hugging her tight.

Amelia had been expecting anything but that. Her big, green eyes flickered all around while she awkwardly stood there being hugged. She met the Doctor's gaze who was smiling softly at Renata.

"We didn't mean to be late! I'm never late!" Renata pulled away from Amelia, looking her over one more time. She was a complete adult now! Renata sighed and brought a hand to her forehead, letting her fingers dig through her black hair. "Amelia, I am so sorry. We really did mean to come back but the TARDIS is just…" She trailed off and shook her head, deciding that Amelia probably wasn't interested in excuses. She'd been wronged and she was rightfully upset. "No excuses. We're sorry. I did think of a star for you, though. I thought the Big Dipper might have been good. It's a popular one amongst the humans. I'm sorry."

Amelia arched a confused eyebrow at the Time Lady. She looked so guilty that it made Amelia feel like she was wrong for being so angry. How did Renata make that happen!? She glanced at the Doctor and while he looked pretty guilty himself, it was nothing compared to Renata. She was horrified.

Amelia wondered for the first time in 12 years, who really are these two aliens? She spent all her life imagining them in adventures that now that she had them actually in front of her, she had to rewrite everything she knew about them. Who was the Doctor? And who was Renata?

Author's Note:

And there's our first chapter! I am SUPER excited to move onto this story (I think some of yall may have noticed before). We've already seen a glimpse of what Amy thinks of the Time Lords and how they see her, specifically Renata. Their relationship will be a little more complicated because of Ren's drive to maintain the rules buuuut we'll see how it goes ;)

[saiilorstars]

Metamorphosis

Ch. 2: The Doctor and the Vortex Butterfly

Current Masterlist // Previous Story //

Fandom: Doctor Who

Pairing: 11th Doctor x Female OC

Taglist: @ocfairygodmother @anotherunreadblog @maaaaarveeeeel​

[If you would like to be added to this specific OC’s taglist, let me know!]

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Chapter summary: Renata and the Doctor have 20 minutes to save the world with absolutely no equipment. It's a time where they each have to show the world who they are, although Renata is surprised that the world may already know her. In the end, when they're alone, they finally get to speak the words on their mind.

Twelve years.

Twelve years had passed by for Amelia Pond. The more Renata thought about it, the more terrible she felt. She made a promise to that little girl that it would only take them 5 minutes to come back to her.

"O...kay…" Amelia pushed her orangey hair behind her shoulders. "You don't...you don't have to cry or anything…"

"It's been 12 years," Renata bit her lower lip, her eyes shining with genuine tears. "I have never been that late."

"It's true, she's never been late for anything in her life," the Doctor agreed. Of course Renata would feel a massive amount of guilt for something that was truly an accident. He felt guilty too but he wouldn't beat himself up over it, not when it hadn't been in his control. "And you know what? You hit me with a cricket bat."

Amelia rolled her eyes and continued to walk away. "12 years!"

The Doctor grabbed Renata's hand and followed after Amelia. "A cricket bat!"

Amelia scoffed. He thought that was bad? He only got a blip of the anger she had simmered for 12 years. "12 years and four psychiatrists."

"Four?" Renata gave her a strange look, making Amelia feel somewhat conscious about the reason behind the number.

"...I kept biting them."

"Why?"

"They said you weren't real!"

"And you thought biting them was the appropriate solution!?"

"Hey!" Amelia only stopped to point at Renata, though the abruptness nearly made her poke an eye out. "Twelve years!"

'Prisoner Zero will vacate the human residence or the human residence will be incinerated.'

They had made it to a small park in the town and now the message was blaring at them through an ice cream truck.

"No, no, no, come on…what? We're being staked out by an ice-cream van?" Amelia frowned at the perfectly normal ice cream van she visited all the time. They could not be related to anything alien.

"What's that!?" the Doctor marched over to the van where the vendor was hitting the radio the message was coming out from. "Why are you playing that?"

"It's supposed to be Claire De Lune!"

"Stop hitting it," Renata made a face as she took the radio from him, though not a second later the Doctor had snatched it out of her hands. He missed her brief glare as he listened to the message closer.

'Prisoner Zero will vacate the human residence or the human residence will be incinerated. Repeat, Prisoner Zero will vacate the human residence or the human residence will be incinerated.'

He would then notice the same message broadcasting in a jogger's mp3 player and then from a few cellphones. Little by little, the message had reached everyone via technology.

"Doctor, what's happening?" Amelia saw everyone's confused faces as they tried making sense about why their technology had stopped working. Instead of answering, the Doctor raced towards the nearest house.

"Doctor!" Renata called for him as she followed, though when he leaped over a white fence she refused to do the same. "Honestly — there's a door!"

Amelia zipped by and took Renata by the arm towards the front of the house. When they reached the house, they found the Doctor had already made himself comfortable by surfing through the television channels.

An elderly woman sat on the couch and was watching him go through every channel. "I was just about to phone. It's on every channel." She smiled upon seeing Amelia. "Hello, Amy, dear. Are you a policewoman now?"

Amelia unconsciously tugged on her skirt. "Well, sometimes."

"I thought you were a nurse."

"I can be a nurse."

"Or, actually, a nun."

"People like to kiss nuns? At parties? Why are humans so weird?" Renata crinkled her nose at the last bit. Amelia jabbed her elbow into Renata's side, making it clear that she didn't want to hear anymore of those questions.

"Amy, who are your friends?" the elder woman asked after studying the Doctor and Renata. She was sure she'd never seen them before.

"Who's Amy?" the Doctor looked away from the TV screen to see the elder woman looking at Amelia. "You were Amelia."

"Yeah, and now I'm Amy." Amy Pond was a huge step up from the little girl who'd been picked on nonstop because of who she believed in.

"Amelia Pond—that was a great name," Renata was gazing at Amy sadly, wondering if the name change had also been a result from their tardiness.

Amy brushed them both off with a roll of her eyes. "Bit fairy tale."

The elder woman had slightly pulled the Doctor back to see his face. "I know you, don't I? I've seen you somewhere before."

The Doctor shook his head. "Not me. Brand-new face…" He moved his face just to make a point. "First time on."

"You look like a child, stop that," Renata said, though she was smiling from amusement.

He smirked. "Yeah? Make me."

Renata froze for a mere second before a blush overtook her face. Oh, this him was going to be a huge flirt and far bolder. She didn't know that was possible. How she would get used to it, she had no idea.

"Why is that on the TV too?" Amy unknowingly pulled Renata out of her thoughts. She had moved around the living room to see the television. The same message was broadcasting from there too.

The Doctor left the television and went for a radio on a window table. With the sonic's help, he heard the same message there too but in different languages. "OK, so it's everywhere, in every language. They're broadcasting to the whole world." He put the radio down and opened up the window, sticking his head out to look up at the sky.

"What's up there?" Amy stepped towards him but at the last moment decided against it. What if there was some alien about to shoot them? "What are you looking for?"

The Doctor hadn't heard her questions as he was making his own calculations. Eventually, he shut the window and turned back to the room. "Okay, planet this size, two poles, your basic molten core...they're going to need a 40% fission blast."

A young man with a computer bag around his shoulders walked into the house and was of course confused to find to strangers in his home. The Doctor barely paid him attention but did acknowledge him in a rather odd manner.

"But they'll have to power up first, won't they?" He had walked up to the man who was far taller than him. Despite this, the man only blinked at the Doctor while he rambled on. "So assuming a medium-sized starship, that's 20 minutes. What do you think, 20 minutes?" the Doctor had to stand on his very tippy toes just to see the man eye to eye. "Yeah, 20 minutes. We've got 20 minutes."

"20 minutes to what?" Amy had done her best to follow everything the Doctor had said but she felt like it hadn't even been said in proper English!

Realization struck the young man suddenly. "Are you the Doctor?"

At that question, the elder woman finally got it as well. "Oh, he is, isn't he? He's the Doctor!"

Renata ignored the hullabaloo as she crossed the room to take the Doctor's arm and turn him to her. "We've got 20 minutes and zero contacts right now."

"Well, it's like you said, hasn't ever stopped us before," he smiled at her.

"Yes, but I meant you!" He was the one who always did the big, unexpected things that would solve everything. She was just along for the ride.

"I can't believe it, Amy, you were telling the truth," the elder woman was still laughing away on the couch, much to Amy's embarrassment. "It's the Raggedy Doctor. All those cartoons you did when you were little. The Raggedy Doctor, it's him."

"And that's the Butterfly Mother!" the young man pointed at Renata, now getting Renata's attention. "Never mind the Mother of Dragons - you're the Mother of Butterflies!"

"The what?" Renata unconsciously gripped the Doctor's arm. She flipped her head back to him. "He called me the what?"

"Fitting name," the Doctor said in bemusement. He took a few strands of her dark hair out of her face then bopped her nose. He headed back for the television that now had the same huge eye Amy once saw in her bedroom. "They're not talking about your house, they're talking about the planet. Somewhere up there, there's a spaceship and it's going to incinerate the planet. 20 minutes to the end of the world."

Amy nearly keeled over.

~0~

The Doctor led the way back to the town's park hopes of finding something a bit more useful than a normal house. Renata was right, they had no contacts right now and they didn't have time to waste!

"What is this place? Where are we?" he asked after making it back to the rather boring, quiet park.

"Leadworth," Any said, but she doubted either of them would recognize such a quaint town. She wouldn't blame them.

"Where's the rest of it?"

Yup, there it was. Any rolled her eyes. "This is it!"

"I like it," Renata said but Amy wasn't sure if she was saying it to be nice or if she actually meant it. Renata wasn't lying, though. She looked around the small town with a smile. It seemed so peaceful and it seemed like everyone would know everyone. She could see little shops lining the streets around the park and she had no doubt that most of them were owned by the very residents of the town. "Very homey."

"That's a word for it," Amy let her eyebrows raise upwards. She'd almost forgotten how Renata was, and even then she wasn't that sure because she'd only met Renata for like 2 hours! But at first glance, the Time Lady had seemed like a woman who could fit perfectly with one of those family shows from the olden days. Somebody very proper.

"Is there an airport?" the Doctor asked after making his own conclusions of the town.

"No."

"A nuclear power station?"

"Uh, no."

"Even a little one?"

Amy's expression asked him why they would have something like that in a small town. "No!"

"Nearest city?"

"Gloucester, half an hour by car."

"That's too long even if we called in UNIT," Renata sighed. "20 minutes!"

"Do we have a car?" the Doctor expended his last try, but once again Amy told him no. "Well, that's good! Fantastic, that is. 20 minutes to save the world and I've got a post office. And it's shut! What is that?" He had found a small pond to the left of the park and for some reason stormed towards it.

Amy couldn't understand why that would suddenly be so interesting and after checking for Renata's reaction, Amy concluded she wasn't alone. "It's a duck pond."

The Doctor had leaned very close to the pond that Renata had to grab his arm in case he lost his balance. "Why aren't there any ducks?"

"I don't know. There's never any ducks."

"Then how do you know it's a duck pond?" Renata was the one to ask this time. That bit was curious. Why name something a specific way if it didn't make sense?

Amy didn't see it that way. She folded her arms with exasperation. "It just is. Is it important, the duck pond?"

The Doctor yelped and nearly fell into the pond had Renata been holding onto his arm. She used his grip on his arm to help him sit on the ground. "I'm not ready, I'm not done yet," he groaned and clutched his chest. Like last time, he needed some time to calm his body through the regeneration process, but he was on the clock!

Renata wanted to do something to help him stand but a process like this truly was individual. She could only stand by him. She scooted closer to him, putting her hand over his hand that clutched his chest. "I'm here," she said what she thought would be useless for him but he leaned on her side for comfort. Renata was surprised but she welcomed it fast.

Suddenly, the sky started darkening up and Amy knew that it couldn't be night time already. "What's happening? Why's the sky getting dark?"

Renata and the Doctor looked up at the sky, not even having to shield their eyes from the sky. There was no sun anymore, it was behind a grey shade. It only lasted for a few seconds before the day returned to normal.

"So what's wrong with the sun?" Amy frowned and looked down at the pair on the ground.

"Nothing. You're looking at it through a force-field," the Doctor said. Renata was helping him stand up. "They've sealed off your upper atmosphere, now they're getting ready to boil the planet."

Renata sighed loudly when she noticed all the humans in the park were taking pictures and videos of the sky instead of doing the sensible thing and running home. "Oh, why are humans so…" she was about to finish the sentence with the word 'stupid' but she caught herself in time after glancing at Amy staring at the sky. "They should be home instead of going crazy on their phones."

"This isn't real, is it? This is some kind of big wind-up," Amy decided it was the only option that didn't make her feel scared out of her mind. She wouldn't give the sky another glance.

"Why would we wind you up?" the Doctor gave her a strange, almost offended glance.

"You told me you had a time machine."

"And you believed us."

"Then I grew up."

"Oh, you never want to do that," the Doctor gave a shake of his head and if he was going to add on then Renata didn't allow him. She had covered his mouth and took over in the conversation.

"It's nice to grow up but it doesn't mean you have to stop believing," Renata said. "Plus, I don't lie—" she winced at herself. That wasn't true and she knew it. "Well, I try not to lie anymore."

The Doctor pushed Renata's hand off his mouth. "Wait, hang on!" He abruptly flapped his arms so that he almost smacked Renata's head. She threw him a glare for such a messy movement but he was none the wiser. "I missed it!" He smacked his forehead enough to make Renata wonder if it would leave a mark on his skin. "I saw it and I missed it." And another smack!

Renata seized his hand and forced it to his side. "Stop that! Seriously, cricket bat and two smacks? Should I just help along and hit you too!?"

"I saw something!" he insisted and because he did, Renata grabbed his other hand in case he got the same idea.

"Then just tell us before you put yourself into a coma!"

The Doctor shut his eyes and stayed silent. There was something he knew that he missed and he just needed to think about it again. Humans were everywhere in the park, taking pictures…

There was a woman near the phone box looking up. Parents by the swing-set snapping pictures of the sky. And one nurse who following Amy's steps. His phone was on another person, never the sky.

Renata slowly let go of his hands when she was sure that he wasn't in danger of himself. She checked the clock on a nearby building and saw their time was getting shorter. Uh, Doctor, our 20 minutes?"

"20 minutes, the planet burns," the Doctor opened his eyes and looked at Amy. "Run to your loved ones and say goodbye, or stay and help me."

Amy held his stare with an expression that easily switched from stoic to anger. "No!"

That wasn't the answer that he was expecting. "I'm sorry?"

"No!" Amy grabbed him by the tie, ignoring his and Renata's cries, as she dragged the Doctor to a nearby car.

"Amy, are you out of your mind!?" Renata shouted in vain at the ginger.

Amy had slammed the Doctor's tie into the car door and made sure it stayed locked with the remote.

"Amy, I am going to need my car back," the driver of the car told her rather nervously since she looked angry as hell.

"Yes, in a bit. Now go and have coffee," Amy's response came out sharply but she was always looking at the Doctor.

"Amy, this is ridiculous!" the Doctor yelled at her but she wasn't budging.

"Who are you?" Amy yelled right back at him.

"You know who I am!"

"No, really, who are you?" Amy threw the question out for him and Renata as well.

"Oh for God's sake," Renata shook her head. "Amy, the world's about to end in 20 minutes and there are some people we are especially interested in saving!" She was sure that somewhere her best friend, Martha Jones, was going crazy trying to figure out a way to help UNIT. Captain Jack, if he was back on Earth, would surely be doing the same. And Donna? Renata's heart ached for their lost friend. She must be terrified out of her mind.

"Amy, catch!" the Doctor tossed an apple to Amy. She barely caught it but when she did, she was mighty confused to find the apple in her palm. "I'm the Doctor, that's Renata. We're time travelers. Everything we told you 12 years ago is true. We're real. What's happening in the sky is real, and if you don't let me go now, everything you've ever known is over."

Amy wouldn't look at the apple yet. She leveled the Doctor's gaze. "I don't believe you."

"Amy, please," Renata sighed as she moved beside the woman. "We didn't lie. We got it wrong, yes, but we didn't lie. Check the apple." Amy gazed at the apple briefly then back to Renata. The Time Lady sighed again. "I meant turn it over."

With eyebrows slightly furrowed, Amy brought the apple back to her eyes. She turned it over and found the butterfly carving she first saw on it when she was seven. It was still fresh as the day Renata gave it to her.

"We try to get it right," Renata insisted in a low whisper. "Please?"

Amy's eyes flickered to the Doctor who seemed just as hopeful as Renata that she would believe them. Renata's gaze was more intense than the Doctor's but at the same time, it compelled Amy to feel like everything would be okay. She didn't know why Renata had such a look but it made Amy shift.

"Fine, what do we do?" Amy unlocked the car door and the Doctor quickly scrambled away from it.

"Stop that nurse!" He ran straight towards the nurse in the park. "The sun's going out, and you're photographing a man and a dog. Why?"

The nurse was stunned to have his phone snatched, even more so when he saw Amy behind the strange man and beside a woman he didn't know. "Amy?"

"Hi! Oh, this is Rory, he's a... friend," Amy nervously looked between the aliens and completely missed Rory's indignant huff.

"Boyfriend!"

"Kind of boyfriend!"

"Amy!"

"I'm confused, how do you have a 'kind of' boyfriend?" Renata genuinely wanted to know the answer because up until now she had never heard the term. Amy, however, didn't seem interested in explaining.

The Doctor gave Rory a not-so-gentle shake from the shoulders. "Man and dog, why?"

It was then that Rory realized why Amy was around these strangers. He looked the Doctor over, especially the ruggedness of his clothes. "Oh, my God, it's him! The doctor. The Raggedy Doctor!" His eyes flickered to Renata and the flower dress on her. "You're the Mother of Butterflies!"

"Yeah, they came back," Amy sighed, trying her best not to look so embarrassed.

"But they were a story. It was a game!"

The Doctor grabbed Rory by the shirt, pulling him face to face. "Man and dog—why? Tell me now!"

Rory blinked with the harsh pull but he answered nonetheless. "Sorry. Because he can't be there. Because he's…"

"...in a hospital, in a coma," they ended up speaking in unison.

Rory wasn't sure if he should be relieved that somebody finally believed him on the matter, or if he should be afraid.

"Knew it. Multi-form, you see?" the Doctor let go of Rory and turned to the women. "Disguise itself as anything, but it needs a live feed, a psychic link with a living but dormant mind."

And at that moment, the creature - the man and dog - snarled at them.

"Prisoner Zero," Renata sucked in a breath.

Rory's eyes might as well have been dinner plates. He kept changing gazes between the man and dog then to Renata and Amy and finally to the Doctor. "What, there's a Prisoner Zero too?"

"Yes," Amy answered just before they heard an electrical buzzing in the sky.

Everyone looked up as a huge spaceship flew across the sky. It stopped right above the park and showcased its famous one eye that would swivel back and forth.

"What's it doing?" Rory asked, terrified.

The Doctor whipped out his sonic to point at the sky. "See, that ship up there is scanning this area for non-terrestrial technology. And nothing says non-terrestrial like a sonic screwdriver." He made a show of activating the sonic at the right moment and scared everyone even more when the street lights shattered, car alarms blared and sirens wailed.

Renata closed her eyes with a small sigh. That was one way to get everyone's attention. She did open her eyes when she heard a fire truck and the angry yells from firemen. They were chasing the truck that was running on its own.

"Oh, that was just going too far!" Renata turned to the Doctor, madly gesturing at the fire truck running down the street.

"I didn't mean to do that," the Doctor made a face and winced - as did everyone else - when they heard the truck crash.

Prisoner Zero barked at them but before it could move a step towards them, the Doctor redirected the sonic at a phone box nearby and made it explode. A few seconds later, the sonic itself sparked and fizzled between his fingers. The Doctor yelped and threw the sonic to the ground.

"No, no, no, don't do that!"

"Oh no," Renata watched the ship take leave without even eyeing Prisoner Zero.

"No, come back, he's here! Come back!" the Doctor called after the ship in vain. "He's here, Prisoner Zero is here. Come back, he's here! Prisoner Zero is…"

"Not so much anymore," Renata lowered his flapping arms and pointed at Prisoner Zero who was turning into pure mist.

"It just went down the drain…" Amy made a face as they all watched the remnants of the creature disappear through the ground.

"Well, of course it did," the Doctor groaned. They'd been so close and like always...so far.

"Well, what do we do now?"

"It's hiding in human form. We need to drive it into the open. No TARDIS, no screwdriver, 17 minutes! Come on, think. Think!"

"Stop!" Renata grabbed his hand just inches from his forehead. "Seriously," she lowered it between them. "Please don't hit yourself." They needed his mind completely unharmed for what was to come.

"So that thing, that hid in my house for 12 years?" Amy finally tore her gaze from the drain.

"Multi-forms can live for millennia. 12 years is a pit-stop," the Doctor explained as he took his hand back from Renata, though he had to tug twice for her to let him go.

"So how come you two show up again on the same day that lot does? The same minute?"

"Well, it's not our fault," Renata argued weakly as she brought her arms over her chest. "Yes, they followed us to get to him but...I mean...one of these days they were bound to come anyways."

"What?" Rory blinked at her.

"Now, sport, give me your phone," the Doctor held his hand out for Rory's cellphone, but Rory was too out of it to notice on the first try.

"How can they be real?" Rory was looking specifically at Amy, wondering how the hell she was so calm with everything that was going on. "They were never real."

The Doctor grew impatient and waved his hand in front of Rory's face. "Phone, now, give me!"

Rory had no idea what he wanted from it but he handed his phone over and continued going off. "They were just a game. We were kids. You made me dress up as him!"

Renata looked between the two humans with bemusement. "Really?"

Amy felt her face reddened and before Rory could say what she dressed up as, she asked the Doctor what he was looking for.

"These aren't coma patients; they're all the multi-form. Eight comas, eight disguises for Prisoner Zero!"

"But he had a dog, though. There's a dog in a coma?"

"The coma patient dreams he's walking a dog, Prisoner Zero gets a dog. Laptop! Your friend, what was his name? Not him—" the Doctor jerked a thumb at Rory, missing Rory's indignant huff, "—the good-looking one!"

"He doesn't mean that," Renata tried stepping in but Amy made it worse.

"Jeff?" she asked right on the spot.

"Oh, thanks!" Rory exclaimed.

"Doesn't mean it," Renata tried again with a nervous smile.

"He had a laptop in his bag, a laptop. Big bag, big laptop, I need Jeff's laptop!" the Doctor went on without ever noticing his rudeness. "You two—" he said for Amy and Rory, "—get to the hospital, get everyone out, clear the whole floor. Phone me when you're done." He promptly reached over for Renata's hand and yanked her away.

They returned to Jeff's home, barging inside without so much of a knock. Renata couldn't stand for that, no matter how much she tried. She skidded to a stop in the living room where Jeff's grandmother sat. "Really sorry about that."

"Hey!" Jeff cried from his room.

Renata jumped and nervously smiled at the grandmother again. "Sorry!" She ran into the room and saw the Doctor basically fighting Jeff for the laptop. "Oh Doctor, this is too much even for you!"

The Doctor won the fight and took a seat at the edge of the bed, patting the empty spot beside him. "C'mon—blimey!" He motioned Renata to stay right where she was. "Get a girlfriend, Jeff."

The door behind Renata opened up to let the grandmother in. "What are you doing?" she curiously asked the trio.

"The sun's gone wibbly, so right now, somewhere out there, there's going to be a big video conference call!" the Doctor explained in a rush while he madly typed on the laptop. "All the experts in the world panicking at once, and do you know what they need? Me."

"Being so modest, aren't we?" Renata smiled and got a smirk in return. She walked over to the bed and sat next to him just as his callers answered.

"Ah, and here they all are. All the big boys. NASA, Jodrell Bank, Tokyo Space Centre, Patrick Moore!"

"Ooh, I like Patrick Moore," Jeff's grandmother might have inched a few steps towards them.

Renata chuckled while the Doctor promised to get her his number.

"You can't just hack in on a call like that!" Jeff exclaimed as he got off his bed.

"Oh trust me, this isn't even a quarter of what he can do," Renata shook her head. She had stories beyond his dreams about the things the Doctor could do.

The Doctor was more than ready with his psychic paper to answer the initial questions of who he was and what he wanted. He had about fifteen minutes left!

"Hello. I know, you should switch me off. But before you do, watch this!" he dropped his psychic paper on Renata's lap then started to type again. "Fermat's Theorem, the proof, and I mean the real one, never seen before. Poor old Fermat, got killed in a duel before he could write it down. My fault, I slept in. Oh, and here's an oldie but a goodie - why electrons have mass. And a personal favorite of mine, faster-than-light travel with two diagrams and a joke. Look at your screens. Whoever I am, I'm a genius. Look at the sun. You need all the help you can get. Fellas, pay attention!" The Doctor knew he had them on his hook. He glanced at Renata just to make sure they were on the same page and found her staring at him instead. Initially, he was confused why she was smiling like...that. It was familiar but it took him a few seconds to remember when she smiled like that. In his defense, the last time she had a smile like that was in her first incarnation and she had a face that went red incredibly easily, even easier than this current one.

She was enthralled with him. She leaned close to him, widening her smile. She'd forgotten what it felt like to be so close to him while he did that. Whenever the Doctor got into his 'I'm a genius' mode, Renata was unashamedly attracted to him. He was just so incredibly intelligent. Renata honestly thought he was the smartest man alive. It wasn't news for her, not since the first time she saw it back on Gallifrey, but it was one thing knowing it and seeing it. She loved seeing it.

There was a tingle that started down her spine that was soon followed by the dozens of butterflies in her stomach (ironically). It made her puddy in his arms. Her last incarnation had been too worried about the Doctor finding out who she was that she barely had moments to really let herself feel things for him again. The little she allowed was always pushed away to the deepest end of her mind and hearts. And when the Doctor had found out who she was, she'd fallen ill. She was dying and she couldn't think about anything else other than saying goodbye. She didn't exactly know what they were right now, but she wouldn't fight it this time. There was a warmth in her body that brought her closer to the Doctor and she would finally let it be.

"I forgot you could do that," she said breathlessly, saving something else she wanted to do for later.

The Doctor raised an eyebrow at her but she didn't say anymore. His gaze lowered to her lips since she was biting her lower lip pretty hard. "Interesting…" He took notes for later when they weren't in the middle of saving the world. From now on, he would be using anything at his advantage.

~ 0 ~

Within five minutes, the Doctor had concocted a whole plan for the humans to follow. He'd gone back and forth between the laptop and Rory's cellphone whilst talking at light-speed to the humans on video call.

"Sir, what are you doing?" one of the men from the computer screen asked after the Doctor spent a significant amount of time on the cellphone.

"I'm writing a computer virus. Very clever, super-fast, and a tiny bit alive, but don't let on. Why am I writing it on a phone?" the Doctor raised a finger for a few seconds. "Never mind, you'll find out. OK, I'm sending this to all your computers. Get everyone who works for you sending this everywhere. Email, text, Facebook, Bebo, Twitter, radar dish - whatever you've got. Any questions?"

"Who was your lady friend?"

The Doctor deadpanned the man on the screen. "Patrick, behave!"

Renata laughed softly beside him while Jeff's grandmother beamed.

"What does this virus do?" another man inquired.

"It's a reset command, that's all. It resets counters, it gets in the wifi and resets every counter it can find. Clocks, calendars, anything with a chip will default at zero at exactly the same time. But, yeah, I could be lying, why should you trust me? I'll let my best man explain." The Doctor waited for Jeff to cut in but for some reason the human stayed silent and away from them.

Renata raised an eyebrow at Jeff. "Uh, Jeff, that would be you."

Jeff genuinely looked confused to learn that. "What?"

The Doctor had closed the laptop but Renata made a motion for him to stay put. She got up from the bed and moved over to Jeff. "Listen I know you're scared and I honestly would be a little concerned if you weren't but this is your your moment. It's sort of like, uh, this is a moment where you're trying to get investors. Right?"

"Uh...not...sure if that's the way I'd put it," Jeff said slowly, glancing at the Doctor and his grandmother for some clarification.

The Doctor seemed to be smiling but not at him. He was nodding at Renata, encouraging her to keep going. It was a sight watching her try to relate to humans. At least now she was trying. Her last incarnation, while helpful, didn't seem very interested in that. She'd wanted to fix the problem and then move on without making much of an attempt to get to know humans. The only time she expressed interest was the day she met Gabby. Though she was a bit rocky...she'd get it with time.

Renata was aware that her comparison didn't entirely fit with the current situation so she tried re-wording it. "I used to be somebody who would have to persuade people to invest in my foundation, so I'd have to put myself out there and give one hell of a show. That's what you need to do right now and afterwards those guys—" she made a nod at the laptop, "—will be offering you any job you want."

"How do I get them to do that?" Jeff turned another glance on the laptop, now more interested in the idea.

Renata put her hands on his shoulders and fixated a smile on the man. "You have to be magnificent. You have to make them trust you and get them working. Old news to me."

"But I've never done that…"

"Put yourself out there!" she exclaimed and turned him for the Doctor and the laptop. "This is when you fly. Today's the day you save the world."

"But why me?" Jeff asked as the Doctor sat him down on the bed and handed him his laptop.

"It's your bedroom!" the Doctor exclaimed. "Now go, go, go!" He grabbed Renata's arm and headed out the room, though stopped abruptly and turned back. "Oh, and delete your internet history!"

Renata raised an eyebrow at him when he came out of the room again. "What?"

"Nothing. Oh, and great job back there!" he pulled down the living room and out the door.

"For what? All I did was just talk!" Renata laughed out of confusion.

"Words mean everything!" the Doctor turned abruptly once they were out on the street again, making Renata bump into him.

"You certainly did that as well back there," Renata said and suddenly found her lower lip was a chewing gum. "I just...helped a bit in the end."

"You were amazing," the Doctor stepped closer to her. He couldn't help but let his gaze linger on her lips.

"Uuh...Amelia - I mean Amy, she-she's probably waiting…" Renata nervously moved around him and studied the street for any way to get around. Alright, maybe her body needed a bit more time to adjust her...feelings. She couldn't possibly revert back to her school-girl ways from her first incarnation. "We need to find a way to get to the hospital."

The Doctor rejoined her and studied the nearly empty sidewalk. "I...may have an idea…"

Renata turned her head at him to see the wide smirk on his face. "Ah, so that'll be your mischievous face. Duly noted."

The Doctor once again yanked her down the street.

~ 0 ~

When Amy called them, they were nearly to the hospital. Renata refused to accept that stealing the fire truck had been a good idea.

"It was irresponsible!"

The Doctor didn't seem to agree as he happily drove down the road. "Oh, c'mon, Gabby would have loved this!"

"Oh sure, teach her to steal why don't you!?"

"I'm not stealing, I'm borrowing! Plus, look!" he reached for a specific button beside the wheel and turned on the fire engine. "Yeah!"

Renata rolled her eyes and looked out the window, but she found it was hard not to crack a smile. She knew he was right: Gabby would love this bit.

A short moment later, Amy called them again only this time she was more distressed. Prisoner Zero had found them in the building and had chased her and Rory into a coma ward.

"Listen, which window are you?" the Doctor asked but because of the fire engine, Amy hadn't heard.

"Oh for God's sake!" Renata reached over to turn them off. "Amy, which window are you!?"

"First floor on the left, fourth from the end!" Amy managed to answer before screaming.

"Amy!?" the two aliens simultaneously called but they only heard warbled voices, one belonging to neither her nor Rory.

"It must be Prisoner Zero," Renata ended the call. "Now what?"

"We do what every human does: we text!"

"Text?" Renata crinkled her nose. "A Time Lady does not...text."

The Doctor laughed. "Just tell her to duck!"

Renata wasn't even sure how to do such a thing. She never actually paid attention to Gabby when she tried giving her lessons back on Zhe's gallery. It'd been one of the many things Gabby would try to distract her with while she battled her illness. Since Martha liked to call every now and then, Gabby thought it was a good idea to learn to text. Plus, she thought it was fairly ridiculous that such an intelligent Time Lady didn't know how to do such a basic task.

The Doctor had successfully crashed the right hospital window so that its ladder shattered the glass of it. "Out! Out! Go!" he tried ushering Renata to the ladder first but she wasn't having it.

"I'm wearing a dress!" she argued, motioning him to take the lead.

"Oi! I'm not like that!"

"Just go!"

The Doctor groaned but went ahead first. He wouldn't ever be like that but she was overly shy anyways. Why argue over something so petty? When the two climbed into the coma ward, they found Amy and Rory standing in the middle of the room while a woman with two little girls stood at the entrance.

"Right! Hello! Are we late?" the Doctor didn't exactly wait for the answer as he went on. "No, three minutes to go. So still time!"

"Time for what, Time Lord?" the woman titled her head.

"Oh, so you know things," Renata snapped. "Doesn't mean it'll get you out of this. Take your disguise off and save these humans from further despair."

"Not happening," Prisoner Zero smiled sarcastically. "The Atraxi will kill me this time. If I am to die, let there be fire."

"OK. You came to this world by opening a crack in space and time. Do it again - just leave!" the Doctor exclaimed. At this point, he would take anything because time was now running on 2 minutes.

"I did not open the crack."

"Well somebody did and I'm willing to bet we know who it was," Renata mumbled so that only the Doctor could hear. "The Master and Rassilon."

Fair guess, the Doctor thought.

But Prisoner Zero seemed to know more than what they thought. "The cracks in the skin of the universe - don't you know where they came from?" A great big smirk spread across the woman's face, teasing the pair for their lack of knowledge. "You don't, do you?"

The little girls started laughing as they chanted, "The Doctor in the TARDIS doesn't know. The Vortex Butterfly doesn't even know!"

Renata's eyebrows furrowed together at the name once used at her 'rebirth' on the Crucible. She thought after the Daleks and the Reality Bomb, she'd never hear that name again. "Hold on—"

"Doesn't know, doesn't know!" the girls laughed for another minute before the woman spoke again, much more serious.

"The universe is cracked. The Pandorica will open. Silence will fall."

The Doctor lost interest when they heard a clicking noise. His eyes flickered to the clock on the wall flashing '0:00' at them. "And we're off! Look at that. Look at that! Yeah, I know, just a clock, whatever. But do you know what's happening right now? In one little bedroom, my team is working. Jeff and the world. And do you know what they're doing? They're spreading the word all over the world, quantum fast. The word is out. And do you know what the word is? The word is zero. Now, me, if I was up in the sky in a battleship, monitoring all Earth communications, I'd take that as a hint. And if I had a whole battle fleet surrounding the planet, I'd be able track a simple old computer virus to its source in, what, under a minute?" the Doctor pulled out Rory's cell phone from his pocket, giving it a triumphant wave in the air. "The source, by the way, is right here. Oh! And I think they just found us!"

"The Atraxi are limited," Prisoner Zero said, remaining totally calm. "While I'm in this form, they'll still be unable to detect me. They've tracked a phone, not me."

"Sorry, do you think we're stupid?" Renata made a face, almost offended. "Of course we planned for that - rather Rory planned for that." She glanced back at the man in question who even pointing at himself to confirm she meant him. Renata chuckled. "Well done Rory."

The Doctor once again waved the phone in the air. "Do you know what this phone is full of? Pictures of you. Every form you've learned to take, right here. Oh, and being uploaded about now. And the final score is - no TARDIS, no screwdriver - two minutes to spare!" He cheered with his arms out, spinning around. "Who da man?"

Renata made a face at him, not even needing to say it for him to know she begged him never to do that again. She reached over to lower his arms to his sides. "Gabriella would've laughed at you."

"Yeah, she would've," he mumbled and thanked the Gods that Gabby wasn't around right now.

"Then I shall take a new form," Prisoner Zero said smugly.

"Please," Renata scoffed. "It takes months to form that kind of psychic link."

"And I've had years."

A bright light took over the woman's body at the same time Amy collapsed to the floor.

"Amy?" the Doctor called as he and Renata rushed to the woman. "You've got to hold on. Amy! Don't sleep! You've got to stay awake, please!"

"You need to let her go!" Renata glanced back at Prisoner Zero only to see a much more different disguise. "Oh dear."

"Doctor?" Rory blinked fast once he saw the new disguise.

The Doctor followed their gaze to see Prisoner Zero had turned into a young man. "Well, that's rubbish. Who's that supposed to be?"

Rory threw him an incredulous look."It's you!"

"Me?" the Doctor made a face and quickly glanced at Renata."Is that what I look like?" She gave him the confirming nod.

"You mean you don't know!?" Rory almost shouted with exasperation. How could he not know what he looked like!? What kind of crazy was that!?

"It's been a busy day," Renata supplied with the briefest explanation.

"Why me, though?" the Doctor asked with genuine confusion. "You're linked with her. Why are you copying me?"

"I'm not," Prisoner Zero answered but it hadn't been through the Doctor's mouth. Amy's seven year old self moved from behind him. "Poor Amy Pond. Still such a child inside. Dreaming of the magic Doctor she knows will return to save her. What a disappointment you've been."

"Oh hey that's not fair!: Renata scowled. "And you're one to talk considering you're a convict!"

"No, no," the Doctor gazed down at Amy. There was something else he was missing again. She could have dreamed of anything right now, probably something happier than what the situation was, but she chose him. "Oh! She's dreaming about me cos she can hear me!" he carefully cupped her face and called to her. "Amy, don't just hear me, listen. Remember the room, the room in your house you couldn't see? Remember you went inside. We tried to stop, but you did. You went in the room. You went inside. Amy…dream about what you saw."

"No! No!" Prisoner Zero started to cry out as the shifting began once again. "No!"

"Well done Amy," Renata smiled proudly of the unconscious girl. "Bet you didn't see that coming, huh?"

Prisoner Zero was immediately captured with the shining light from the window.

'Prisoner Zero is located. Prisoner Zero is restrained.'

"Silence, Doctor. Silence will fall," Prisoner Zero said his last words before disappearing.

"Oh no," Renata gritted her teeth with anger. "They are not going to pull that on us! I don't think so!" She swiped the cellphone from the Doctor's hand - he'd been about to use it again - and put her fingers to work. "You and Gabriella might just be proud of me right now!" She flashed the Doctor a quick little smile before returning her focus on the phone.

"The sun - it's back to normal, right?" Rory was relieved to the sky returning to normal through the window. And even better that Amy was waking up. "Amy? Are you OK? Are you with us?"

"What happened?" Amy asked slowly, still a bit hazed.

"They did it," Rory nodded to the pair who were suddenly very close to each other. Renata was still working the phone. "The Doctor and Renata did it!"

"Not quite yet," Renata called before asking the Doctor something in a hushed manner.

Amy and Rory both heard a 'Write in...make sure those numbers…'

"What are you doing?" Amy raised an eyebrow at them once she sat up.

"Tracking the signal back! And the Doctor's sort of filling in the gaps for me," Renata sent another quick smile at the Doctor. She knew her way around things as well but there was always a little something she hadn't come across yet. "And sorry in advance, Rory."

"For what?"

"The phone bill! Promise UNIT will reimburse you for that!" Renata winked at him before putting the phone against her ear. She cleared her throat and the next time she spoke her voice was no longer sweet and kind. It was hard and sharp. "This is Renata and you may not know me but that's okay because I know the Shadow Proclamation pretty well. Article 57, ring a bell?" She paused but of course there would be no response. "This is a fully established, level 5 planet, and you were going to burn it? The idea that you could get away with it is laughable! Get your sorry behinds back here now or so help me…" There was another pause she took, a brief one as she considered if she really wanted to say her next words. And she decided: Why the hell not? It didn't mean anything wrong because she wasn't bad. She wouldn't hurt people like other versions of her in parallel universes had. "You lot, back here now or you'll have the Vortex Butterfly on you. See you in 30 seconds and not a second more!" She promptly ended the call and tossed the phone to Rory. "Seriously, though, UNIT will reimburse you for that." She then faced the Doctor who was looking more or less fascinated with her.

He had never been more attracted to her than right now. She had just ordered an entire prison ward to come back - under a specific deadline - and she had a new authoritative voice that made him shudder. If things weren't such a crunch time, he might have kissed her there and then.

"You going to stand there or come help me put these people back in their spots?" Renata smirked. She wanted to believe she had made him feel exactly the way he had done to her earlier. "We gotta get to the roof!" She laughed and dragged him out of the room with her, leaving a mighty confused Rory and Amy behind.

"No, no, wait! We can't!" the Doctor stopped them down the hallway. Amy had scurried after them, leading Rory to do the same.

"Where are you going?" she asked the pair.

"To change!" the Doctor made a quick turn into a different hallway.

"What? Doctor!" Renata went after him with a groan. "I said 30 seconds! That went for all of you!"

"I'm quick, don't worry," he had found a changing room and was already searching through one rack. "If we're saving the world I'm going to need a decent shirt! Not fair you got your quick change!"

Renata looked down at her flower dress that, truthfully, could use a good wash now. It still smelled like chlorine water from the swimming pool mishap. Still, it would do just fine until she could get into the TARDIS. "Well, fine! Just hurry!"

"To hell with the raggedy. Time to put on a show!" he spun around trying to find something else in another rack.

"Sorry, I am so confused here," Rory rushed into the room with Amy. "You just summoned aliens back to Earth!"

"Yeah, never really done that before - quite a rush really!" Renata's face definitely said so. She giggled even, making the Doctor pause for a moment just as he was about to change shirts.

Rory didn't seem that happy about it. "But they're actual aliens! Deadly aliens, aliens of death and - now he's taking his clothes off!"

"Turn your back if it embarrasses you!"

"A door, Doctor! Seriously! Nothing bad happens if you use a door!"" Renata groaned as she turned away from him, ignoring the warmth in her face. She might have seen a bit of his back and that was enough to make her wonder what it might be like to press her hands against his skin.

"Amy, you're not going to turn around!?" Rory's incredulous question brought Renata out of her thoughts.

She blushed even more for realizing what she'd been thinking about and decided to put her attention on Amy. "Yeah, you are!" She turned the young woman around, shooting her a little look for trying that. What was Amy thinking!?

The group arrived on the rooftop in 27 seconds, but it was only because Renata forced the Doctor out before he could finalize his outfit. She compromised by letting him bring along a mess of ties around his neck. He'd choose on the way.

"On time, perfect," Renata spat at the waiting Atraxi ship at the end of the rooftop. Soon as she and the Doctor were in its vicinity, it scanned them.

"You are not of this world."

"What was your first clue?" Renata cocked her head to the side. "And the fact that we're not from Earth shouldn't be the reason you came back. You should come back because you did something wrong. You broke the law. Count your lucky stars I haven't phoned the Shadow Proclamation to shut you down."

"We took necessary measures," the Atraxi argued but only angered Renata more.

"No, you really didn't!"

"Why don't we think about it in this way?" the Doctor tossed a few ties over his shoulders, letting them hit Amy and Rory behind. "Is this world a threat to the Atraxi?" The Atraxi delayed the answer. "Well, come on. You're monitoring the whole planet. IS this world a threat?"

After projecting a series of holograms showing the Earth's history, the Atraxi finally answered. "No."

"Second question, are the peoples of this world guilty of any crime by the laws of the Atraxi?" Renata decided to add since she knew the answer would further prove their point.

"No."

"One more. Just one. Is this world protected? Because you're not the first lot to come here." The Doctor once more threw a few more ties behind him. He found one color that suited his fancy, all in the meanwhile the Atraxi went through the course of his enemies landing on Earth. "Oh, there have been so many! And what you've got to ask is...what happened to them?"

The Atraxi went through every incarnation of the Doctor as it found that he was responsible for ending every single battle.

Just as the Doctor finished putting on his new tie - a bow tie! - he noticed that at the end of the hologram, it showed Renata's previous incarnation but it had been no ordinary moment in her life. Her spectacle as the Vortex Butterfly on the Crucible had certainly gotten around because that's the moment the Atraxi chose to show.

Renata was astonished that they would include her. She'd only meant to call them back and scold them. It was what she did best. She suddenly felt the Doctor's hand slip into hers. He gave her an encouraging nod to speak out, say what she wanted to finally end all this.

Renata took in a breath as she looked at the Atraxi again. "You've seen what we can do and don't think that I would hesitate to bring the wings out if you ever try to do something like this to Earth again. I suggest run. You wouldn't want the Doctor and the Vortex Butterfly after you."

There was no need to go on, for the Atraxi ship had taken off in a second. Amy and Rory broke into laughter to see their world completely safe again!

Renata ended up laughing as well after it truly donned on her what she'd done. She turned to the Doctor, pointed at herself. "Did I just—"

"Yes, you did, and you were amazing!" the Doctor leaned closer to her but suddenly felt something burning in his pocket. He hissed and pulled away from Renata. He dug a hand into his pocket and pulled out the TARDIS key that was glowing.

"Oh, she's done," Renata gasped. She gave the Doctor a nod and the two were off on a chase for the TARDIS. Renata laughed as they hurried down the street and even across several lawns. She would never do that but she was too gleeful to stop.

They returned to Amy's backyard where the TARDIS stood. Straightaway, they could see the box had even given herself a new shade of dark blue.

"OK! What have you got for us this time?" the Doctor stopped in front of the doors, exchanging curious eyes with Renata. She was anxious to see what the TARDIS would look like now. "Ready?" he asked her.

"Mhm!"

He opened the doors for them and walked in at the same time. They were immediately blinded by the bright orange and gold exterior. It seemed more spacious than the last one since now they could see the bright staircase leading up to the second floor. The console was on a raised dais with a glass floor that allowed them to look below to the wires.

"Oh, you sexy thing! Look at you!" the Doctor laughed and wondered what Renata thought about it.

Her dark eyes were still widened but there was a grin marking her face. "I've never seen such a more...elegant console room!" The TARDIS hummed as if she was thanking Renata for the compliment. Renata laughed and made her way up to the console, because now there were even small glass steps leading up to it. "Seriously, well done!"

"Trip to the moon to stabilize her!" the Doctor reminded her as he started moving around the console, pressing the new buttons.

"And I don't see a mallet anywhere nearby," Renata genuinely went around the console searching its lower drawers for any mallet. "Guess she finally got rid of that!"

The Doctor rolled his eyes and stopped by the new lever. "So funny. Would you like to hang on?"

"I wouldn't have to if you drove correctly. You can't drive a TARDIS nor a fire truck, what am I going to do with you?"

"I can think of a few ideas," he flashed a smirk then pulled the lever.

The TARDIS rumbled as it took off.

"We should go get Gabriella," Renata said as soon as the TARDIS went still. "I think it's about time she came back permanently in the TARDIS...if that's okay with you, of course. Your TARDIS and all."

"Renée, it's ours," the Doctor said. "I've said this countless times before but I suppose we weren't really in sync in our last bodies."

Renata thought that was an understatement. "It's not like we made it easy on each other, especially me. I'm sorry."

"Stop," he said suddenly, startling her with the quickness he had said it too. "No more apologizing. You've done that over and over, as have I. I forgive you. I really do. I forgive you for keeping your identity a secret. And most importantly, that night on Gallifrey? The night that's been a nightmare for us...I understand why you said no to me."

Renata's arms couldn't seem to find the right way to move as he went on with their past mistakes. "If I could go back to that night where you asked me to run away with you...I would have."

There was a certainty that the Doctor heard and it made his hearts swell. She hadn't been sure about that in her last body. He asked her to run away with him on the eve of his wedding to another woman and when she said no, it shattered him. Even when he learned that she said no because of her blackmailing sister...it still broke him. It was single-handedly the most painful moment of his lives. Now to hear her say that she would choose him over everyone...that brought a closure that he didn't know he needed.

"You...are you sure?" He moved around the console until he stood in front of her. "I get that I asked too much of you. You had to leave your family...your foundation...your people…"

"You were my everything back then. I-I should have trusted that you could take care of yourself, that my sister couldn't actually hurt you. And I should have been braver. But you...you have never stopped being the love of my life. I am 758 years old and in all that time I never really learned to love anyone else like I loved you. And it's not like I didn't try. Elek was sweet and I did love him but our marriage never gave me the same rush I had when I was with you."

"That's exactly how I felt," the Doctor told her with a small smile. "It's funny how that works. Centuries can pass but the feelings are still there, raw as if it was still the first day I realized I loved you."

Renata matched his smile with her own. She looked down out of shyness and embarrassment. "So...so what happens now?"

"Well...I think...if you'd like...we're both at a place where we can start again?" the Doctor was thinking about it himself. There were no more lies, no more anger, no more illnesses and no more need of saving the world. Everything was good and calm. It was exactly what his last incarnation told her on the day that he had to leave her with Zhe. He wanted to be with her but at that time he was still too angry with her for lying to him. There were too many things between them that needed to be solved. But that was in the past. He didn't hold onto that anger now; all he wanted was her.

Renata raised her head at him, revealing a nervous tint in her eyes. "You think we can do that? It's been so much time, so many things happening. Do you think we could work this time?" It seemed so surreal to even think about them actually working after centuries of their first attempt.

"I will definitely put my best efforts," he chuckled, though that wouldn't distract her from his own nervousness.

"It's just...I don't really know how to do that anymore," she admitted. "I never thought that I would make it here. I didn't think I would regenerate. Plus, I thought that I wanted to die. I guess I'm just trying to say that I'm sort of rusty at this 'being in a relationship thing'."

"Darling, so am I."

Renata's scoff was hard enough to make the Doctor wince. "Please! You've snogged more people than I can count! And that was just in your last body!"

"Oi! It's not like I planned it!"

"No but you certainly didn't seem to mind!"

"Well none of that matters because the only one I want to kiss from here on out is you."

Renata blinked at him and smiled pretty fast. There was that warmth in her face again. "Really?"

"Yes. I've been wanting to kiss you all day today, especially when you made that call to the Atraxi. Talk about sexy!"

Renata's eyes widened all over again. "Doctor!" She playfully hit him on the chest while he laughed. He could see her reddened face which made it all the more funny.

He wrapped his arms around her waist, keeping her steady in front of him. "So what do you say? Shall we try again?"

Renata met his gaze slowly. The redness in her face had died down and all that was left now was a softened expression. After centuries of lies and denial, she was really getting a second chance with him? He must be mad if he truly wanted to her of all people, but then again she was just as mad for wanting him. They were polar opposites from the start! She was seen as a law abiding Time Lady and he had no idea what a law was. On the other hand, he loved travelling and he practically knew everything about the galaxies and she was still learning. Plus, he always had a way of doing things that she just didn't agree with. But that also drove her madly in love with him.

It was the same for the Doctor. He saw her as the pinnacle of what a Time Lady should be, everyone who knew her on Gallifrey thought the same. She was always elegant and graceful and so proper. She was always kind to whoever she met; she literally could not be rude to anyone. How could he not fall in love with her? Yes sometimes her law abiding trait irritated him and sometimes they did bicker over their different views on the rules, but he couldn't think of another person he'd want to bicker with. She was it for him.

"I would like to start over," Renata whispered. "I would definitely like to try again."

A huge grin took over the Doctor's face. "Run away with me?"

Renata laughed. The same question that once began their centuries-long torture was now the start of what could be their genuine happiness together. "Anywhere you want," she leaned on him with a mischievous glint in her eyes. That was the answer they should have had centuries ago. They should have been free. Better late than never.

"Our first stop is to Gabby but...there's one thing I'd like to do first," the Doctor lowered his head so that they were mere inches from each other's faces.

Renata had half an idea of what he was going to say but she was too enthralled with their closeness. I actually get to have this now, she made the realization seconds later. "What?"

"I said I've been wanting to kiss you all day today and now we're alone...in a TARDIS where interruptions are not possible…"

"Mm, that's not quite true. We have been interrupted before even when we were inside—"

The Doctor playfully rolled his eyes at her and went ahead to kiss her. She could possibly ramble on for hours about everything that could go wrong, or everything that had gone wrong before.

Renata now welcomed being cut off. She would much rather kiss him too. She'd been wanting to do that all day just like him. She brought her hands to his arms, gripping them while he pressed his hands against her back. It was like an endless loop, whenever he pressed against her back, she would grip his arms. It was impossible to be any closer but they continued to search for ways.

Renata pulled away for a moment - it really would be just for a moment because she was not done - and looked the Doctor over. She hadn't really looked at him with everything that happened.

His style had drastically changed. Suits were abandoned for something a bit more classic, at least in her opinion. She could appreciate the dark brown tweed jacket - though she knew for a fact Gabby would have a few comments about that - but she would have some questions on the bow tie.

"What is it?" the Doctor asked her after a while of watching her study him.

She raised her gaze off his clothes and met his new green eyes. "I like this you."

The Doctor laughed. "Well, that's good to know. I like you too, darling."

Renata smiled along with him. She slid her arms up and around his neck. "Did we have a midlife crisis?" She referred to the fact that now both of them wore far younger faces than their last bodies. "I've never had one before."

"I think we just wanted to start fresh," the Doctor's answer was a viable one. She would take it. "Do you want to go pick up Gabby now?"

Renata titled her head and hummed. "Yes…" the Doctor made a move towards the console but she tightened her grip around him. "But after we do more of…" She brushed her lips over his, giving him a tantalizing smile.

The Doctor's eyes widened. "Oh...right, right...I'd like that. I'd definitely like—"

Renata pressed her lips against his. She wouldn't let him get away so quick, not after all that they dealt with. Look at me being so bold, she commended herself.

The Doctor's hands once against found her back and pressed against it. The fabric of her dress was far too thin as he first noticed when they climbed out of the TARDIS in Amy's backyard. Now he had the full proof and he loved it. Eventually, one of his hands traveled up to the back of Renata's neck to keep her right against him. They were moving their lips in a sweet sync in the first minutes but after getting over it - because it had been centuries of longing - they started moving into a more rough type of kiss. They needed each other. They wouldn't realize to want extent that might be just yet but the seed was still there and it was being planted right now.

Renata gasped when the Doctor hoisted her up on the edge of the console. She laughed out of surprise, making a face that told him she'd never done anything like that, which only made him smirk. With him, she'd be able to do anything she wanted. There would be no more rules binding her.

They resumed their kiss, quickly finding their level of heat again. If they were more aware, they would've realized how easy it had been to reconnect; to re-establish the same intensity they once had centuries ago. One new thing Renata found truly pleasant was the fact she could hold onto the Doctor's hair. It was longer. She would love doing that from now on, she just hoped that the Doctor could find something about her that he liked too.

He had.

But he would keep that with him for a bit longer.

[saiilorstars]

Falling in Temptation

Ch. 14: While I'm Gone

Previous chapters • Sequel to Stars Dance •  Fairy Tale Memoirs (Companion story)

Fandom: Doctor Who

Pairing: 11th Doctor x Female OC

Chapter summary: The Doctor is slowly losing his mind searching for Avalon and Melody.

Taglist: @ocfairygodmother @anotherunreadblog @maaaaarveeeeel​

Lena held her sister's prized possession close to her chest. Ever since Avalon had been taken, Lena hadn't let that journal out of her sight. Avalon would want it first thing when she got back...because she would come back. It was just a matter of time.

That morning - or whatever time it was inside the TARDIS after waking up - Lena hurried towards the console room just like she had done from day 1 on their search for Avalon and Melody. And just like always, the Doctor was already in the room, working hard and fast to find a new lead on Avalon and Melody.

"Big brother, did you sleep?" Lena found herself wondering when she realized how untidy he looked. She understood that he needed way less sleep than she and the Sapling did, but he still needed some sleep.

"Yes, um, at some point...one night, can't remember! Busy!" the man was making rounds at the console, not particularly interested in conversations. These days he did a lot more talking to himself about possible clues than anything else.

Lena spotted his tweed jacket on the floor, the same spot he'd thrown it last night after getting a new lead. She and the Sapling had to get some sleep and the Doctor promised them that he would follow in a few minutes. He did not. "Big brother, nobody wants to find my sister and Melody as much as I do but you really need to get some sleep if this is going to work."

"I can sleep when I have Ava here and Melody with Amy and Rory," he said, his voice a bit snappish due to his lack of rest. He never snapped at her.

"But you can't find them if you can't think," Lena sighed. "That's why you sent me to sleep. Why don't you follow your own advice and take a few hours? I can keep looking. The Sapling should be up in a few hours too."

"I can't," the Doctor shook his head. "I followed the lead last night - it took me to the Messier 82 galaxy - and it turns out that there was a spotting of a woman with an eyepatch in one of the black markets. I went, but guess what!? It was a fake! It was a costume! What a waste of time! So now I'm back to zero! I cannot sleep!"

Lena looked at the journal in her arms. If Avalon could see him now, she would definitely slap him. She valued health over everything, even when she was the one who needed the help. "Avalon wouldn't want you to be like this. She wants you to rest."

"Lena! Are you going to help or not?" he snapped again.

"Yeah, I guess so," Lena came up to the console with a sigh. "So, where exactly are we?"

"Like I said: back to zero!"

"Okay," Lena nodded, trying to be the one to think rationally since she had all her hours of sleep. "Well, you said that Kovarian probably took Melody back to Earth in the past. But to find her would be dangerous because of Avalon's existence so we need to focus on Avalon first. We find her, she can tell us where Melody is and we can pick the right moment to take her without endangering Avalon's life." That was far easier said than done.

They'd spent weeks searching for Melody on Earth, but the Doctor ultimately called it off because of the danger they were putting on Avalon's life. The fact that she was Melody's daughter meant that they had be very careful choosing at what point to bring Melody back to her parents. Instead, they switched gears and focused on Avalon. The idea was that Avalon would know precisely where Melody was and they could extract the baby before she was raised on Earth. River had told him that in order for Avalon to continue existing, she needed to attend some university in the 51st century. The Doctor could arrange for young Melody to do that, no problem, but then he also started wondering if that was all that Melody needed to keep the timelines going? As he stated a while back, maybe the reason Melody did what she did at college, made the choices that she made, was because of her life on Earth. It was all a huge headache.

But one thing for sure, the one thing that River Song herself agreed upon, was that the Doctor needed to find Avalon first. She would never forgive him if he chose to search for Melody over Avalon. That made the Doctor feel a little less guilty about his decision when talking it out with Amy and Rory. He wasn't abandoning the search for Melody just because.

But finding Avalon was no more easy than finding Melody. It was like she had vanished into thin air. It terrified the Doctor wondering what they were doing to Avalon if she wasn't outside somewhere. If she was being kept inside, was she tied up? Was she being tortured? There was another part telling him that perhaps she'd been absorbed into their plans and was being trained like Melody, brainwashed no doubt. Repeated brainwashing could permanently damage the mind. If she was being trained to kill him - him - then she would be getting an extensive course. Everything Melody was meant to learn over the course of her life was being crammed into Avalon for the right day and time.

When his thoughts got too dark, even for him, the Doctor did everything he could to shake them off and focus on just finding her. If he found her, then all that could be avoided. "I don't know, I don't know..." he rubbed his eyes tiredly. He had thought of all the possible places that he knew of but Avalon wasn't there. She was never seen.

"Big brother," Lena gently placed a hand on his arm. The Doctor dropped his hands from his face and glanced at Lena, showcasing the heavy guilt that'd permanently become part of his features. Lena rubbed his arm comfortingly. "Take a moment to breathe. Let's think about this, right? If they separated Avalon and Melody, and Melody's on Earth, then wouldn't that mean Avalon is basically on standby? Where could she stay if she was on standby?"

"Well," the Doctor took in a deep breath and focused on the facts they had about Kovarian's style. "They gave Melody absolute independence on Earth, but they were always watching her. If Avalon is following the same plan, then she has to be living the same thing."

"Right, except they wouldn't give her complete independence because she could run away."

"No, they would have to alter her..." the Doctor was very careful with what he said about what Kovarian might be doing to Avalon. Lena didn't need the images he had in his head. "They would have to change something," he settled for the neutral words instead. Her brain. They would have to change something in there to keep Avalon at bay, because Avalon Reynolds was not a woman you could keep at bay so easily. Her terrible temper made her a force to be reckoned with. That's where the brainwashing came in, he imagined. If they changed Avalon's thoughts, she would function just like they wanted her to.

"So then where they would keep her after that?" asked Lena.

"Don't know," the Doctor's eyes found the controls as a new thought popped into his head. "But I bet that whatever they're using they had to have bought it somewhere."

"We're going to the Black Markets, aren't we?" Lena guessed considering the dark nature of Kovarian.

The Doctor nodded. "To as many as we can."

~ 0 ~

3 Weeks after Demons Run.

The tears wouldn't stop falling from Avalon's eyes. She felt like a child constantly having to rub the tears off her face only for new ones to take their place seconds later.

River Song was her mother, River Song.

It didn't make sense. Yes, she knew she was adopted but never in her life did she consider that River might be the woman who gave her up? All those times that she'd bumped into River and the woman never said anything. She acted as if there was nothing bonding them together, blood. It infuriated Avalon all over again. River just paraded through social events, making sure everybody knew who she was and yet the one person that should've been the first to learn her name was the person River chose to abandon and then ignore.

Avalon's eyes fell to the pictures Kovarian had left her with.

"A gift," the woman had smugly said after returning Avalon to her room. She'd let the pile fall to the floor, sprawling around Avalon.

She had been very thorough proving to Avalon that River was Melody and her mother. She had brought Avalon to a room where they played several videos of River confirming that she was her mother. The best one, according to Kovarian, was the video they'd retrieved from Demons Run. River had explained who she was to everyone after the Silence took Avalon. There was no room for doubt.

Now Avalon was left with a series of pictures of River at her finest moments, all of which were her in a compromising illegal act. It was Kovarian's way of showing Avalon that her mother wasn't someone she should try to protect so much. It was a way for Avalon to hate her and willingly work for the Silence. After all, why would she want to protect her mother when she abandoned her?

Even if Avalon didn't want to give Kovarian the satisfaction of being right, Avalon couldn't help the anger that flourished each time she thought about River.

She abandoned me. She didn't want me..

The woman galavanted throughout the galaxies, doing whatever the hell she wanted, and she never once came to see her. River knew where she lived, where she was, and she never did anything. Avalon could understand that being in prison complicated things but River never seemed to mind the fact she was incarcerated. She was always up and ready for an adventure. So why would River leave her with someone else to raise?

Because she probably cramped River's style.

Avalon knew that she was a nobody. She had lived in boring old Leadworth and the only exciting thing about her was meeting the Doctor. She didn't have a penny to her name and she certainly didn't astounding qualities. River probably thought she was boring. How could she tell the world that she had given birth to a boring daughter?

Fresh tears stung her eyes. Avalon let out a fierce growl. Her hands found the closest picture and tore it into pieces. "How could you!?" her hand then swiped away any picture nearby, wanting nothing to do with them. "I hate you!"

Let River keep doing her own thing! She didn't need her. She'd done just fine without her for 22 years after all. If River didn't want her then Avalon wouldn't want her either.

The only mother she recognized was Emmalina Reynolds. Enmalina had protected her and loved her. She had been there to hug her when she was scared, to kiss her 'owies' when she'd fallen, to read bedtime stories to her each night. Emmalina had given Avalon her first journal to write in because she knew from the start what Avalon wanted to be when she grew up. Emmalina knew that before Avalon knew it. That's what a mother was like. She knew things that her child wouldn't know until much later. Emmalina had been there when River had been god knew where.

Avalon picked up another picture and studied it until she saw the last detail. River was dressed fashionably, almost like the first time Avalon met her back at the Byzantium, and was conversing with some woman. River held a beautiful sapphire blue jewel that no doubt had been priceless. The setting was an elegant party, judging by the decorations. Even the chandelier was big enough to be caught on the picture and it was made of diamonds. It seemed like a party Avalon would've loved to have gone to.

But where was she? At home, in Leadworth, on Earth. She'd been light years away from her mother and River didn't look the least bit upset by the matter.

Avalon's face scrunched as her hands gripped the corners of the picture. She yanked the two sides in the opposite direction and felt a dark satisfaction when she heard the picture tearing. Her gaze fell to the remaining pictures and before she knew it, she'd began to grab each of them and tore them until they were nothing but confetti on the ground.

But once there was nothing left, Avalon still couldn't get rid of the heavy pain in her chest. She wanted to scream and cry. Cry for everything that had gone wrong in her life, from the very moment she was born. Her shoulders slumped. The dark anger subsided for a moment to give way for her hear to break all over again.

Her vision blurred with all the tears in her eyes. My own mother didn't want me, what hope do I have? If her own mother didn't want her, how could she expect for anyone else to want her?

Would the Doctor even come for her? He never liked River to begin with and if he knew that she was River's daughter...would he hate her too? The mere thought terrified Avalon.

~0~

The Sapling was was quietly going through an album in the TARDIS library. Despite his insistence to help find his mother, his father and aunt Lena told him there was nothing for him to do right now. They had to start out by mapping the possible locations Avalon could be. But even when they visited most of those locations, there wasn't a job for him to actually help. Why? Because they hadn't actually found Avalon, nor Melody. They weren't in any of the locations.

It infuriated all three that they were no closer to finding either girl. The Sapling felt a tingling sensation each time he underwent a new episode of fury. He suspected it was his powers trying to manifest again and the only reason he worked hard to keep them within was because he wanted to use them on the woman who took Avalon and Melody.

But for now, the Sapling was resigned to wait. They needed to wait for anything significant to pop up so they could start the search again. It was why he was in the library, passing the time with the only thing he could: by going through his mother's photo albums. She had gone over them extensively because he had asked her to. Now he was going through them again, alone, and really missing his mother.

Lena had appeared at the doorway and yanked the Doctor to her side. "See!?" she was very careful to whisper so that the Sapling wouldn't hear them. "Poor thing's been locked in here for days. I try to get him to come out to eat something but he refuses."

"I don't blame him," the Doctor whispered as he took a peek inside the library. The Sapling was on the couch with the photo album on his lap. He spotted Avalon's journal sitting on the coffee table in front of the Sapling. "You let him have the journal?" he gave a questionable glance at Lena. She hadn't let go of that journal since she stepped into the TARDIS.

Lena's expression was sympathetic. "He misses his Mum." She motioned him to go to the Sapling. "I think you should spend some time with him."

The Doctor would want nothing more than that - well, perhaps spend time with him and Avalon would be better - but his attention had to be on the search. "I left the console to track the black markets selling the specific software Kovarian would need to use on Avalon. I have to be there if anything comes up."

"I can be there," Lena assured him. "If anything does come up, I'll give you a call."

"Lena," the Doctor sighed and shook his head. "I don't...I don't even know what to tell the Sapling. I mean, I told him that I would find his mother and I have yet to follow through. It's been almost a month and I've got nothing."

"He knows that you're searching hard. Right now, I think you just need to be there with him, like a Dad." Lena bumped his side encouragingly. "Just talk."

The Doctor seemed lost for another option. "But you'll be at the console, right?" Lena nodded. "And you'll call if anything comes up?"

"Of course I will," Lena reassured him that she wouldn't leave the console until he got back. With that, the Doctor truly had no choice but go on inside the library.

The Sapling hadn't noticed him initially. He was focused on a picture of Avalon with her brother, Gavin, in a park. They were both attempting to climb a tree but had stopped to pose for the picture.

"Even as a child your mother looks like a troublemaker," the Doctor came around and took a seat next to the Sapling. The Sapling cracked a smile as they both studied the photograph.

A fifteen year old Avalon was smirking at the camera. She might have done something previous to the picture and no one but her would know about it.

The Sapling agreed. "Yeah. Have you found her yet?"

The smile on the Doctor's face was quick to fall. He shook his head in shame. "I haven't yet. But I will."

"I'm scared, Father," the Sapling admitted, not that it was a news for the Doctor. "That woman was a very mean woman who hurt aunt Amy and her baby. What if she's hurting Mother right now?"

The Doctor closed his eyes for a second. He had thought about that so many times, with thorough images, that it left his body shaking each time. Kovarian was not merciful and because she wanted him dead, she would stop at nothing to make sure both Melody and Avalon were thoroughly skilled.

He wondered how many times Avalon had screamed in terror and pain since she'd been taken. How many times had she cried? How much time had it been for her? A week? A month? Years? His hearts ached thinking Avalon had spent years with Kovarian, just like Melody. She was waiting for him to find her and he hadn't been able to track a single clue of where she could be.

"I don't know what they're doing to her right now, but I promise you that we will get her back," the Doctor promised on his lives. The Sapling believed him. He always did.

"Why did they take Mother away, anyways? And baby Melody? They didn't do anything wrong."

Another hard question the Doctor wanted to avoid. "They didn't, of course they didn't," he first agreed. "They...these people that took them, they don't like me very much. They want to hurt me..."

"And they took Mother and Melody because of that?"

The Doctor nodded silently. Even though the Sapling was a child, he could easily read the guilt on the Doctor's face.

"It's not your fault," he said. "Mother would tell you that too."

"Yeah, she would." A brief smile appeared on the Doctor's face as he thought about Avalon's reaction. She would no doubt call him an idiot for believing that but then she would give him one of her warm hugs. He would then indulge himself by believing her for a moment.

"Do you love, Mother?" the Sapling suddenly questioned. Even though it was done in a gentle child's voice, it snapped the Doctor out of his thoughts in a second.

"Wh-what? I don't...what?" the stammering was a natural response given the heavy weight of the question. The Doctor's face went a deep red in the seconds that followed.

The Sapling just smiled. "I just wonder if my parents love each other. Melody's parents love each other."

"Sapling, uh, Amy and Rory have been married a good while now. Your mother and I...it's, uh, very complicated." And that was still an understatement. At times, he wanted Avalon right next to him so he could dote on her and show her anything she wanted; he was at her beck and call. But other times...he wanted to lock her in a room so he would leave her alone at least for five minutes. She would frustrate him to no end and having an argument with her was sure to end with both of them screaming at the top of their lungs. It was a strange feeling - as he hadn't had that type of relationship with anyone else - but he knew that even during those moments he still wanted her. He would still want to kiss her and hold her. He liked her, a lot, that was past news but to say 'love'...maybe not right now. But you are getting there, he made the startling conclusion. He visibly gulped. That was certainly new.

"Maybe...maybe not right now..." he whispered and swallowed down the lump in his throat. He would have to think back on those thoughts another time, preferably when Avalon wasn't in danger.

"For now," the Sapling said matter of factly as he flipped to the next page of the album. "You gave Mother that journal," he nodded to Avalon's journal on the table. "Uncle Rory gave aunt Amy a ring because he loved her. That's what humans do, but you're not very normal."

"Oh, thanks," the Doctor rolled his eyes. That sounded completely like Avalon.

The Sapling smiled widely. "You gave Mother a journal that never runs out of pages. She wants to write - you gave her the ultimate present. If you don't love her yet, you will soon. And I know that Mother will too."

The Doctor inwardly sighed. The last thing he needed was for that to get around. No doubt Kovarian already had an insight to his feelings towards Avalon. It fueled the game even more, putting Avalon right in the middle of it.

~0~

1 Month after Demons Run.

"Why am I here again?" Avalon asked as a female doctor bound her wrists to the metal chair she was forced to sit on. She was back in the room with the screen that originally showed Avalon who her mother was. She didn't want to be there again - actually, she didn't want to be anywhere near Kovarian.

"Because we need to start your conditioning," Kovarian gave the female doctor a nod when Avalon was secured to the chair.

"My what?" Avalon blinked when she saw the female doctor coming back with electric pads in hand. "Why-why are you carrying those? What are you doing?" she frantically asked but the woman started attaching them to her skin without saying a word. Avalon's head craned to see Kovarian watching with satisfaction. "What are you going to do with me!?"

"Same thing we did to Melody. Of course with her, we didn't really use ECT. We just embedded the ideas from the start. I'm making the right adjustments to your conditioning."

"N-n-n-n-no! Get these off me right now!" Avalon resorted to pushing her wrists against the metal cuffs keeping her strapped in.

"Oh don't bother," Kovarian laughed and came up to Avalon. "We know very well about your strength - you get that from your mother - and we have accounted for everything. There is no getting out of this."

Avalon glared, her face scrunching slightly as her anger rose. "What are you going to do?" she flinched when the female doctor attached the last two pads to her temples.

"You seem to cling onto the Doctor more than anyone else, even your grandmother, so we need to change that. Dr. Lefevre here, will conduct the electric shocks at my order and by the time we're done here..." Kovarian came to lean very close to Avalon, allowing her to notice the light freckles on Kovarian's face, "After we're done here, you're going to associate the Doctor with pain."

Gulping came on instinct, but Avalon still endeavored to prove that she wouldn't be an easy victim. "I won't fall for it. I got news for you, lady, my brain's all messed up anyways. And you know what? The Doctor might hate me because of who I am but I won't ever hurt him. I'd rather die first."

Kovarian dramatically groaned as she straightened up and turned away from Avalon. "This idolizing him has got to stop! You don't understand the danger he's putting us in with his existence! But don't worry," she spun around back to Avalon, expressing as if Avalon had done something wrong that she could fix for her. "I see the truth and I'm going to help you see it too. Dr. Lefevre?"

Lefevre nodded again and walked out of the room. Avalon shut her eyes thinking the first wave of electric shocks was about to hit her but instead the screen projector came to life and the room's lights went off.

"Let's start," Kovarian smiled maniacally as she came to stand beside Avalon's chair.

~ 0 ~

1 Month and a week after Demons Run.

"No, more, no more, please," Avalon's voice was too strained to make a proper plead. Her body felt like soup. Yes, that was a feeling she thought wasn't possible until now. She felt like she was floating but couldn't really move her arms nor legs. They were the noodles.

"But this is only 2005 now," Kovarian promised but she had promised that last week when this first started.

"Don't you...get it?" Avalon struggled to breath normally. "If you keep...doing this...I won't m...make it."

"Oh don't worry, that's where your regenerative cycle comes in. If your body truly does expire then you'll just regenerate and we can continue where we left off!"

Avalon felt like she could cry there and then. Regeneration? She didn't even want to think about such a thing. Her body dying? Now that she knew she could, she wondered how the hell the Doctor could do that so easily and not get stuck on the fact he had to die to get a new body.

"I'm going to...die...and...I don't even know how...to survive," Avalon coughed aggressively but Kovarian didn't seem perturbed.

"Lefevre, next!" she gave the order for the screen to switch again.

The next series of pictures shown were the aftermath of a famous battle Avalon once heard of but never had the full details. Along with pictures, Kovarian had also included videos for better representation.

"Cybermen..." Avalon recognized the terrible metal robots marching down a street. "What...what is this?" her eyes widened when the screen switched to show her Daleks flying in the air.

"This is the Battle of Canary Wharf, one of the biggest slaughters of the human race," Kovarian explained, although her tone didn't exactly portray regret. She was angry as hell but it was directed at one man instead of the fact that people died "And who was at the center of it? The Doctor. Have you seen the list of the dead?"

"Have you?" Avalon challenged.

Kovarian knew what she was trying to do and smiled. "My anger is not misplaced. This battle was specifically tailored to the Doctor because it originated from Torchwood. I believe you're familiar with the organization? Queen Victoria was like me. She saw the true danger the Doctor posed for the humans. She created Torchwood as a means to put an end to the man. But in the end, he put an end to it. People died at the hands of the Daleks and Cybermen. His own companion was thrown into a different universe. And that set the course for an even bigger battle that threatened the very existence of the universes."

New tears filled Avalon's eyes as she was forced to see the catastrophic aftermath. Streets were in ruins. Cars had exploded into fire. Several buildings were either half or completely destroyed. But there were so many corpses on the ground. everywhere.

"You didn't know that, did you?" Kovarian watches the tears rolling down Avalon's face. The ginger said nothing, but there was a clear fear etching across her features. "Lefevre!" Kovarian gave a hard yell.

The electric pads sent a riveting shock through Avalon's body. She screamed and wailed for them to stop. Each shock was worse than the last. It was as of everything inside her was on fire and there was no putting it out until Kovarian took pity on her.

When it was over, Avalon's body went limp against her chair. Her eyes wanted to close but she fought to keep them at least half open.

"Pain," Kovarian repeated just as she did each time the shocks were done. "That is what the Doctor is. Pain, destruction, and we have to end him."

However she could, Avalon glared but her mouth was temporarily unavailable. Kovarian knew this. Each time the shocks were over, Avalon would grow weaker against it. She would either die or she would finally start succumbing to effects.

"This is for your own good, for all of us," Kovarian moved around the chair so that she stood in front of Avalon. "I've seen the future and do you know what? I don't think you should even try to defend him. From where I stand, he's already replaced you and your little family." While Avalon couldn't say anything then, she still glared again. "And you've seen it too," Kovarian turned enough to gesture at the screen that was still showing the last pictures of the Canary Wharf battle. "It's a known fact that each time the Doctor faces a big battle, he leaves the companions behind. The one in that battle got lost in another world, and then the next one? Lefevre!"

The screen suddenly switched to a dark-skinned woman wearing a formal UNIT uniform. Avalon squinted her eyes to try and focus on the name tag the woman was wearing.

"Dr. Martha Jones walked the Earth for a year that none of us can remember to fight yet another Time Lord the Doctor was responsible for. The human nearly got killed and guess what happened? The Doctor -" Kovarian's voice took on a hard tone as she looked back at Avalon, "-moved on. And that bit of the woman? Did you know that there was a year completely lost? The Doctor erased a whole year that was full of blood thanks to him and his little Time Lord friend. No one can remember it. Only the Silence could, of course. They're useful like that. Bet the Doctor didn't tell you that, did he?"

Avalon didn't want to look so stunned but...she couldn't help it. What did she mean there was a whole year that none of them can remember? There were no stories about that, not even of Martha Jones fighting in it. The Doctor didn't say a word about it.

"And then the 27 planets that were stolen?" Kovarian yelled for Lefevre to switch pictures. "Oh, there were so many deaths that night. I believe this is where the Doctor moved on from yet another companion after sincerely - how do you humans say it? - screwing her over. Wiped her memories, the whole thing!" she made a quick gesture to the sides of her head.

Avalon's eyes narrowed the moment she thought about Donna Noble. She deeply regretted throwing that in the Doctor's face. That had to be one of the most terrible things he was forced to do. "Accident..." she managed to say. In talking, she got the taste of metal...making her realize there was a bit of blood in her mouth.

Kovarian mocked her with a laugh. "Oh, of course. And do you even know why it was possible for the worlds to be moved? Because that little companion from 2005 was able to cross worlds. The Doctor created a companion so dangerous that she literally broke the walls of the universe. If that doesn't prove how dangerous he is, I don't know what will!"

"N-not his...fault!" Avalon spat and felt bits of blood oozing from the corner of her mouth. It wasn't the Doctor's fault the choices his companions took.

"But it is," Kovarian turned right around to face Avalon. "The next one after that is you and your family. But guess what?" her face morphed into a mocking pout. "It won't last long either. Because I know for a fact that eventually the Doctor will move on from the Ponds. All of you." She made it pretty clear that really did mean everyone which, against her best efforts not to believe it, did sprinkle a bit of fear in Avalon.

Would the Doctor really move on from her too?

You did hurt him, she reminded herself. He has every right to drop you off too.

"And the next companion after you all is the one," Kovarian made sure to express her true hatred for whatever poor soul came next in line. "She's the one that brings the Doctor to the place where he will descend destruction on us."

"Then...kill...her," Avalon found herself saying. She didn't know who was meant to come into the TARDIS in the future but she didn't want the Doctor anywhere near a place that was meant to be a battle zone.

Kovarian feigned a sigh. "But she's a tricky one. I don't know the mechanics. Plus, if I kill her off then somebody else will inevitably bring the Doctor to that place. No, I have to go directly to the source, to the origin. Here. The Doctor has to die here, in this point of time."

Avalon swallowed hard when she got memories of Lake Silencio. But then she realized something...she couldn't remember everything. She started blinking fast the more she thought in vain. "I-I can't...I can't remember...Lake Silencio...what's-what's going on?"

There was a satisfied smirk playing on Kovarian's face. "Oh, the ECT is finally kicking in. The more we do this, the more fragile your brain becomes and once it's fragile enough we can start."

~ 0 ~

2 Months after Demon's Run

"STOP! JUST STOP!" Avalon screamed and wailed, her eyes screwing shut yet snapping open each second like a pattern. Her body twisted and writhed each time she felt a burning prick. "Please...just stop!" Her sobs echoed throughout the crystal clean room but none of the people inside would listen to her.

Two people held her body down, pinning her arms and legs against the metal table. When her skin made contact with the cool metal, she hissed. Her body was so susceptible to radical temperatures right now thanks to the series of tests Kovarian was running on her.

First, it'd been the insomnia test. They deprived Avalon of sleep for God knows what reason, but she was so tired. She'd always had trouble going to sleep but right now she would kill for an hour where she could just doze off. And once they figured out that Avalon could stay a minimum of four days awake, they moved onto to an expanded form of the test. Kovarian wouldn't settle for the simple 'let's see how long you can stay up', no. She would purposely change the temperature, leave Avalon in the dark and if Avalon dared to fall asleep, Kovarian would shock her. It was a piercing electricity that Avalon swore would make her body explode if the tests kept going.

And then they moved onto the injuries. How much could Avalon's body take?

They first started with simple cuts that Avalon would hiss and yell at them to stop. But things escalated. Cuts turned into full-fledged gashes where Avalon would physically want to pass out from how much blood she was losing. She swore that in one of those, somebody had actually touched her bones and organs.

Then Kovarian wanted to see what temperatures Avalon could withstand.

A blazing hot room was Avalon's home for a week. She had never craved water so much in her life. She did pass out a few times but then came the freezing cold. No matter how much she begged for them to stop or to at least give her a blanket, she was left in the ice cold room for another week. There were only intervals with regular temperature just so that she wouldn't die.

And now here she was for the latest test. Something about regeneration. The gashes would return and now they expected for her to heal herself but she didn't know how! How could she access energy that she didn't even know she carried!? And when she proved useless, Kovarian ordered for her people to carve into Avalon's body to examine that energy. One way or another, they would have that energy.

So there was Avalon, desperately crying for somebody to help her. Her right arm felt like it would fall off if she felt another burning cut. She turned her head to the left and blinked fast to get her sight cleared up. A woman was looking down at her behind a pair of glasses.

"Please...just stop...just...for a moment..." Avalon's voice was hoarse from all the screaming and the prior exams. "I...beg you..."

The woman paid her no attention. She just held Avalon's arm tightly and watched the exam continue.

Avalon honestly wished she was dead at this point. Nothing could be worse than what she was living. If she was lucky, they wouldn't find what they were looking for and they would just kill her.

~ 0 ~

2 Months after Demons Run

"Uh, no Dad, we...haven't found her yet," Lena wanted to speak as quietly as possible while talking to her father but it was impossible when she was forced to stay in the console with the Doctor's so very good hearing. She wanted to leave each time her father called to know their status on the search, but the Doctor wouldn't have it. He had made a promise to find Avalon and Melody and he wasn't living up to it.

It was like he was punishing himself by forcing himself to hear the disappointment in Lena's voice when she told her father that nothing changed. They were still completely lost.

With a sigh, Lena ended the call with her father. She didn't have to explain to the Doctor what it was about. "He just says he believes in you."

The Doctor let out a noise indicating his lack of faith in himself. He kept himself at the console, his fingers tiredly working through the controls.

"He knows you'll find her, though. He has no doubt about it," Lena kept insisting. "He says-" but she was interrupted by an alarm from the console. She was quick to react with wide eyes. "Is that-"

"-a clue!" the Doctor lunged for the side of the console that was giving off the alarm. He found new energy that sped him up through the process of discovering what the alarm was for.

"Well, what is it!?" Lena anxiously waited for him to say something.

"Don't know, it's...um, somebody's calling me from a Black Market in..." the Doctor leaned closer to the monitor, "It's a Black Market in the Black Eye Galaxy."

"The what now?" Lena blinked, but the Doctor didn't pay attention to her confusion. All he knew was that there was finally a possible clue of where Avalon was.

"Baby sister, you're gonna want to hang onto something! SAPLING!" his voice roared through the room. They had a new place to get to quick!

~ 0 ~

3 Months After Demon's Run

Three shots fired consecutively, each hitting of their intended targets.

Avalon swallowed roughly when she lowered her weapon and saw she'd gotten three more straight in a row. She blinked several times as she found she was unable to remember when she was ordered to fire. Her eyes swept over the room as if this were the first time she saw it.

It was huge and barely furnished. The only light coming through was from three small windows above. Avalon realized the room was underground, like a basement. Across of her were three dummies with bullets embedded mostly in the chest. She looked down at herself and could not for the life of her remember how she got into an oversized white blouse and skinny white pants. Even her hair was forced back into a messy low bun. Many of her curls - which were untamed and frizzy from lack of attention - were hanging around her face like curtains.

"How does this keep happening?" she whispered to herself, but she was never alone.

"Again," the Silence with her commanded.

Avalon swallowed hard and turned her head to the right where the ugly lone Silence stood. Her hand shakily moved up to her dry hair. "B-but I-I r-remember you. I can't rememb-b-ber a lot but I k-keep remembering you. How are you doing that?"

The Silence left a moment of silence pass by, as if it were actually constructing an explanation to Avalon's questions. Finally, it cocked its head to the side and answered, "Shoot again."

"No!" Avalon took aim on the Silence again, albeit her shaky arms didn't exactly cause fear. Half the time she didn't know if what she was seeing was a hallucination from everything she'd gone through, or if things really were as bad as they were.

"Oh put the weapon down, child," Kovarian ordered as she appeared in the room. "You do this every time." She was not phased when Avalon turned the gun on her. "As you do that."

"I don't understand, I-I remember things but it's in pieces," Avalon's hand curled tightly around the gun. "My b-bbrain...it hurts..." she brought her free hand to her massive curls and pulled on them in frustration. "Everything's all jumbled up..." her voice cracked in the end, confirming she was truly all over the place. She was losing control over her own thoughts. Her body would jerk suddenly, very often, thanks to the electric shocks. Her skin was dry, making it so easy to get cuts and bruises. And it showed.

Kovarian was proud of her newest experiment. It was working marvelously. It was easier to push Avalon and to control her. Now she wanted to give Avalon the ultimate test, the test that would prove if they'd successfully conditioned her.

"We're going out on a little trip," she announced, not that Avalon seemed to be paying attention. The woman had retreated a few steps and was mumbling words to herself, a nursery rhyme. "Yoo hoo! Anybody home?" Kovarian laughed at her own joke. "Bring her along," she ordered the Silence and turned to leave.

~0~

Avalon wouldn't recognize where they brought her, nor would she know how to get out. The entire place was covered in taverns. It seemed like was night underneath. Everybody looked suspicious, but everyone seemed to fear them - not her but the woman with her - and didn't want anything to do with them.

"You walk far too slow," Kovarian remarked as she studied every movement of Avalon's. Her walking would definitely have to improve. It looked like Avalon was dragging her feet. "And you're not examining your parameters. An enemy can easily take you down right now."

"T-tired..." Avalon said, too weary to say much more. "Why...am I-I here?"

"Because I want you to walk to the end of this line and back," Kovarian responded and a few seconds later came to a stop.

"What?" Avalon thought her hearing might be going too.

"Walk till the end of this aisle and back," Kovarian repeated. "Simple task."

"But why-" Avalon was cut off midsentence when Kovarian pulled out a gun on her.

"I don't explain my orders, child. I give the command and you follow them," she said with a dark tone that had started to seed fear in Avalon. She'd already gotten a taste of it with the ECT.

Avalon closed her eyes. She didn't want to remember that horrible week. She could still feel the electric shocks making her body tremble, and usually her body would shake and jerk. She just wanted it all to stop.

"Go! Before I shoot you and we both find out how strong your regenerative cycle is." Kovarian motioned with her gun for Avalon to start talking.

Avalon lowered her head and turned in the direction she'd been pointed to. In another moment, she would have probably been ecstatic to visit a real life Black Market. This is the place where all of the fun toys were at. But right now, anyone there could easily kill her with a lift of a finger. She couldn't fight anymore, she couldn't snap anymore, she couldn't think properly. She was just so tired, so incredibly tired, both physically and mentally. It was honestly sad how easily she broke. All those times where she thought she was strong was just a lie. She was weak.

Her feet started taking small steps forwards. At the very least if she walked away she would get a few minutes away from Kovarian and the Silence. That sounded nice.

But you'll have to go back, she reminded herself. It returned the fear in seconds.

She would have to go back, back to the torture, back to the nonstop 'training'. She didn't know how much more she could take, honestly. If she didn't die from exhaustion, she might just go crazy from all the memory blocks. If she was being honest, she didn't even remember what she did yesterday. For all she knew, she might have seen the Doctor yesterday.

Her feet came to an automatic stop. Would she forget something like that? Her hand found the Doctor's watch on her wrist, the very same watch she'd won in a bet a year ago. The Doctor swore she had cheated but he still gave up his favorite watch. She knew that if he wanted to, he would've just taken it back or never really had given it up in the first place, but he never did. He allowed her to keep it.

Now maybe you can give it back, came a pondering thought. Her eyes widened for a second as a genuine idea came to mind. It was probably the only coherent thought she'd had in a while. She looked over her shoulder and could barely see Kovarian which meant that Kovarian could barely see her.

Do it, the voice told her.

Avalon found the farthest stall in the aisle and dashed for it. It was an odd run, really, as it seemed like a combination of a hobble and a sprint. Her feet were a bit funny lately, but if she did things right she might finally get some rest (and the good kind not the dead type).

"What do you want?" barked the man in charge of the stall. He seemed human enough until Avalon realized he was a slimy green with spikes sticking up from his head. That probably made for some interesting business.

"I-I-I have..." Avalon involuntarily lost her voice for a second. All her words were trying to come out at the same time.

"I don't understand! Are you going to buy something!?" the man snapped.

Avalon quickly nodded her head. "Y-you're about to have the business deal of your life. You know the Doctor?" It was a stupid question given the man's reputation.

The man sneered. "That idiot who takes it upon himself to say what's right or wrong?"

"That's the one! Y-y-you want to owe him a favor?"

The man, despite his obvious dislike for the Doctor, arched a slightly thicker green eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"I mean that if you g-g-give him th-this..." Avalon couldn't seem to get the watch off her as fast as possible, "You'll b-be doing him a huge f-favor and you'll h-have one of the most powerful p-people owing you one."

The man scrutinized the watch in her hand with obvious distrust. "Over a simple watch? You trying to have me?"

"I-I swear I'm n-not. This is h-his watch and I'm s-s-someone he's looking for. A-Avalon Reynolds. Tell him that n-name and y-you'll see how fast he comes." She was truly counting on it. At least one more time.

"And if not?"

"Then you just got yourself a nice watch you can probably tweak to hide something you don't want others to see." Avalon tried her best not to seen as nervous as she truly was. This could work only if the man followed through and if Kovarian didn't catch her.

"What did you say your name was?" the man was eyeing her appearance, as if committing her to memory.

She looked like an outright mess. Her clothes were disheveled. Her skin was poorly kept and the chapped cracks were beginning to show. She had a few bruises along her arms, decorating the healing stitches that looked pretty fresh. Every so often she would shake, just like her shaky voice and stuttering words. Her eyes had bangs under them, ugly purple bags. Her hair was in a low pony tail, but most of her curls were popping out in various directions. And the constant stammering was plain annoying.

"U-um, Avalon..." Avalon brought a hand up to scratch her cheek. She seemed like she would close her eyes to think about something, but once again her body jerked and she dropped her arms to her side.

"Wait a second," the man suddenly blinked as if he'd just realized something. "The Doctor was said to be collecting debts for a battle. He took several of my customers away. You're with the Silence, aren't you? The Kovarian chapter? I heard all about that. They took that baby. Pretty stupid if you asked me, picking a fight with him. But hey..." the man seemed to be making the connections based on Avalon's teary face. "Oh, you couldn't be...?"

Avalon's eyes filled with tears in that one second. "P-please," she resorted to begging. "D-Don't tell anyone a-a-anything. Just...just get the Doctor. If I g-get out, he'll owe y-you s-s-something."

"Really?" the man raised an eyebrow as he watched Avalon hold the watch. Her hand was trembling to the point of nearly dropping the watch. He was no idiot. She was scared out of her mind and with good reason. He had heard all about the stupid woman who decided to kidnap one of the Doctor's companions, along with their child, and now he had the glorious opportunity to force the Doctor's hand?

That was simply too good of a deal to pass up.

He snatched the watch off Avalon's hand, noticing the woman flinch in the process, and bared his yellow pointy teeth at her. "You got a deal."

Avalon was in disbelief that it actually worked. "R-really?"

"Oh yeah, I can't wait to see the Doctor's face when I force his hand," he eyed the watch now in his possession with newfound fondness. He knew the power he held.

Avalon swallowed hard. How mad would the Doctor be once he learned that she basically let someone borrow him? Hopefully he'd still help her in the end. "C-c-can I...leave a-a m-messsage?" she made a gesture as if she was writing something in the air.

"Oh alright," the man rolled his eyes and retrieved a scrap of paper and pen. However she could, she scribbled a quick message - though from where the man stood, it didn't seem like a message. It was more chicken scratch than anything. She could barely hold the pen as it was.

"Could you...b-break...break..." Avalon tapped the glass of the watch. Her strength wasn't for that anymore. The man once again rolled his eyes and shattered the glass of the clock. Avalon quickly took the watch into her hands and pushed in the crumpled paper inside. "Th-there..."

The man snatched the watch before she could say goodbye to it. It was the last piece of the Doctor she had, so she really hoped giving it away would be worth it. Otherwise, she'd just be completely alone now.

"Now scram!" the man roared and laughed when Avalon turned to run away. She truly was a scared little thing.

When Avalon made it back to Kovarian, she was exhausted. It was a struggle to catch her breath, as if she'd ran a whole marathon.

But Kovarian just smiled upon her work. From her perspective, Avalon had passed the test. She'd given Avalon the opportunity to run away, but she didn't. She came right back just like she was ordered to.

The conditioning was well on its way.

~0~

The TARDIS landed right where the signal had come through, not a minute too late. She was just as motivated to find Avalon and Melody as everyone else. After all, the two women were a part of her too.

"You're sure we're not late or anything?" Lena questioned while the Doctor did a quick surveillance on the monitor of the Black Market they were in.

"Of course. The TARDIS knows the danger Ava and Melody are in. She wants them back as much as we do, don't you old girl?" the TARDIS gave an affirmative hum. The Doctor continued to work until a new thought crossed his mind. "You know, I guess I now understand why you always liked Avalon so much."

Lena smiled when the TARDIS seemed to hum another 'yes'.

"You know she chose Avalon straightaway?" the Doctor glanced at Lena, feigning a pout. "First night your sister stepped in, the TARDIS was willing to let Ava take her for a ride." Lena laughed when the TARDIS hummed what could only be an 'of course'.

"Are we there now!?" the Sapling came running down the stairs. "Is Mother here!?"

"Ah, not yet sure," the Doctor said once he got back to work. For the most part, the market just seemed to be like any other market.

"So, what was the signal you got?" Lena inched closer to his side to catch whatever was on the monitor.

"Somebody's trying to send a message," the Doctor mumbled as he worked to decipher that precise message. "Psychic connection, you see. Trying to send it through the TARDIS. Ah! Here we are!"

The screen turned black for a moment. Particles were arranging to form letters.

'Avalon Reynolds. Watch.'

That certainly got the trio silent.

"Who sent that, big brother?" Lena found her voice a few minutes later.

"I-I don't know exactly," the Doctor dove to the keyboard to figure that out. His fingers wouldn't work fast enough for him. "S-somebody wanted to get my attention though because they sent it directly to me."

"Then we should go!" the Sapling darted for the doors when the Doctor ordered him to stop. "But why?"

"Because that is a Black Market and you are a child. I don't know who sent that message but they wanted me here," the Doctor strode towards the doors, making sure to usher the Sapling in the opposite direction. "Lena, survey the entire Market for any trace of Avalon."

"On it," Lena nodded. "But what are you gonna do? What if it's a trap?"

"Then at least you and the Sapling will be here to call for back up. River Song's on the dialing list!"

"I'm sure she is," Lena chuckled as she took position by the console.

The Doctor turned for the doors and straightened his jacket. "Let's do this." He pushed the doors open and walked out.

He started down the long aisle of stalls, making sure to scour each stall for any red hair or eye patch. If Avalon was here, he was not leaving without her. And if this was a trick, then pity the fool who was behind it. He was in no mood for jokes and the entire galaxies knew it.

Eventually, he found an icky, slimy green man giving him a funny eye. The Doctor first made sure that the green man was actually looking at him before walking over to his stall. "You wouldn't happen to know if anyone around sent a psychic message to say, oh, a blue box?"

The green man made no attempt to hide his glee. "That'd be me. Doctor, I presume?" the Doctor gave a brief nod, now eyeing the man up and down. "Your different than the appearance description I had of you. Course that was years ago."

"You sent the message?"

"Why yes I did." The man suddenly raised the Doctor's old watch in the air and had a good laugh pulling it away after the Doctor lunged for it. "So it's true then. It is yours and you are very determined to get it back."

The Doctor glowered at the man who's chest practically rumbled with laughter. "You have 10 seconds to tell me where you got that from."

"Oh no, no," the man waved a finger, showing off a bright yellow nail that matched the yellow shade of his teeth. "This is valuable. And don't deny it because I know it."

"Where'd you get it from?" the Doctor's tone was dangerously low.

The man smirked proudly. "Some girl gave it to me. Promised me it was valuable and what do you know? She's right."

"What. Girl?"

"Oh, you want to know what she looked like?" the man lowered the watch for a moment as he pretended to think about it, or as if he had to remember. "Well, to be honest with yah, she wasn't looking all that good. Skin looked ready to crack. She's human, ain't she? That's how humans get when they're, uh, what do you call it? Dehydrated? Or no, wait, dry? I don't remember-"

The Doctor lost it and yanked the man over the counter by his slimy green collars. "You have exactly 0.5 seconds to tell me where the hell you got the watch from."

"Or what? I know your stories, you don't do weapons," the man grinned far too confident.

"Let me put it to you straight: the girl I'm looking for is somebody I will do anything for. I'll throw you into a blackhole right now if you don't start telling me the story. And if you think you just got me to deal with? You got another thing coming. You know River Song?"

The man snorted with heavy distaste. "Blasted woman destroyed my stock in the Celeste Black Market."

"The girl is her daughter. You really want to have me and her on your bad list?" the Doctor wasn't comfortable using that truth for his gain but River told him use anything as his disposal to find Avalon. He would apologize for that later. It'd gotten him some information beforehand so it was definitely useful.

"You're kidding," the man laughed. "That girl is her daughter? Well, I guess that's probably where she got her bargaining her skills from. Sneaky little thing."

The Doctor unceremoniously shook the man. "You get River Song as a treat for being extra disgusting. She takes care of your Black Market stocks and I-" he pulled the man slightly closer to his face, "-will take care of you, personally." There was a sweet, dark smile spreading across his face that promised true horrors.

The man had the good sense to gulp. "F-fine! The girl said her name was Avalon Reynolds. Said if I gave you the watch you would owe me a favor. Some friend you got there, bargaining you off for her own personal gain."

The Doctor let the man go without warning - ignoring the slump noise when the man fell over the counter - and took his watch. He inspected it for any other clue Avalon might have left behind for him. He didn't have to look much since the very first thing he saw was the missing glass. There was a small paper crumpled inside.

"Left that for yah," the man muttered once he'd gotten himself off the counter. "She could barely write, though. Kept shaking and one of her fingers had cuts on them."

The Doctor tried not to picture that image. How scared must she be? I need to be faster. He unfolded the paper and quickly read the few lines Avalon had written.

Brainwashing me. I don't know how long I can keep my sanity, literally.

They keep moving me. It's always in dark places.

Melody's on Earth somewhere. They took her away from me 3 months ago.

I'm sorry.

Three months ago. The Doctor found it incredibly hard to stay on his feet right then. It'd been 3 months for Avalon. Three months that she'd spent with Kovarian under God knew what tortures. His hand gripped the watch tightly between his fingers.

"This is all she left behind?" he scrutinized the man for any clue that he might be holding back.

"Yeah. She didn't look like she could say much more; looked very sick. But you owe me, Doctor. That was the deal the girl promised me. I gave you what she wanted."

"Yeah, except you didn't hold her here," the Doctor stuffed the watch and the paper in his jacket's inside pocket. "Then I would've owed you something."

The man was outraged he'd been lied to. "You can't do that! If you don't uphold the end of the bargain I'll-"

"No, you really won't," the Doctor pulled out his sonic and aimed it at the shelves holding jars of glowing liquids. When the sonic was activated, each of the jars exploded like dominoes. The man screamed at the sight of his ruined products but the Doctor didn't flinch with either noise. He only watched as each jar shattered and splattered the stall. "Use this a message to everyone else: if they see Kovarian, the Silence, or Avalon Reynolds, they better call me or I'll come for them and destroy everything that's precious to them. That's a Time Lord's promise." He took off and allowed himself to relish in the man's suffering just for a bit. Or maybe for a long moment. Because if word got out that he would make anyone suffer should they not follow his instructions, he could get Avalon back quicker. And besides, anyone who hurt Avalon deserved to be terrified and to suffer in pain.

[saiilorstars]

Falling in Temptation

Ch. 13: An Impossible Girl

Previous chapters • Sequel to Stars Dance •  Fairy Tale Memoirs (Companion story)

Fandom: Doctor Who

Pairing: 11th Doctor x Female OC

Chapter summary: The Doctor digs deeper into Avalon's backstory and learns that some old friends researched her first and discovered the impossible.

Taglist: @ocfairygodmother @anotherunreadblog @maaaaarveeeeel​

Ryland Reynolds was distraught when he learned that his daughter had been taken by the very people he worked so hard to hide her from. He didn't even care that the Doctor and Lena - and everyone else for that matter - discovered who Avalon's mother really was. He only knew that Avalon was gone.

"I thought letting her go off with you would be a lot better than keeping her here!" he shouted at the Doctor, although it wasn't to show anger towards the Time Lord. He was angry at the situation. "But how the hell was I supposed to know that you two-" he let a hand wildly gesture at Amy and Rory, "-were going to turn out to be her grandparents!? What kind of...?" he couldn't even finish the right words to describe how ridiculous this entire situation was.

"Daddy," Lena said once his father had fallen back on their couch. He was overwhelmed, and with good reason too. After a few days of searching for Avalon and Melody, the Doctor decided to go back to the beginning - the very beginning - in Avalon's timeline for some helpful resources. And who knew about the very beginning of Avalon's existence?

Ryland Reynolds.

As of right now, he was the only person they could talk to about Avalon's background. River was too much of a complicated space-time event to get information from. As she pointed out, she had to keep the timelines just the way they were in order for Avalon to exist.

"Believe me, it was a shock to us too," Rory muttered lowly. He held Amy beside him, just like he had from the moment they'd been dropped back on Earth by River. They were at a loss for words and the only thing(s) that could make it better was to find Melody and Avalon.

"So let me get this straight," Ryland rubbed his forehead a bit too hard that Lena physically lowered his hand, "You two are River Song's parents? And she was kidnapped by the Silence? The Silence Order or whatever they're called."

"Yeah," Amy muttered just like Rory. "So if there's anything you can tell us, please do. I'm begging you."

"Anything will do," the Doctor agreed. He was taking a look at the pictures adorning the fireplace. They were the same pictures he saw the first night he had come back for Avalon. How quickly things changed. "I need anything you have to conduct a thorough search."

"Well, like what?" Ryland asked.

"Maybe start with how you got Avalon in the first place?" Lena softly asked. It was the burning question she had all her life. "Is she your daughter? Or are you her adoptive Dad too?"

"Lena..." Ryland sighed and brought his hand to his ginger hair. "I think that's a conversation I need to have with Avalon first."

"No, it's really not," the Doctor turned away from the fireplace with a picture frame in hand. "Because as I said, anything you have I need to know in order to find Avalon and Melody. And I know for a fact that she-" he showed Ryland the frame he held which turned out to be Emmalina Reynolds with both Avalon and Lena as toddlers, "-is not Avalon's mother. I should have seen it the first time I was here."

"But she is Avalon's mother," Ryland took the frame into his hands and gazed fondly at the picture. "Emmalina didn't care that Avalon wasn't hers. She treated Avalon the same as Lena and Gavin. She was her mother."

"No, she really wasn't," Amy glowered at the man although just like him earlier, she wasn't mad at him but at the situation. River was Avalon's mother and like herself, River didn't get the chance to see her daughter grow up. She swallowed hard when a new thought came to her mind: who did Melody call Mother right now? Did she have anyone around who was like a Mother?

Ryland seemed to understand where Amy was at. "I'm sorry. I don't personally know River Song. I knew of her back then. But I promise you that Emmalina was a good Mother to Avalon."

"And you?" the Doctor eyed Ryland studiously. "Were you a good 'father'?"

"Apparently not since I let her get captured anyways," Ryland shook his head. "Look, you want to know the truth? Fine, I'm not Avalon's father. She's not my daughter but I love her as if she was."

"But Mum didn't know," Lena said quietly, her voice frail as she remembered the argument she once overheard her parents having when she was young. "That's why she was mad at you the day I heard it all. She was asking you if Avalon was your daughter and you didn't tell her."

"I wish you hadn't heard all that sweetheart," Ryland sighed. "I loved Emmalina but I couldn't tell her anything about Avalon's background. It was to keep her and Avalon safe. That way if the Silence ever found us, they'd only want me."

"Daddy, no..." Lena scooted closer to her father, terrified at just the idea of the Silence coming for her father too. "So then...so then Avalon really is adopted. She get to grow up with either of her parents."

"Not exactly," the Doctor suddenly said, sounding too certain for someone who was meant to be searching for information on the matter. He had returned to the fireplace and picked up a specific picture frame.

"What do you mean?" Rory practically demanded. "Doctor, you promised anything you learned you would tell us."

The Doctor nodded. He remembered and he would keep his word. He turned around again and showed them another picture: a teenage Avalon and Lena with their younger brother Gavin. "The nose."

"What?" went the Ponds and Lena.

Even if the Doctor had an inkling of doubt, he got the confirmation from Ryland who hadn't looked remotely surprised by his two words. "She has the nose," he came back to the group and carelessly tossed the frame over to Rory. "She doesn't have your nose."

Rory's face went flat. "Are we really going to do those jokes again?"

"No, no, look closer," the Doctor scurried over like a child to show him what he meant. He snatched the frame from Rory and specifically tapped at Avalon's nose then Lena's and finally Gavin's. "She has their nose."

"Okay, what are you talking about?" Amy took the frame with a sigh. "She's got whose nose?"

"Lena's and Gavin's," the Doctor gestured back to Lena who was now touching her nose questionably. "Avalon has the same nose as Lena and Gavin. They're not siblings but they are related." His eyes flickered to Ryland for the last confirmation. "Aren't they?"

Lena's eyes widened as she glanced at her father. Ryland had on a straight face when he nodded. "Daddy, what do you mean?"

"She's my niece," he finally confessed. "Avalon is my niece. She's my brother's daughter."

"Brother...?" Lena whispered then gasped. "Uncle Oliver! He's your only brother! Is Avalon his...?"

Ryland nodded again. "Oliver was my younger brother," he started to explain for the other's benefit. "He was studying at a university in the 51st century..."

"Your native time," Amy realized. Like she always said, it was hard to remember that Avalon and the Reynolds weren't from the present Earth. They were all from the 51st century.

"And let me guess," the Doctor came around the coffee table to stand in front of Ryland, "That's where he met Melody - no, sorry, River."

"Yeah," Ryland sighed. "I never met her but from what Oliver used to tell me, she was a wild one. I told him to stay away cos he wanted to study. He wanted to be a musician. Go figure."

A small smile spread across Lena's face as a new realization struck her. "That's where Avalon's singing voice comes from. Uncle Oliver."

"Oliver used to sing all the time, it was unbearable," Ryland groaned but laughed at the memories. "Every time I heard Avalon sing, it was like I was hearing Oliver...only Avalon sounded a better." The tears were quick to form in his eyes.

"What happened to him?" the Doctor asked. Avalon didn't seem to know much about her 'uncle' when she described him from the photo album the Sapling had been looking at a while back. "Avalon said he passed away but...that was all she knew."

"Because that's all I knew," Ryland admitted with guilt. "To this day I still don't know how it was that he died. The university said it was some break in or something. He got caught in it. But I know that something else happened to him."

"Kovarian?" Amy's eyes flickered to the Doctor. "You think it could've been her?"

"At this point," the Doctor sighed. "It very well could be."

"Oh my God," Amy gripped the frame in her hand. "They killed Avalon's Dad. She never even got to meet him." And if they didn't hurry, who knew who else might get caught up in the crossfires of the Silence and Kovarian.

"So Avalon is my cousin," Lena said but even as she said the word it didn't sound right. Avalon was her sister. She always had been even after Lena discovered Avalon was adopted. They grew up together, their entire lives - up until the Doctor showed up 14 years later - had been devoted to each other, Avalon more towards Lena of course.

"No, she's your sister," the Doctor told her, softly smiling at her when he read her distasteful expression. "She always has been and she always will be."

"Yeah, well, she's our granddaughter and we'd like her back," Rory spoke through the moment without caring if he cut it short. Time was of the essence. "Along with Melody."

"Yes," the Doctor snapped his fingers at him. "So Ryland, I need you to tell me how it was that you got Avalon in the first place. You never met River, so who gave you Avalon and when did you get her?"

Ryland was staring at him oddly, puzzled. "Well...it was you, Doctor. You brought Avalon to me as a newborn."

The Doctor's eyes blinked fast for a few seconds while the words fully processed in his head. While the others were naturally shocked, the Doctor was thinking. "Oh..." he said a minute later. "You know what, the TARDIS once told me that too."

"What?" Amy arched an eyebrow at him. "How do you know-"

"Shhh!"

Amy closed her mouth but it was only because the quicker he thought, the quicker they could find both girls. And indeed the Doctor was thinking, thinking back to when the TARDIS had been placed into a human body. Her jumbled words were beginning to make a lot of sense now.

"Of course!" Idris waved him off and moved for the exit, "You brought her in when she was just a little baby," she mimicked the rocking of a baby.

"She did tell me that," he concluded a few minutes later. "I brought Avalon into the TARDIS when she was just a newborn...meaning I have to be there when River eventually gives birth. Oh, that should be interesting."

"Doctor!" Rory hissed. "Focus!"

"Right! So Ryland, I bring Avalon to you sometime in your past - in the future I presume?"

Ryland nodded. "Yeah. Emmalina was, um, ready to give birth herself to Lena. I think you brought her in maybe like, two weeks before Lena was born?"

"And did I say anything? Maybe leave myself a little message?"

Ryland scrunched his face. "Actually, yeah. Well, first you warned me that there would be a time when you would come back and...have this precise conversation with me."

"Yeah, that's how time travel works! Anything else?"

"He said that things would turn out okay." And as Ryland spoke those words, he did feel a bit of a relief washing over him. In the end, Avalon would be okay and she would come back. The same feeling went for Lena and the Ponds. "And he was very adamant that I warn you about...a poison? Not to let..." And suddenly his face fell flat, almost scary like a Dad. "He said not to let Avalon kiss you in Berlin."

"Oh, funny how time travel works," the Doctor cleared his throat and looked away with flushed cheeks. Why would his future self be so adamant about that?

"Dad," Lena gently shook her father's arm until he dropped the accusing face on the Doctor.

"It's what he said!" Ryland exclaimed, gesturing at the Time Lord. "So don't let her do it!"

"Anything else?" the Doctor asked fast in hopes of moving the conversation along.

"No," Ryland shook his head. "I mean, you just said that I had to hide Avalon. That-that people would want to find her so I had to hide her really well. So I did. I came here."

"You mean that's the reason why we left New Earth?" frowned Lena. "Do you realize how bad of a move that was for Avalon?"

"I wanted to make sure that nobody found her," Ryland sighed then threw Amy and Rory a look. "How was I supposed to know that I'd end up moving next door to her grandmother?"

"Ditto," Amy returned the favor with a sour tone.

"Okay, okay, okay," the Doctor began to pace back and forth along the fireplace. "So I give you Avalon and then you move here. She grows up and she meets me again? Twice..."

"Did you ever get the feeling that you were being watched or something?" Rory question a few seconds later.

"Oh yes! Good question!" the Doctor once again snapped his fingers at Rory. "Well? Was there?"

"Not really," Ryland shrugged. "I did what you asked, Doctor. I kept her safe and away from the big cities. That's why we chose Leadworth. Nobody wants to come here."

"Yeah, good job," the Doctor made a face when he thought about the small town. He remembered Avalon complaining how nothing ever happened in the damn place. "But still, anything strange? Maybe somebody staring oddly at you or Avalon? Somebody who said something strange?"

Ryland thought long and hard about anything that could be helpful in the search. "Well..." he wasn't sure if this precise memory would be useful but it was better for the Doctor to know just in case. "One time...there was this...girl, a woman. I, uh, I had an argument with Avalon. She was 15 and we shouted a lot. Avalon ran away and I went looking for her after a while."

"Giving her time to cool off, I know the feeling," the Doctor admitted. "So, what happened?"

"I found her in the park, she was on a swing - she loves the swings - but she wasn't alone. There was this woman with her. Brown hair-" he mimicked the hair on the side of his head, "-and brown eyes. Kind of petite. Round face, maybe? She was talking to Avalon and the way she spoke made it sound like she knew Avalon."

"Was she a friend?" the Doctor asked and glanced at the others to see if they knew some woman by that description.

"Avalon barely had friends," Ryland sighed. "She had those two," he nodded at Amy and Rory, "That Mels. And that's pretty much it. This woman...I only ever saw her that one time and everyone knows each other in Leadworth."

"That's true," Lena agreed with a nod. "No one does anything here without somebody else knowing about it."

"Well, what was this woman saying to Avalon?" the Doctor pressed for more details. At this point, he would take anything if it meant being closer to finding Avalon.

"Avalon was angry with me because I wouldn't let her work with Torchwood. I didn't want her anywhere near all those guns and especially not when she was supposed to be in hiding," Ryland explained as if he was just waiting for the group to reproach him for being unfair.

"She was 15?" the Doctor raised an eyebrow as he began making the mental calculations of the year that would be. "2004? Oh yeah," he let out a wolf whistle, "Dodged a huge bullet there. I closed that place down years later."

"But we ended up going after it was re-opened by Jack," Lena reminded her father, beginning to get confused with their trips to that place.

"That was after it was purged from all the anti-alien idealists," Ryland said. "But Avalon insisted on going there. I guess she always felt like she was different and when I said 'no' she lost it. That woman, though, she kept telling Avalon that she wasn't the only one out there in the world. She shouldn't feel alone."

"Maybe it was just somebody trying to be nice?" Amy offered but Ryland seemed certain that it was all wrong.

"No, because she said something that I didn't pick up until now. She told Avalon that her waiting time was almost over. Avalon would just need to wait a few more years."

"A few more years for what?" Lena whispered.

"For you," Rory suddenly pointed at the Doctor. "Four years later you came back to Leadworth and then 2 more years later you came back for her."

"Interesting," the Doctor straightened up and wondered who this woman was and how she knew that precise information. "You never saw her again?" he asked Ryland.

"No. Never again."

"So what do we think? Could she be involved with Kovarian?" Lena asked the Doctor.

"No, because Kovarian detests me. If that woman was involved with her, she would've brought Avalon right to Kovarian at that moment. Instead she offered Avalon comforting words. Sounds to me she was more of a friend."

"That's all I have, Doctor," Ryland rose from the couch, frustrated with himself over the little information he had. "We've truly lived the way you - the future you - told me to."

"I believe you," the Doctor put a hand over Ryland's shoulder, nodding with reassurance that he had no doubt everything had been done according to his future self's instructions.

Ryland could relish in that at least someone knew the extents he'd gone to, to protect his niece. "But between you and me, I always knew that Avalon wouldn't stay here. Leadworth is too small for someone who...moves too fast." A smile was quick to come to the Doctor's face. "And I don't think she got that from either of her parents. I think that's all Avalon."

"Yeah," the Doctor agreed with a fond sigh. "Ava's meant to be up there," he pointed up, indicating the sky and the stars. "And I'm gonna get her back so I can take her to all those places."

"Big brother, I was thinking..." Lena began suddenly, "Would it be easier - or at least helpful - to find Avalon if you know exactly what you were looking for?"

The Doctor gave her a tilted stare for her odd question. "Baby sister, I know who I'm looking for..."

"Yes, of course of you do. I just meant maybe if you had the exact profile of my sister - cousin..." Lena momentarily closed her eyes, willing herself to get used to that term. It seemed very far-fetched, honestly. "If you had her exact scans, her biology, maybe you could use it to pick up a trace of her."

"I do, actually," the Doctor nodded once he understood what she was getting at. "I took the ones from Kovarian."

"But we have more," Ryland chimed in when he got what Lena was hinting at. He should've thought about it earlier! "We took her to Torchwood years back. Believe you know Jack Harkness?"

The raspberry the Doctor threw answered it pretty well. "That guy!"

"He's funny," Lena chuckled but the Doctor wagged a stern finger at her.

"You stay away from him, baby sister!"

"Avalon liked him..."

"Oh, of course she did," the Doctor rolled his eyes. He didn't want to think how those two were when they got together. Jack Harkness was a ridiculous flirt. Avalon had her flirty ways too. Those two must have had some goes with each other...

The Doctor fervently shook his head suddenly, earning himself some odd (and concerned) looks from the others. "Sorry. Do you have those profiles?"

"I don't, but Jack does. I asked him to keep it confidential because the last thing I wanted was for someone to find them here."

"Good thinking. I'm gonna have to go retrieve them then."

"Don't have to, I can give Jack a call to bring them here," Ryland volunteered instantly and headed for his cellphone to do the job.

"You really think that could help find Ava?" Rory asked when Ryland left. "And Melody?"

"I can only hope," the Doctor admitted. "I don't quite understand Avalon's and Melody's biology but if there's something unique - which there has to be, given what they are - then just maybe I can trace them."

"You make them sound like experiments," Amy's voice shuddered. She remembered when she and Avalon had been taken by the Silence back in America. She had woken up several times and in one of those Silence mentioned they had examined Avalon. Of course at that time Amy didn't make much of it. She was terrified and angry with those creatures. But now she thought that maybe if she had paid more attention this could have been avoided. She could have had Melody with her and maybe Avalon too.

"They're not experiments," the Doctor quietly said. He figured where Amy's thoughts had gone to. "But...Melody, River, was a bit engineered when we talk about the Time Lord abilities. Ava was just a lovely surprise for everyone, including River I imagine." A big grin came to his face. Avalon would come as a surprise. She always knew how to make an entrance. She'd just been making them from the start of her life. But my what a surprise she was, is. She's a miracle. Her existence wasn't planned on and it most certainly couldn't have been easy for River to carry her to term given her situation.

No wonder Avalon believed in fairy tales and the impossible - she was quite an impossible girl herself.

~0~

Young Gavin Reynolds sat on the floor of his sister's bedroom with...his sister's tree child. As he tilted his head to the left, so did the Sapling. When he tilted his head to the right, the Sapling did the same. If he was any other ordinary human, he night have been terrified. But it was actually pretty cool, and so Avalon.

"My sister just can't be normal for like 1 minute, can she?" Gavin rolled his eyes.

"Mother is very unique," the Sapling announced, his tone giving a warning for Gavin not to argue the opposite.

Gavin only shrugged. "You're going to be fun at family reunions."

There was a light knock on the open bedroom door. "Sapling?" the Doctor stepped inside and immediately found the two boys on the floor.

The Sapling instantly jumped to his feet and rushed up to him. "Did we find Mother!?"

"No, we just needed to come here to get some information..."

The Sapling paused and tilted his head up. "What kind of information?"

Before the Doctor answered, Gavin jumped in with a fairly calm explanation. "He wanted to know about Avalon being adopted." At the Doctor's questioning face, Gavin rolled his eyes and looked at the Sapling. "Dude, if you want to be part of this family you gotta get good at the eavesdropping."

"That's not very nice," the Doctor said, though there was no scolding in his tone.

"Yeah, neither is what happened to Avalon."

The Doctor shifted on his feet, clearly waiting for something and it only took Gavin a few seconds to realize what it was.

"I'm not blaming you. First of all, Avalon would kill me. She's like in love with you or something."

The Sapling giggled. "Not yet, but I think she will be very so-" the Doctor had covered the Sapling's mouth and nervously smiled.

Gavin smirked. "Right. So, my sister is really my cousin? And the reason we live here is because Dad needed to hide her? Who's that interested in her?"

The Doctor sighed and pulled his hand off the Sapling's mouth. "Some very bad people, Gavin."

"Can I help? Avalon and I fight sometimes but that's just what siblings do."

"But Mother is your cousin," the Sapling pointed out for technical terms.

"No, she's my sister," Gavin corrected calmly but with certainty.

The Doctor smiled at the teenager. "And I'm sure when she gets back she'll say the same thing about you. But I would really prefer for you to stay here. Who else is going to watch over her things?"

"Yeah I guess," Gavin shrugged. "But I'm here too, alright? Only I can be mean to my sisters. Anyone else I'll kick their ass."

The Doctor laughed. Now that sounded a lot like Avalon. "Right."

"I'm going to see my Dad," Gavin headed for the doorway but stopped just by the Sapling. "You're pretty cool, tree kid, probably the coolest thing Avalon's done."

The Sapling giggled. "Mother gave me her memories. She didn't actually birth me, not like aunt Amy gave birth to Melody."

"Still, see you around, Gavin gave him a high five. "Hey, when you get older, I'll teach you how to skateboard."

The Sapling's eyes dazzled with excitement. "Oh yes! That would be so much fun!" Gavin laughed as he walked out the room. "I like him!" the Sapling exclaimed after Gavin was gone. "But he did say he read Mother's diary when they were younger. Is that was siblings do?"

"Uh, humans are complicated," the Doctor decided to leave it at that. Although he was curious how furious Avalon must have been when she found Gavin with her prized possession.

He looked around the empty room and felt a new layer of heavy guilt taking place over his hearts. It felt like time hadn't passed and that it was only yesterday when he saw Avalon's room for the first time. It was the night she brought him back to show him all her fairytale books. She was safe and sound, showing off what she loved most...

How things changed.

Avalon's room remained exactly the same as when the Doctor first saw it.

The room was still stocked with fairy tale books of all origins. There were even piles of books left on the floor because they couldn't fit on the bookshelves. Her bed was still neatly made with her pink and gold covers. There was a Tinkerbell cushion sitting in the middle of the two pillows. The walls, unlike Amy's childhood bedroom, wasn't filled with kid's drawings. Avalon had decorated her walls with flower stencils - some bright sunflowers, red and pink roses, and a few daffodils. There were various magazine clippings of fashion runways she probably idolized.

Now I see her insistence on runways, the Doctor mused after noticing one prominent clipping near the door. It was of Milan, announcing the brand new fashion week that year experienced.

"Mother really likes to write, huh?" the Sapling had wandered over to Avalon's desk that was full of papers and sprawled pens. A white lamp sat on the right corner. Her chair had been left facing just a bit away from the desk, like someone who had finished working for the moment.

"Yes," the Doctor came over and skimmed some of the papers left behind. It seemed like Avalon had been working on a few short stories. Contrary to what everyone might assume about her writing, none of the stories were about him. They were completely original.

The Doctor's hearts swelled as he started to thoroughly read one draft. He had never actually seen her writing. They'd joked that one day he would take a peek at her journal but the moment never came. It was always about running and danger and...

Things had moved too fast. The irony wasn't lost on him. It's what Avalon wanted from the start. Things were too slow in Leadworth and outer space was definitely the cure. But sometimes, sometimes going slow was good too.

There were moments that could only be savored if they were slow.

Like this one.

Avalon's writing was eloquent and beautiful. Her imagination was incredibly vast. In one paper she'd created an entire new world that sounded like one of the places he would end up travelling to. Anyone who read this draft would be enthralled.

"What's this, Father?" the Sapling called, pulling the Doctor's attention off the paper in his hands. The Sapling had found a folded letter on the floor next to one of the desk legs. "

The Doctor took the paper thinking it would be another draft, perhaps one he might take with him to reread whenever he wanted. He gave it a skim and realized it was an application. A job maybe that Avalon was thinking of applying for before he popped in?

No. He blinked in surprise when he realized it was an application for a publishing shop in Leadworth. And then his hearts swelled all over again. Avalon had been trying to present one of her stories to the local book shop.

She would've gotten it, no doubt, he concluded.

But the application was only halfway finished before big, ugly pen lines crossed off her written information. The Doctor's hearts broke. Avalon had changed her mind but knowing her, she probably decided her writing wasn't good enough. He then realized that the story she'd been ready to submit was the folded paper behind the application.

"Father, what is it?" the Sapling reminded the Doctor that he was still waiting to know what the paper was.

"It's, uh...your mother was trying to get one of her stories published. But it looks like she changed her mind."

"Why?" frowned the Sapling.

"She probably thought her story wasn't all that good."

"Well that had to be wrong! Mother's an excellent writer!"

"She is, actually," the Doctor said, now completely certain about it. He let the application fall to the desk and read through the draft she abandoned. "Maybe when she gets back we can convince her."

The Sapling beamed. "Oh yes!"

"Doctor?" Amy had poked her head into the room, a few seconds later Rory did the same. "Your, uh, friend is here?"

"Is he?" the Doctor lowered the draft in his hand but he didn't let go. "That should be interesting then."

"God this room looks weird now," Rory crinkled his nose at the bedroom. "This used to be my best friend's room...now it's my granddaughter's."

"Imagine me," Amy folded her arms, her nose crinkling in the same way Rory had. "I swore that Avalon used to like you." Rory's entire face scrunched. "I used to think my granddaughter was in love with her grandfather."

"Yeah, uh, let's never talk about that again," Rory resolved. "Let's just think that she'll be back soon, along with Melody."

Amy nodded fervently. They would get them both back.

Neither of them witnessed the Doctor's expression go grim for a moment. He couldn't let them believe everything was going to be completely normal. That would just be cruel. "Ponds, I have to, uh...warn you...about something. Things." Amy turned sideways, her eyes narrowing as if asking him 'what more?'. "I understand that you want baby Melody back...but do you remember what River told us? Back on Demons Run?"

Amy looked away, but Rory gave a small nod. "The timelines..." he whispered.

"Yeah," the Doctor swallowed hard. "Look, the girl in the astronaut suit...given what we've learned, there's a good chance that it was Melody or, if the time lines are changing and the one we lived is the changed one, it's Avalon."

And the first thing that both Amy and Rory thought about was the astronaut they'd seen at Lake Silencio. Could it be that Melody was the same astronuat? Or Avalon?

Amy didn't say anything but the small noise that came out of her mouth said it all. No, no, because that would mean...

"It's established history. Melody has to grow up a certain way, in certain parts, in order for Avalon to exist."

"But that doesn't mean I have to give her up," Amy suddenly snapped and when she realized it she took in a deep breath. "I understand what you mean, alright? But can't we just make sure that Melody goes to that university when she grows up? She'll meet Oliver Reynolds and then we'll have Avalon?"

"Yes and no, it's complicated Pond..." the Doctor himself wasn't even sure how things could work best. He would definitely have to go and consult with River soon. "River made her choices because of what she lived through. She became what she did, because of her choices. And if we take those moments away..."

"She might make a choice that leads her down an entire new path where Avalon is never born," Rory said quietly. It was clear that he had already thought about this before.

"So those are my only two choices?" Amy frowned deeply, her eyes glistening with tears. "I have to choose between my daughter and my granddaughter?"

"Amy..." the Doctor tried to touch her arm but she stepped away. It was hard not to feel hurt by the action but the Doctor reminded himself that on a level, she was right. It was his fault.

"They should've just taken me instead," Amy muttered and stormed out of the room.

"Aunt Amy, come back!" the Sapling ran after the woman. He didn't want more arguments when things were already so bad.

"Don't take it personal, Doctor," Rory sighed.

"But I should, because the choice I'm giving her isn't entirely fair. And the only reason this is happening is because of me. You should hate me."

"I don't..." Rory was all for denying that statement, but something inside him stopped him. "Doctor, I do not hate you. You have to know that. Amy doesn't hate you either. We're just...we're in pain."

"I should've avoided it, though," the Doctor sighed. "I should have worked harder. I-I should have...listened to you." He turned to the bookshelves lining the side of the room.

Rory watched where the Doctor was looking at. He knew exactly what the Doctor was trying to say and couldn't help the layer of guilt that started inside him too. "Look Doctor, if there's something you need to know before you go off searching for the girls...it's that I shouldn't have pressured you into staying away from Avalon. I-I should have listened to Amy and just stayed out of it." His drive to protect Avalon had always been too much and now he knew why, but it didn't excuse him.

"No, Rory, you did exactly what you were supposed to...what your parental instincts told you. You saw danger and you wanted someone you loved to be safe," the Doctor side-glanced him with sad eyes. "You were just too late."

"No, no," Rory shook his head. "Because maybe if I hadn't stuck my nose into yours and Avalon's business, you would've had enough trust between each other to confide in Avalon and let her know that you wanted to keep her safe. I messed up Doctor, and I'm sorry. So, when this all over, please don't listen to my words anymore. Forget about everything I told you because the safest place for Avalon, the happiest place, at your side. I'm sorry, Doctor."

"You're fine, Rory," the Doctor promised him. Of course he wouldn't blame Rory for trying to keep Avalon safe. Rory had been right all along. He was too dangerous for everyone around him. It'd been naive of him to think that he could change the story with Avalon - and the Ponds - into something that wouldn't end tragically.

Nobody was safe with him.

~ 0 ~

It was truly an interesting moment meeting Jack Harkness again after a long time, even more so now that the Doctor had regenerated. Jack had his go - it was just something he couldn't deny himself - at the Doctor's new face. He started out with 'what a baby face!' and then moved onto the bowties (that were so dorky, apparently) and it ended with an exaggerated comment about his chin.

He was still Jack alright.

"I can't believe you picked up the only other girl who's remotely close to your biology, Doc," Jack rolled his eyes as he set his things down on the Reynolds' kitchen table. "Actually, why'd it take you so long? Should've done this with your last face!"

The Doctor rolled his eyes now and motioned for Jack to hurry setting up his things. "Yeah, yeah. And you know, you could've helped by pointing out to me that there was somebody living on Earth with Time Lord biology."

"I was under oath not to say anything," Jack made a gesture at the group coming into the kitchen. "Ryland here told me that future you sent those instructions. What was I supposed to do?"

The Doctor really hated himself right now, literally. "Fine, fine, just get on with it."

"Right," Jack nodded but paused when he caught sight of Amy and Rory. He could immediately tell they were the parents of Avalon's mother. "I'm sorry for what's happened," he told them earnestly. "But if anyone can find that baby and Avalon, it's that guy right here," he nodded at the Doctor, giving them all his most faithful smile.

"What did you bring?" Lena curiously eyed the computer on the table.

"Everything we ever got on Avalon," Jack shrugged. "Even my own chicken-scratch notes. I figured anything was useful."

"Thanks," the Doctor nodded as he picked up a few of those papers. "How long have you known Avalon?"

"Uh, couple years?" Jack struggled to remember the exact date he'd first met the Reynolds.

"Avalon was about 18," Ryland helped out with the detail. "I knew that Torchwood was a safe place now and I thought if anyone could help Avalon, as well as the rest of my family, blend in...it'd be them."

"And what exactly did you do to Avalon?" Rory raised an eyebrow at Jack, the accusing eyes being a part of him that just came out.

"Nothing hurtful," Jack promised him and the others. "We just ran several tests, gave her things to do. I even had some help. She'll be popping in a few minutes."

"Who did you call?" the Doctor immediately frowned. "You weren't supposed to-"

"-easy there, Doc," Jack warned him to calm down. "I know that this is all new to you but I've come to really like Avalon. I wouldn't put her in harm's way. Besides, you know her too. Just wait a few minutes for the surprise."

"Can we get this moving, please?" Amy's tone was laced with impatience and a bit of anger, though that anger wasn't directed at anyone. "This is supposed to help find Melody and Avalon."

"Right," Jack turned his laptop on and started to explain how it was that Avalon came to them. "I didn't believe it at first, when I read the results and saw that Avalon carried biological traits that only Time Lords were supposed to have. I thought her Dad was pulling a joke on me."

"I didn't even know what Avalon was," Ryland pointed out. "That's why I brought her there."

"And Avalon never realized what these tests were for?" Lena raised an eyebrow at them. She couldn't see Avalon being that ignorant.

"Well, she never remembered them," Jack shrugged. "We wiped her memory each time. Otherwise, she'd find out what she was and who knows what that could've done."

"You wiped her memory?" the Doctor scowled as a new flash of anger ran across his face. "Repeatedly? Do you know the long term effects of that!? Jack!"

"That's why we ran as many tests as we could in one day, for a few days each year. I know the effects," Jack promised him that he wasn't that stupid. But if Jack was being honest, he detected that no matter what he would say, if something was inconvenient for Avalon, the Doctor would be furious. He'd make a note for that later.

"Well, what kind of tests did you run?" Rory's tone was no better than Amy's or the Doctor's.

"We started out with her strength," Jack surfed through his computer to pull up a video of that precise test. "One of the first days we saw her."

Avalon had been instructed to resist the closing of a simple door, but that door was made of a denser material than most doors. She pushed her hands against the door (that was being pushed in the opposite way by an automated system) and to everyone's surprise, she was succeeding. The door had almost opened.

"Yeah, that was our first clue that she wasn't completely related to the family," Jack remarked towards the end of the video. "We ran the same test on Ryland and a much lenient one on Lena."

"I don't remember that," Lena blinked and quickly shot her father a look. "You wiped my brain too!?"

"I had to sweetheart," Ryland sighed.

"We tested Avalon's endurance to temperature differences," Jack went on and pulled up a result for one of those exams. "She's pretty adaptable to heat and cold." The Doctor had moved in to see for himself, his eyes racing over each line. "I mean, she's not up to the same level as you, Doctor, but she's pretty advanced."

"Yeah," the Time Lord agreed. "Did it hurt her?" he asked after a moment, raising his gaze from the laptop screen to see Jack already smiling at him.

"Of course not. Everything was completely monitored."

There was a sudden door bell that froze everyone in their spots.

"Dad!" they soon heard Gavin's voice from the foyer. "There's some weird lady asking to come in! She says she knows Jack!" there was a quiet whisper that was followed by Gavin's voice, "And the Doctor!"

"Who did you bring?" the Doctor suspiciously looked at Jack. He was grinning mischievously.

"Come on in! We're in the kitchen!" Jack called for the mysterious visitor.

A few moments later, a dark-skinned woman walked into the kitchen with a nervous smile. "Hello," she gave a small wave of her hand.

The Doctor's mouth might have hit the floor in shock. "M-Martha!?"

Martha Jones was just as surprised as he was. Her eyes blinked rapidly as she tried to take in his appearance. "Don't tell me...Doctor?"

"Oh yeah," Jack's laugh promised for some new remarks later on. "Isn't it hilarious!"

"Oi!" went the Doctor with a huff.

Martha laughed and walked up to the Doctor with open arms. "Oh come here you! And give me a hug!" the Doctor did obey and hugged her tightly. He didn't realize how much he missed her. "I thought I'd never see you again," Martha confessed after giving him a tighter squeeze. "After you showed up at the hunting ground...Mickey and I just knew..."

The Doctor pulled away with a saddened smile. "I may have been a bit over dramatic back then..."

Martha smiled at him but she noticed that despite his happiness to see her, there was a heavy pain sitting in his eyes and it had nothing to do with what happened with Donna, the Daleks, or even Rose. That's when she noticed the gloomy air around the others. "Nice to see you again, Mr. Reynolds, Lena," she gave the two a nod. "I wish it was under better circumstances."

"Thanks for coming," Ryland gave her a quick hug.

Martha then turned her attention to the two people she didn't know yet. She presumed them to be the Doctor's current companions. "Martha Jones," she stepped towards them and held her hand out.

"Amy," the ginger went first, but her weakened shake told Martha just how upset she was.

"Rory," went the man next. He seemed to be fighting the urge to frown like his wife.

"I'm so sorry," Martha sighed and looked at the Doctor. "So, Miss Reynolds? How did you find her? Mr. Reynolds-" she nodded over to Ryland, "-was very keen on no one finding out about her existence."

"You know me, Martha. I always find a way," the Doctor shrugged, sighing deeply. "How did you come across Avalon?"

"He called me," Martha nodded to Jack who agreed to confirm. "Told me there was a girl who could be a Time Lady. She wasn't, but, she's in that area."

"So what did you do to her, then?"

Martha paused to process his rather accusing tone, as if she'd done something wrong. "I just asked her some questions for a few tests," she answered slowly, eyes meeting his accusing ones. "I didn't harm her, if that's what you're assuming."

"What did you do?"

Martha checked for Jack's expression and when he gave another nod and a look that said 'he did that with me too', Martha sighed and moved over to the table. "Look for yourself."

A younger version of Avalon appeared on the screen sitting behind a metal table with her arms crossed and an expression warning everybody in the vicinity of her growing agitation. "I already told you," her tone was a snappy one as she glared at whoever was sitting on the opposite side. Their back was to the camera. "I don't want to do this anymore."

"It's just a few questions." It turned out to be Martha herself conducting the exams. "Why are you so upset?"

"Because I have a date I need to get to," Avalon snapped hard for a teenager. "And I don't feel like explaining why I was late. I mean, how do I fit 'weird creepy alien institution examining me' into a normal conversation?"

"She got you there," Jack whispered to Martha who then elbowed his side.

Avalon Reynolds turned out to be quite difficult sometimes. Martha could still remember the wicked headaches she got each time she had to run tests on the girl.

"Let's just answer these few questions and then you can go," Martha was saying.

"You know what? Why don't you just bite me?" Avalon smirked knowing she got a rile out of Martha.

In the present, Martha still scowled. "No offence, but she has a mouth on her."

"Hasn't changed," the Doctor murmured.

Martha caught his rather proud smile. Oh, she should've known. Not even surprised, she smiled to herself.

"Listen, if you answer my questions maybe I can answer yours," the Martha in the video continued to try her luck with the resisting Avalon.

She scoffed. "What could you possibly have for me?"

"Jack told me that you're a huge admirer of the Doctor. I happen to know him."

It was fairly adorable watching Avalon's eyes blink once and go wide. "...you do?"

The Doctor would never get over her utmost devotion to him, her belief in him. He didn't deserve it at all. Look where it got her?

Once Martha proved to Avalon that she had traveled with the Doctor, Avalon's demeanor changed completely! She was completely enchanted with Martha's story of her first trip with the Doctor.

"You actually met Shakespeare? He's an amazing writer!" Avalon gushed.

"So then, a story for an answer. You ready?"

Avalon nodded fervently. "Shoot!"

"Alright, out of the 7 days of the week, how many nights do you sleep?"

Avalon tilted her head to the side. "Um, it depends. Sometimes I sleep 3 days? Sometimes 4?"

"Have you ever slept every day of the week?"

Avalon snorted. "Nope! I have terrible insomnia! The most days I do sleep it's only for a few hours. Maximum I sleep 5 hours on a good day."

"And...5 hours does it for you? You don't feel a bit tired or something?"

"Nope!"

"So how many nights do you go without sleep?"

"I've gone 5 days without sleep."

"And how do you feel when that happens?"

Avalon shrugged. She didn't seem very concerned like Martha was sounding. "I'm okay. I mean, sometimes I do feel like I could do with a nap but it doesn't kill me if I don't actually do it."

Martha paused the video to address the first question she'd asked Avalon. "What Avalon described is not Insomnia. Insomnia makes people weary, irritable, tired. She said she didn't feel tired."

"Except she did sometimes," Lena chimed in. There were various times where Avalon was in desperate need of sleep and it made her far too cranky, even for her. "She got mad way too easy."

"Time Lords don't sleep every day, but they do sleep occasionally," Martha laid eyes on the Doctor so he would take over.

"I sleep maybe 2 days a week?" he shrugged but still looked doubtful that he'd presented the right amount. "Perhaps 3 but that one's when I'm extremely exhausted...or lazy. If Avalon and Melody have this ability then they would sleep less than an average human would but still more than what a Time Lord would. I'd say maybe she needs 3 days a week if we schedule it the right way. I suspect that Avalon's never really had a good handle on her sleeping schedule. It's all over the place."

"That's why she never slept then," Amy muttered. She and Rory had been on the receiving end of Avalon's countless sleepless nights. She'd call them in the middle of the nights just to talk!

Martha let the video continue but she went ahead and skipped to a new part of a test.

Video-Martha was asking Avalon a new question. "Find the next number in this sequence: 313, 331, 367…"

The Doctor's eyebrows knitted together at the familiar numbers, but he couldn't figure it out in that moment. Teenage Avalon did.

"It's 379," she answered without looking remotely troubled. "What?"

Martha had said nothing but merely looked over her shoulder - presumably to the person video taping them - and bore her stunned eyes.

"I don't get it," Amy frowned and expectantly waited for somebody to start explaining.

"Why do I know this?" the Doctor pointed at the screen, shooting Martha the same expectant stare as Amy.

"Because it's one of the questions I couldn't figure out when we were stuck in that spaceship scooping out a sentient sun," Martha folded her arms. She herself didn't like remembering that stressful trip. "Remember? I had to figure out the answers to some stupid security questions. This was one of the questions that you solved in like 2 seconds flat."

"Recreational mathematics!" the Doctor blinked when the memory came back to him. "Right! Well, that's child's play!"

"For you," Martha frowned. "For a human, this would take a serious amount of time to come up with a proper answer. Avalon didn't even blink before she knew the answer."

"Could you explain how you got that answer, please?" the Martha in the video kindly requested.

"Of course," Avalon shrugged. "Any number which reduces to one when you take the sum of the square of its digits and you continue iterating until it yields one is a happy number. Any number that doesn't, isn't. A happy prime is a number which is both happy and prime. Can I know another story, please?"

"Okay, Avalon was good at school but this is just...too weird," Rory rubbed the side of his neck. It was true what Martha had said. It didn't appear like Avalon had thought too much about it. There was more of an automatic instinct for her to give the answer. "Is that what you think like, Doctor?"

The Doctor bobbed his head. "Somewhat."

"How did you never pick up on that, big brother?" asked Lena.

"Well, I didn't exactly go asking Avalon math questions." The Doctor left the computer and turned to Martha with an expression begging her to answer him. "How close are we talking here?"

"She thinks a lot more than we do - as humans - and she can see things that none of us can. Her endurance is phenomenal. She can go hours doing a task without break. But you know what? I dare say that Avalon isn't like her mother either," Martha looked at Jack who was agreeing with a fervent nod.

"We thought Avalon was the first of her kind. We left it at 'Unknown hybrid' which you can replace with a better label later," Jack said. "Parts of her brain aren't like her mothers nor her father's. They're not even Time Lord. It's like there's something new inside her. I, uh, I took a reading of it and..."

"Jack," the Doctor wasn't in the mood to hear rambles, not today. "What is it?"

"It's weird but it's the Time Vortex. That's impossible right?"

The Doctor's head turned at Amy and Rory who both blushed red at the same time. "Not if her mother was conceived when the TARDIS was in flight."

"Doctor!" his companions cried in embarrassment.

"That happens?" Martha's eyes widened at the pair but the moment she realized what she asked she shook her head and apologized. "Not important, sorry!"

"Except it did and it passed through Melody to Avalon which means..." An odd laugh slipped out of the Doctor's mouth suddenly, earning himself strange looks. "Well, I finally figured out why the TARDIS loves Avalon so much. Avalon carries a little bit of the TARDIS inside her. She's more than just a granddaughter."

"Has that ever happened before?" Lena asked, slightly afraid despite how cheery the Doctor was looking with the new information. "Because you once said that the Time Vortex is very dangerous-"

"When you take it directly in," the Doctor clarified. "My friend Rose did that and it cost me one life but that's not what happened with Avalon. She carries a tiny bit of the vortex inside her and it's mixed with what New Earth civilians are - what your people are, Lena - and it's created something new...Avalon. Jack's wrong-"

"Thanks Doc," Jack said with a flattened expression.

"-Avalon's not a hybrid, she's just new. She's entirely new - the first of her kind! I don't even know what to call her - well," the Doctor smiled to himself, "Ava. She's Ava."

"So...she's not a Time Lady?" Amy tried her best to keep following all this information. "She's not like you?"

"Nope! She's similar but she's her own kind! Isn't that amazing!?" the Doctor was too cheery for something like this but, to his credit, it was him. "Jack! Martha!" He turned to the two with newfound excitement. "What else is there to know about my Ava - I-I mean...Avalon?"

"We did find she's got some low-level telepathic abilities," Martha said, smiling at his slip up but she wouldn't torture him right now. There was too much already going on. "Untapped though, imagine she'll have to work on that."

"Anything else?"

"We, uh...we were curious about her regenerative abilities," Jack's eyes flickered to Ryland as if asking for him to step in before the Doctor went ballistic. By now, Jack had concluded there was a bit more than just natural friendship the Doctor felt for Avalon.

It was too late, though. The anger that etched across the Doctor's face was an unnerving one. "You did what!? Did you make her use her energy!? You know that's completely limited - it could especially be limited for her!"

"Calm down, Doc, we didn't make her regenerate obviously," Jack snapped. "And like I said before, I wouldn't hurt Avalon."

"What did you do?" the Doctor's voice had dropped to a low, dark tone.

"Minor cuts," Ryland was the one to answer. "Surface scratches."

"Daddy," Lena whispered. "Why would you do that to her?"

"After Jack told me about Avalon's biology, I was nervous. I thought I had someone like you, Doctor, and I had no idea what to do with her. I was afraid that Avalon might accidentally show off those powers in public. This way, if she did have them, we could help her control them."

"And did she?" the Doctor demanded from the trio involved with the exams. "What did she show?"

"She does have a cycle," Martha was the one to answer. "I compared it to one of the scans from that hand you lost? Before the metacrisis..."

"I had examined it before bumping into you," Jack further explained. "I had all the results saved and Martha compared it to the results we got from Avalon."

"And?"

"Her regeneration abilities are just as strong as yours," Martha said, surprised even now that it had been a long time since she first concluded. "She doesn't really know how to bring them out, though. The scratches were only minimally erased."

"And Avalon never saw this energy or what?" frowned Rory. "Or did you wipe her memory again?"

"She was a little scared but she also thought it was her own New Earth immune system acting up," Jack explained, and it did make perfect sense. Her regeneration energy could be mistaken for her immune system. "She didn't suspect what it really was."

"You tampered with something extremely delicate," the Doctor's tone was still bordering a low darkness that no one wanted to be on the receiving of. It was hard to believe he'd been laughing only a minute ago. "Avalon is different, we just established that, so her regeneration could be even more limited than mine, than her mother's. You should have never messed with that."

"They only did it because I asked them to," Ryland stepped in to save the pair from further scoldings. "I needed to know exactly what Avalon was in order to know how to best protect her and hide her."

"I know that, but still..." the Doctor knew none of this had been done with malicious intents, but they couldn't grasp how delicate that matter was. "Jack, Martha, how many times did you perform that exam?"

"Only once," Martha promised him. "We knew it could be limited and we didn't want to hurt her. But that's something you can use to trace her and her mother. Both of them can regenerate. You can trace that type of energy, right?"

"I don't know, theoretically." The Doctor wished he could sound more sure of himself but the truth was that he had no idea what he was getting himself into in regards to Avalon and Melody.

"It's something," Jack pointed out. "Better than nothing. And you can have all the scans we took, though they might be a little different now that she's almost a mature adult. How old is she?"

"Twenty-two," Ryland answered. "She's a year past the stopping point of New Earth citizens' aging. How does that work for Time Lords?" he asked the Doctor curiously.

That was certainly a question the Doctor would have to extensively research. "Well, look at me, I'm 909."

"Will my sister be like that too?" Lena shared her father's curiosity. "Because New Earth humans have a longer lifespan than regular humans but it's still not as long as yours."

"I'd have to ask River how old she is in order to compare between her, myself and Avalon," the Doctor said after a moment's thought. "But for sure Avalon would have a longer lifespan." He let a minute of silence pass by before he turned back to the table and started putting everything away. "I'm going to take this and don't expect any of it back." Jack nodded but his expression indicated he'd foreseen this. "I can't have you holding onto to this profile. It's far too dangerous to have on Earth." He didn't want to say it but he didn't want to leave the information out so that someone else could pull a Kovarian and create yet another version of a Time Lord, a whole new species too.

"What do we do in the meantime, Doctor?" Amy stepped forwards while he crammed the last of the papers into Jack's backpack. "Just wait here?"

"Yes, Pond. You and Rory, and Ryland, have to keep your eyes peeled for any suspicious activity around here."

"But nothing ever happens in Leadworth!"

"Exactly. Kovarian might be hiding them right under our noses," the Doctor tapped her forehead, relishing in the fact she hadn't pulled away this time.

"We could do that," Ryland nodded. "We could go through the neighborhood, lurking for anything that doesn't seem right." He looked over to Rory and hoped that the man would agree. They all needed to do what they had to for Avalon and Melody. "We'll be the eyes on Earth."

"Yeah," Rory agreed despite his deep desire to go search for his daughter and granddaughter with this Doctor. He knew how it went. They could get in the way and instead of focusing on the girls, the Doctor would have to stop and save him and Amy. They couldn't do that. They couldn't waste time.

"I can go," Lena volunteered again. "And before you say anything big brother, I won't go out. I can stay in the TARDIS and look after her while you go outside. Plus, somebody needs to watch after the Sapling and we all know that he has to stay in the TARDIS. Wouldn't want to be surprised by the Sc..." Lena suddenly stopped when she realized she didn't know what she'd been about to say.

Without realizing it, she'd forgotten all about the Scream - the reason behind the Sapling's very existence.

After some reluctance, the Doctor gathered the Sapling and Lena to bring them into the TARDIS parked across the street from the Reynolds. Amy and Rory had been sent off home with the promise that Lena would handle their calls, making sure that somebody would answer since they knew the Doctor was horrible at that stuff. All that were left was Ryland, Martha and Jack.

"Please take care of Lena," Ryland said after his daughter had gone into the TARDIS. "She's being strong but her health..."

"I swear she'll be safe," the Doctor said. He had already lost Avalon, he was not going for the second Reynolds, not his baby sister.

"And...the Sapling," Ryland added with some clear hesitant to fully believe the Sapling was real. "Avalon can explain that to me when she comes back."

The Doctor's face went a mild red at the mention. He would not like to be there for that conversation.

"Can't believe you had a tree child," Martha chuckled once Ryland had returned home.

"Actually, we can," Jack corrected her. Martha bobbed her head until she was inclined to agree. Jack got serious afterwards and gave the Doctor an affirmative nod. "Good luck, Doc. If you need anything, give me a call."

"Me too," Martha nodded. "Mickey and I are always ready to help." The Doctor could briefly smile at the mention of another of his companions. "But listen, now that it's just...this girl, Avalon? Is she the new...for a lack of a better word, Rose?"

The Doctor stiffened but very soon began to smile. "Oh, she is nothing like Rose." And he meant nothing condescending towards Rose. She would always be a sweet memory of his past life, somebody he'd never forget, and somebody he would always be thankful for. "Avalon is a beautiful, impulsive woman who would go the end of the world to save me and the others. She has an exquisite imagination and a reckless way of doing things." A smirk played at the corners of his lips when he thought about how reckless Avalon could be sometimes. It was too attractive, coupled with her gentle aura, he was in too deep. "She's pulled me into so many games that are just..."

"Alright, alright, save it for the wedding vows," Jack dramatically waved a hand at the flushed Time Lord. "Sheesh." Martha giggled beside him.

"I'm happy that you found someone," she said, patting the Doctor on the arm. "After everything that happened, it was only fair."

The Doctor was flustered at the assumption. "Oh no! We're not...we are not a couple. She's a very good friend!"

Martha raised an eyebrow, almost asking him what that entire description of Avalon was for then. "Okay. Call us when you find her, then. I'd love to meet her properly and not in an alien facility."

"I think she'd like that," the Doctor nodded. "But thank you for everything." He gave each friend a tight hug and was bound to the promise to pop in again. They wouldn't let go of him now that they had seen his new face.

Martha and Jack watched him go into the TARDIS, letting the nostalgia hit them when they heard the TARDIS wheezing. There was only a minute of silence before Jack asked Martha an important question.

"How long you give them?"

Martha smirked. "That description? Soon as she gets back. Your wager?"

Jack was smirking just as wide as she was. "Our Doctor boy is still an idiot when it comes to women, or anyone for that matter. I say...3 months after she's back? 20 quid?"

"Your on," Martha laughed.

~ 0 ~

3 Weeks after Demon's Run. Location Unknown.

Avalon cradled the month-and-a-half Melody in her arms. She outright refused to put the baby down in the bassinet or practically anywhere that Kovarian ordered. Everything belonged to that woman and the Silence. Nothing was safe, everything could be a trap.

Three weeks it had been since they were taken and so far nothing had happened. The only thing Kovarian had done to her - and just her and not Melody so far, thank God - was inject her with some type of device that allowed Avalon to remember the Silence. Avalon was also pretty sure it was a tracker, in case she wanted to run.

However running wasn't an easy task to do considering Avalon had no idea where they even were. They were in a ship, inside a room, locked in. There was a restroom in the corner built with everything she could possibly need. Hell, the room itself was furnished with everything they needed to live nicely and comfortably.

It was unsettling.

The bed was primped nicely so that a nap could be taken at any moment. The pillows were like marshmallows, and Avalon knew that because at one point exhaustion from her insomnia had gotten to her and she'd fallen asleep for a few hours.

There was a nice closet stocked with clothes and it was one of the things that scared her most about the room. The clothes were all her size and her style. How on Earth could they get that information? They were supposed to be focused on Melody (which did not mean that's what she wanted). Why would they bother to stock the room with things for her? Why?

She was sure that she was not Melody like the Doctor had thought. If he'd been right, Kovarian would've taken her somewhere else away from Melody. Plus, if she held Melody, Avalon was sure there would've been some catastrophic event. But nothing happened. Avalon cared for Melody all this time without problem.

None of it made sense.

And that's what Kovarian relished in each time she came into the room. Avalon would ask dozens of questions and Kovarian would give zero answers. How Avalon wished she could wipe the smirk off the woman's face. But one wrong move and Melody might pay the price.

Melody started fussing in Avalon's arms. Avalon quickly checked her over to make sure she was fine. Avalon had no idea how to take care of a baby but in the past 3 weeks she became an expert. She could be a real mother now too.

First try to get out of here before you start coming up with future plans, dumbass, she berated herself.

"Hey, hey, Melody, you'll be fine," she whispered to the baby girl. "Cos guess what? This won't last long. Your parents are coming and so is my Fairy Tale Man. They're coming for us, I promise."

She gently rocked Melody side to side until she finally fell asleep again. It was silent for all but 2 minutes. The bedroom door burst open to let Kovarian and two soldiers inside.

Avalon immediately stood up and tried retreating but her back was already against a wall. There was no place to run and hide.

"Oh, she's asleep," Kovarian said after taking a peak in Avalon's arms. Melody had her eyes closed and was truly sleeping soundly. "You've got a good hand, you know. Almost as if you truly were her mother. Ironic."

Avalon's eyes narrowed on the woman. "You're going to be so sorry."

Kovarian's lips curled into a smile doubting Avalon's promise. "Oh, really? And why is that?"

"Because not only have you pissed off the Doctor once, you've done it twice. Have you read the stories of what happens when you cross him?"

Avalon wanted to believe she saw a brief fear flash across Kovarian's face but the woman had a perfectly unreadable expression. She always did and if she didn't then it meant she was being smug. Avalon hated them both.

"My dear, we have already seen what he's capable of and that is the reason this all started. It's the Doctor's fault we're here-"

Avalon shook her head. "-no, it's n-"

"-it's his fault we had to take Melody-"

"-absolutely not!"

"-and it's his fault we had to take you too-"

"NO!" Avalon screamed and unintentionally made Melody cry.

"Oh, look at what you've done? You've woken the baby up." Kovarian leaned closer but Avalon turned her body away to shield Melody from such an ugly sight. "I don't know why you're so upset. I've only spoken the truth. Everyone thinks the Doctor is such a hero when the truth he's going to bring us into destruction. You have no idea where I come from, child. I've seen the battle in the fields of Trenzalore. I am doing the world a favor. And Melody and you will have the honor of helping us."

"I will never do anything for you. You'll just have to kill me."

Kovarian reached a hand for Avalon's and when the ginger turned her head away, Kovarian gripped her chin and forced Avalon's gaze on her. "But that's the thing, my dear, you won't have a choice. In fact, you and your mother will each have your tasks."

Avalon's eyebrows knitted together. "Mother?"

"Why yes, don't you know? Your mother foolishly thought she could hide you from us but the truth is we've always known where you were. We were just waiting for the right version of you."

"I don't...I don't understand...you know who my birth mother is?"

Kovarian nodded, her smile curling into a smug one. She was going to enjoy these next few months. "Take the baby, it's time to bring her to Earth."

The soldier on her right obeyed and reached for Melody in Avalon's arms.

"No! No! You stay away from her!" Avalon shrieked and spun around so her back was to them all. Her arms tightened as she brought Melody to her chest. "Leave her alone! She's just a baby!"

The second soldier came to Avalon's other side and worked to pry Avalon's arms open so his comrade could take the child. It was true what they said about her, Avalon had the strength of a Time Lord.

Avalon cried for them to leave the baby with her. Melody was wide awake now and crying from the scene. Avalon wanted to hold her tighter but both soldiers were working hard to undo her arms.

"Things would've been far more interesting if your grandmother had this sort of intensity," Kovarian's remarked was enough to make Avalon falter for a second and a second was all that the soldiers needed to rip Melody from her.

"NO! NO! STOP!" Avalon whirled around with every intention of fighting for that little girl when the second soldier took aim with his gun. The cool metal pressed against her forehead, effectively keeping her still. Her watery eyes flickered to Melody who was being handed over to Kovarian. "Please, please, I-I'll do whatever you want but give her back. She's just a baby."

"Oh but you have no idea what she will become," Kovarian gently soothed the baby until she stopped crying. "And you want this to happen. You need it to happen."

Avalon sniffled and shook her head. "No!"

"But you do, because it will ensure your existence. Lower the weapon," Kovarian gave the commanding nod at the soldier who obediently retracted.

"What do you mean?" frowned Avalon. "You keep saying all this stuff-"

"-you haven't figured out and that's unfortunate, but don't worry because I'm about to show you the truth. We can start with who this child really is," Kovarian raised her arms slightly to indicate Melody. "You protect her because she's the daughter of your friends when the truth is she grows up to become someone dangerous, someone who lands themselves in prison. A prison you are familiar with."

"What?" Avalon felt her stomach churn with dread. Kovarian looked like she was truly enjoying this which only warned her that the next thing she said was going to be hard for Avalon.

"Melody Pond, the girl you're so hell bent on protecting turns into River Song, the woman who failed to protect you...her daughter."