When they opened their eyes both of them knew that they had finally stopped. Glancing excitedly at each other Rose was the first one to speak. "So, where are we then?"
"Go on out and have a look", the Doctor said with an all knowing smile.
Jumping to her feet from where she'd fallen Rose rushed to the door. She looked back to the Doctor before opening it slightly and peering outside.
Stepping outside into the heat Rose looked around, covering her eyes with her hand from the sun. In the distance she saw what appeared to be a horse, slightly closer to her on her right was a camel. Other than there was nothing of significance in the sandy red earth.
"Sorry where are we?" Rose asked again as she heard the Doctor step out of the Tardis behind her.
"Australia." The Doctor said simply. "Isn't she gorgeous?"
"You could have taken me anywhere. And you chose a desert?" Rose cocked her head to one side smiling at him. "Anywhere in the universe".
"Yes but Australia is very nice too." The Doctor responded defending himself. "Did you know…" As the Doctor began rattling off facts Rose stopped listening. Peering into the distance again she saw the horse running at high speed. Running away from whatever had just spooked it.
Squinting she noticed a little blue box standing where the horse had originally been. A little, blue, British police box. Rose whirled around and saw that the Tardis was still behind her "that's not right", she whispered under her breath. "Doctor." Rose said her voice full of apprehension.
"…And the Kangaroo is also an interesting thing because…" The Doctor had wandered a small distance talking to himself as he looked at the small plants sprouting out of the group. Not realising he had no longer had an audience for his thoughts.
"Doctor look!" Rose shouted with urgency.
Looking up he saw it immediately. "We can't be here. Rose get in the Tardis."
"Is that the Tardis? Over there? How can it be over there when it's here?" Rose was herded into the blue box as she spoke.
"I don't know. But we need to leave. If that's my future I can't be here."
Fiddling with the controls the Doctor began to get impatient. "Come on, come one. Why aren't we leaving?" Suddenly he stopped dead and dropped his head to the control panel. "We can't leave." He said finally.
"Why?"
"I don't know. But she's not going anywhere for me." After a long thoughtful pause The Doctor suddenly gained a mischievous smile on his face, "well let's go meet me then".
Before they were even able to make another move there was a quiet knock on the door. The Doctor's smile wiped away as he hesitated a moment before he took wide strides to answer the door. Rose held back and watched over the Doctor's shoulder as a red haired girl appeared on the other side of the door.
"Doctor! Don't worry it's not you." She shouted back at the desert in a thick Scottish accent.
"But it is me." The tenth Doctor said to the woman. "Who do we have here?"
"Amy Pond," the girl said absent minded searching behind her. "Doctor?!" She shouted again.
"I am the Doctor," he repeated again.
Amy laughed as Rose peered around the Doctor to get a closer look, "no you're not, don't be silly. The doctor is here with me. Doctor!?"
Rose leant toward the Doctor, "do you think he's really here? Your future?"
"Well she seems to know me…Sort of."
Amy took two steps back and sighed "Doctor I can see you behind that bush. I'm pretty sure everyone can see you behind that bush".
The eleventh Doctor had attempted to conceal himself behind a small plant beside the Tardis. And had failed quite substantially in doing so. Rose was the first to step out of the Tardis. "Doctor?" She spoke quietly to the form concealed by shrubbery. "Doctor… It's Rose, do you know who I am?"
"Of course I know who you are". The Doctor was barely audible and did not come out of his hiding place. Rose, not hearing what he had said looked back to Amy who shrugged apologetically. "Of course I know who you are." He repeated a second time a little louder.
"Then can you come out and see me? Come on. No need to be shy. I've known you for years," Rose said with a little laugh.
"It's not like that. I'm different. And I shouldn't be here."
Amy stood back and watched scene from the Tardis. Not understanding the conversation.
"Well you're here now. You may as well say hello."
Slowly the Doctor stood up and dusted the dirt of his trousers and wiped his fringe from his face unconsciously. "Hello Rose." Without realising what he was doing he ran up to her and pulled her into a deep embrace. "It's been a while." He whispered into her hair.
Opening his eyes and looking over her, he saw him. Standing beside the Tardis in his old brown jacket, white sneakers, blue suit and the brown hair which he missed a little.
Hands in his pockets the tenth doctor strode up to the eleventh. Sizing him up. And at the same time they both spoke over each other.
"You look so much older than I remember."
"You look far too young."
As the pounding rain suddenly stopped, Rory awoke. Realising that he had been sleeping in a starfish position, taking up the whole bed, he began to remember why he had been alone. He looked out the window from where he was and thought back to the conversation which had taken place the previous night...
"So where to now? Anywhere. You two can come up with the plan this time. I always come up with the plan". The Doctor leant up against the Tardis waiting for a reponse from Amy and Rory.
"I don't know where you two are going, but I have that surgery in the morning, I can't go." Rory said shifting uncomfortably on the bed.
Amy turned to him "you can leave that until whenever, we can come back just before you're going to start. It's no big deal."
"It's my first surgery. The first one I'll ever do. If I leave it another week I'm pretty sure my head will explode."
"You realise that all you'll be doing is holding the skin flaps". Amy said tilting her head and looking past him at the doctor.
"Amy, it's my first surgery." Rory said trying to get her attention back on him.
With a sigh Amy lay back horizontally on the bed "fine. We'll stay here then".
The Doctor stared at them both for a moment not believing what he had heard. "So this is what I get for letting you two plan a holiday. Nothing. Well you're not very exciting are you?"
"We can be exciting here..." Amy started but was interrupted by Rory. "Go without me. We've all been cooped up together for a while now. It'd probably be a good break for a night".
The Doctor looked at Amy waiting for a response. She looked back to Rory and hugged him "only one night!" She shouted at him. "I promise." With a quick kiss she sealed her decision. "So where are we going?" Amy turned to the Doctor excitedly.
"I asked you. You can decide."
Amy's thoughts went into overdrive, as though she couldn't process one idea at once "somewhere warm. You promised me Rio. We still haven't been to Rio."
The Doctor smiled, "I did promise you Rio. To Rio it is." He flung open the Tardis door and held out his hand to Amy.
"But I don't really want to go to Rio now."
Stepping out of the Tardis again the Doctor looked ay Amy, "well?"
"Let's go somewhere warm and new", she ran inside the Tardis leaving Rory in the room as the Doctor followed her.
The door closed behind him and Rory listened as he could hear their voices from inside. The whirs of the engine began and just as Rory was about to get up from the bed and go downstairs the door flung open and a hand grabbed the front of his shirt. Amy left one hand on the Tardis as she kissed him, "I'll be back soon. I promise."
Before he could say anything she was gone. He watched the Tardis leave and shouted out just before it disappeared completely, "Doctor! Keep her safe!" He began walking away and whispered it once more as he left the room.
…Rory continued to stare out into the darkness and knew it was far too early to get up, but he couldn't sleep any more. Slowly he sat up and looked up at the clouds. It was the first time in days that it had stopped raining. Maybe, he hoped, things would start looking up for the remainder of the week.