She hadn't thought it would end like this.

Amy looked up at the handbots, her vision starting to blur. The familiar, wheezing noise of the TARDIS was fading in the background, whisking Rory and her younger self away to safety. She saw the glint of the points of the syringes aimed at her and laughed, an angry noise that ended in a choked sob. There was a hiss and a sharp pain as the needle penetrated her skin. A scream escaped her lips as the medication flowed through her veins.

She hadn't thought it would be like this. She'd thought that when the TARDIS left she would simply vanish from the timestream, as though she had never existed.

She hadn't anticipated the pain.

Her blood was pumping hard, trying to cope with a dose intended for a dual-hearted system. She knew she was dying and once again a small laugh escaped her. The handbots were moving away from her now that their mission was accomplished, their feet clanking on the floor as they walked. Beyond that, she could hear something – something she had never expected to hear again.

"Amelia Pond."

Amy heard the undercurrent of affection in his voice and fought back a wave of anger. Fighting back the nausea, she pushed against the floor and sat up. He was there, leaning against his blue box and looking at her, his face serious.

"Came back to watch me die?" Her voice was weak. "Should have known you wouldn't want to miss the end of the story."

He looked away, a deprecating smile at the edge of his lips.

"And what about the Chen7?" Amy asked.

"It has a lifespan. I shouldn't be in any danger."

"Why take the risk? Shouldn't you be off swanning around the universe with Amy and her Rory?" She couldn't conceal the bitterness in her voice.

"Tried that for a bit. Wasn't all it was cracked up to be. And besides.." his smile was twisted, "I didn't want you to die alone. No-one should have to die alone."

Amy looked at him, suddenly seeing him as if for the first time. It was always his smile she had been attracted to, the boyish grin that made him seem young, human. But now she looked at his eyes. They were dark, distant – the eyes of an alien being. She took a deep breath.

"You know, I've never really been good at anything? Well, unless you count being a kiss-a-gram. Or keeping your bony butt in line. But at school I wasn't really – great at anything." She coughed, the pain doubling her over. "But over the last 36 years I learned something I'm good at." Reaching into her pocket, Amy pulled out the sonic screwdriver she had built. "I'm good with technology. I studied the handbots, I talked to the Interface. And I came up with a Plan B."

Turning the screwdriver over in her hand, Amy pressed a red button on the handle. It started to flash, it's signal bouncing out through the facility.

"I was never going to die alone."

The Doctor's eyes widened, a grin breaking out across his face. He pushed away from the wall, energy pulsing through his movements.

"Of course! Oh Amy, you beautiful, wonderful genius! Of course, the handbots don't get provided with the medications, they mix their own, don't they?"

Amy pushed herself back against the wall, the ghost of a smile on her lips as the silhouette of the Rorybot appeared in the doorway.

"Rorybot!" said the Doctor, throwing his arms wide as though greeting a long, lost friend. "Here to save our Amy! You came up with the antidote, didn't you?"

The Rorybot, his disturbing, handless arms in front of him, awkwardly waddled over to where Amy sat. His chest cavity swung open and Amy reached inside, pulling one of the ominous-looking syringes. Her breath caught as she inserted it into her arm, depressing the plunger and watching the greenish-grey liquid disappear. The Doctor knelt down in front of her, taking her face in both hands and kissing her squarely on the forehead and then jumped up again.

"You're amazing, Amelia Pond."

The colour was starting to come back into her cheeks now. She stretched her arm out and ran her hand down Rorybot's vaguely concerned face.

"Doctor..." She looked around, and felt the familiar sense of betrayal she had fought against for 36 years. He was gone again. From inside the police box there was the sound of wires sparking off each other and the Doctor's distant voice.

"Paradox? Bah! Humbug! Since when has the Universe told me what to do?"

Suddenly, his head popped out of the TARDIS door. He looked down at her and smiled. Amy couldn't help herself, she smiled back and pushed herself to her feet.

"Come along, Pond!"