With his keen hearing, the Doctor heard what Grace had said, and he looked at the little girl and Amy with wide, shocked eyes. His jaw dropped and he took a step toward them slowly, speechless for once. 'No… I made sure of it that I'd be no longer than 10 minutes! How is this possible!' he thought.

Amy turned away from him and walked away from him back in the direction of her home, momentarily forgetting that she had to drop Grace off at Marie's.

He shook himself out of his shock. "Amy!" he called after her when he found his voice and ran after her. "Amy please!"

She carried on for a short distance before stopping. "What?" she asked as she spun around looking at him, her eyes blazing in anger.

"How long…?" he asked, his eyes still wide.

"Three years." she answered.

"And…" he nodded toward Grace.

"Yes she's mine and Rory's." she answered and she turned back and rounded the corner, and walked back through the garden to get to her home. She knew the Doctor would do one of two things. Either; follow her or leave her again.

Before they reached the front door, Grace suddenly gasped. "Mummy! I left teddy in my drawer at nurs'ry!"

"It'll be there in the morning sweetie, I'll remember to tell you tomorrow to pick it up." Amy smiled as she opened the door and walked inside, leaving the door open as she carried her up the stairs.

She wasn't too surprised to hear the door shut behind her and another set of footsteps following her up. She set Grace in the living room, bringing out the toy hamper and switching the T.V on for her to a children's channel and she walked into the kitchen. She saw the Doctor already making himself at home with a bowl in one arm, a box of fish fingers inside it and he was looking through the cupboards.

As much as she tried, she couldn't stay mad at him for too long. But he'd left her for three years so she at least had the right to try. But at that moment, all her anger had drained away within seconds. "We don't have any custard."

"Oh, well that's no fun, Pond." the Doctor pouted, placing the bowl back on the side and turning to face her "Or is it Williams now?"

"No, still Pond. Though I'm actually wondering if I'm really who he wants." she shrugged.

"Why?" he looked confused.

"Cause he's never here." she looked at him. "And as she's getting older the questions are coming and she keeps asking after him." she bit her lip.

"So you're doing it on your own." he nodded. "Well if it makes you feel any better, she looks fine and happy and healthy. And content. So you must be doing something right."

She gave a small smile. "Thanks…" she said. 'Maybe Rory found a backbone, found someone prettier… someone who isn't gonna tie him down with a kid… someone who wouldn't walk all over him like I have…' she thought.

"No I mean it." he smiled softly at her.

"Why did you leave?" she asked changing the subject. "10 minutes you promised. I was all set and was gonna give Rory back the ring tell him to find someone better and I was gonna go with you."

"You couldn't at that moment Amy." he told her, the smile long dropped from his face.

"But why?" she pressed. "You didn't want me…" she said when he didn't answer her.

"No… Amy that wasn't- isn't it." he told her, looking at her.

"Then what…?" she whispered.

"I had to go back into your past… try and sort out the cracks in your time line. I meant to come back 10 minutes later. But the TARDIS… she's an old girl now… very temperamental, so timing's always going to be a little bit off." he explained.

"But three years!"

"And you can't cross your own time line otherwise you'll cause the end of the universe. And I know you wouldn't do such a thing Pond." he finished as though she hadn't spoken.

Any shook her head and sighed. "No… I wouldn't…" she muttered.

"So… is it too soon to ask for a hug yet?" he questioned with a cheeky grin.

Amy took one look at him, tried to glare and scowl at him, and ended up laughing, closing the distance between them in a few steps and she wrapped her arms around his middle.

He grinned and wound his arms around her back, resting his chin easily on her shoulder as she buried her head into his own shoulder.

They both stayed there for a few quiet moments until the phone decided to ring, followed by Grace's shouting "Mummy the phone's ringing!"

Amy sighed and pulled herself away, and walked into the living room. She picked up the phone. "Hello?" she said. "Rory.. What are you talking about? If you're going to be all jealous I'll hang up and ignore you. Thank you." she sighed. "Yes he is back and yes me and Grace might just go with him. Yeah well that tells you something don't it. The fact you don't even know your daughter's name." she hung up with a heavy sigh. She looked over at Grace, who looked as though she hadn't heard a thing, playing happily with her dolls while some mindless children's show was on. She knelt down, kissed her on the head and got up, walking back out of the room straight into the Doctor. "That was Rory." she said.

"What did he want?" he asked.

"Just being jealous… he didn't even remember her name…" she sighed again and something clicked in her head. "I'm supposed to be going to work."

He looked over her appearance for the first time. Of course… "Well… I'll look after her while you go…?" he suggested.

"No… you just got here… I couldn't ask that of you…"

"You can. I'm offering." he told her.

She nodded. She'd trust him with her life. In fact she had to at some point. She could surely trust him with her daughter. "Okay." she said, and before she could say anything else, he'd walked into the living room and she was sat in front of Grace joining in with her playing. She laughed softly, Grace was all too happy to have someone else to join in with her games.

"Alright I'm just going out for a bit." she said, walking in and kissed her on the head again. "Behave and I want the house standing in one piece and everything in it in one piece when I get back."

"I'm always good mummy." Grace giggled.

"I wasn't talking about you." she smirked.

"I'm not that bad Pond." he pouted. "Yeah alright… maybe a little bit." he said after a look from his fiery companion.

Amy laughed and walked out, walking down the stairs and out of the house and to where she was supposed to meet Marie.

"What took you so long? I was about to come looking for you!" Marie said.

"I had to deal with… something." Amy said.

"You can give me the gossip later. Come on." Marie grabbed Amy by the arm. Amy laughed and pulled her arm free.

"Alright don't pull my arm out its socket!" she grinned.

While Amy and Marie were working, Grace looked up at the strange man willing to play suck childish games.

"Mummy dreams about you." she told him. "And the things you did together."

The Doctor looked over at the young child, so mentally ready beyond her years, quizzically. "How do you know? Does she tell you in her stories?" he asked with a smile, humouring her. She really was Amy Pond's child. Always so outright and not afraid to ask questions or to say things. And she definitely wasn't afraid of the stranger she saw in her mother's dreams.

Grace shook her head, her auburn curls springing around her face. "Nope. I see it in her dreams." she said, dropping her doll and started to clamber up on the sofa.

"How do you see into her dreams?" he asked with a raised eyebrow. "Are you sure she hasn't just.. told you?"

"No! I see it!" she was adamant of this fact. "Sometimes when she falls asleep before me or when I wake up in the night I see the pictures in my head." she told him as she curled up on the cushion and she closed her eyes.

He watched her silently, taking it all in, and waited for her to fall asleep. He didn't have to wait too long though, and he got out his sonic screwdriver and scanned her with it, and he checked the readings. "Ooh… that is extremely very not good…" he muttered. "Still… explained why you're more developed in the mind than any other two year old…" he added. "Oh, Amy I'm so sorry…"

A couple of hours later, Amy walked back into the house. She walked up the stairs to the living room, and they were both where she'd left them, only Grace was sleeping on the sofa. "How was she?" she asked.

He nodded. "She's been alright. Look, Amy there's something I have to say. And it's to do wit her." he said, standing up.

Amy looked confused.

"Amy… this dream watching thing… it's not normal. And sometimes human children who possess the gift don't live past the age of three. And it's usually passed off as something else, like natural causes or whatever." he looked at her.

"No…" she whispered, dropping to the floor after her legs turned to water.

He rushed to her side and knelt down beside her and held her close.

Amy clung to him, sobbing into his shoulder.

He rubbed her back softly, keeping her close and whispering soothing words into her ear, sneaking a glance back over at the sleeping child who's life was in danger. And he needed to save her. For Amy's sake rather than his own.


A/N: Well there's chapter two :o Well... y'know what you get if you review. Fish custard ;) x