This chapter is very Pond-Family Centric! And it continues to break what I fixed. The tone is also slightly different in this chapter, so I hope you like it!

"Dad?" She called him softly as she stepped out into the garden.

He was there in a second anyway.

"River! How are—" He hesitated, then continued, "you?"

"You've been crying." River raised her hand to his face, "Why?"

"Just got some sad news."

"What?"

"Well." He paused, "I can't tell you. Spoilers?"

"Did he tell you I was dead?"

Rory froze, "What?"

"Was it about the Library and me being dead? Inside a computer? Never to come back?"

"Yes." Amy said from behind Rory, "Hello River."

"You two have to help me."

"You're alive?" Rory stared at her as if he had just seen her for the first time.

"Yes. But that's not why I need you to help me."

"Where is he?" Amy asked, peeking around her daughter, "What happened?"

"I had to knock him out. Dad, can you help me carry him in?" She gestured inside, "Please?"

"Of course." He walked into the TARDIS after her, and Amy watched as they carried the Doctor out of the TARDIS.

"That's not the Doctor."

"Yes it is." River grunted, "I'll explain while Dad's checking him. I don't know what happened to him, but I need a drink."

"Okay. Wine?" Amy opened the back door to let them in, and followed them to the couch, where the Doctor was laid down.

"No, just tea."

"More for me. Tell me what's wrong with him when you're done, okay? I'll be in the kitchen." Amy nodded to Rory and kissed her daughter's forehead before leaving the room.

"What happened to him?" Rory asked, as Amy closed the kitchen door.

"He regenerated."

"We saw you regenerate—you were fine. Better than this. I mean, you were walking and talking, at least."

"And killing," She commented lightly.

"Much better than him at any rate," Rory sighed, and then began checking the Doctor for any signs that he was physically injured. "Why don't you go sit with your mother, and I'll come talk to you about his condition in a few minutes?"

"Okay." She walked away, feeling herself shake a little, and then paused in the doorway, "It's just—he was polite. I'm worried."

"I'll do my best." Rory promised, attempting to be both professional and fatherly at the same time."

Her voice was oddly small and quiet. "Okay."

"River!" Amy called, "Let your father work." River turned back in time to see her mother smirk, "God, sweetie, I thought we got to skip this phase. Come in here and let me make your lunch."

"Mom!" River moaned as she came into the kitchen.

Amy grinned, and placed a roll in front of River. "We were planning on having this for dinner, but I figure pizza will do. You need to get something proper into you." She laughed, "I'm such a mom! I'll get you some chicken and mashed potatoes, but they'll have to cook. I'll make up a plate and refrigerate it for the Doctor."

"Kay. Thanks."

"How have you been?" Amy pulled out a bag of potatoes and handed one potato and a knife to River, indicating she should start peeling. Amy grabbed the chicken breasts out of the refrigerator and started to prepare it.

"Trapped in a computer."

"Why?" Amy asked as she turned the oven on, and placed the chicken on a pan, adding some seasoning.

"It was him or me. You know my choice."

"I know."

"And now you know his choice."

"River, I always knew his choice." Amy laughed, putting the chicken in to cook, and sitting down with her daughter to cut the peeled potatoes. They'd done about ten before Amy stood up suddenly, "Oh! I forgot! He left something here, and now that you're here, it's not ours anymore. Honestly, I told him that if you weren't here, it was his, but since you are here, we don't need to worry about it anymore. Besides, I have a feeling you'll need it."

"What is it?" River put down her knife and the final potato, "I can go get it."

Amy dragged the pot over to the tap and poured in just enough to boil the potatoes in. "No, you just stay here and watch the potatoes. They ought not to start boiling, but if they do, turn it down until I get back so they don't boil over." She turned on the stove top and placed the pot down.

"Mom, I've made mashed potatoes before!" River protested.

"I'm sure." Amy smiled and kissed her forehead.

River heard her parents whispering in the next room, but couldn't understand anything but their tone. She nibbled at her roll a bit as she listened to their voices, but didn't pay much attention to what it meant. When her mother returned, River was sleeping with her head on the counter.

Rory walked in as Amy was pulling out the chicken, "Want me to wake her up?"

"Needs to cool for a bit. How is he?"

"Nothing is physically wrong with him. Once she's eaten, I think we're going to have to go into the TARDIS and its med bay to look at his brain and possible internal injuries. But from what I understand of time lord regeneration, there's nothing physically wrong with him. His entire body—every single cell changed from the time of his death. I can't even tell what happened to cause his death." Rory sighed, then pulled the potatoes off of the stove and started mashing them.

"Thank you sweetie." Amy kissed his cheek, and placed the chicken on a plate. "Don't place too much on her plate; I don't want her to over eat."

Rory nodded and spooned a few scoops on to the plate, and then a few onto another plate that Amy had placed aside—"For him?"

"Well, yeah. I mean, even if he has a concussion, he's got to have something in him. He never eats properly."

"He doesn't, does he?" Rory shook his head. "You know, at some points, it's like we're both their parents, not just hers."

"Don't remind me!" Amy laughed, "Who would have thought it—me his mother in law."

"I'm his father in law." Rory shook his head, the placed the plate down in front of River, "River? River, wake up."

River bolted awake, and reached for a gun she didn't have on her. "Wha-Dad?"

"Yes, Wha-dad." Rory chuckled, and then pushed the plate towards her.

"And this too," Amy reached over and placed River's diary next to her.

"How'd he get this?"

"Eat, and then we'll talk." In a motherly manner, Amelia Williams crossed her arms and sat down across from her daughter, "Come on, when was the last time you had a proper home cooked meal?"

"Not since the last time I came to visit you, to tell you I was going to the library. He did take me to see the singing towers though, and brought a picnic lunch."

"At dinner time?"

"He never has any luck with timing, mum."

"Well, eat this, and I'll go check on him." Rory said, "He should still be out. Although, why is there a bruise on his face?"

"I had to knock him out." River muttered, "Sorry."

"No, don't worry. I've punched him a few times too."

River smiled slightly, attempting to laugh. Her parents gave her a worried look, and eventually she just began eating. It wasn't the best meal ever, but it tasted nice. Wholesome. Like home.

"So," River started, "how was he when you last saw him?"

"He came to tell use you were dead." Rory said, "So, not good."

"Injured?"

"No. He was fine, but…distraught." Amy sighed, "He didn't want to tell us. Well. He did. But not properly. He just handed us your book and said, 'Sorry' before walking away. So I threw a pot at him."

"Mum!"

"It missed!" She laughed, and then continued, "So he sat down, told us everything. He cried. I've never seen him cry properly before, but then he did. We all cried."

"Mum—"

"Don't mum me. Don't you dare. It's just, I want you to know, even if you're gone and dead, even if you just plain gone, you are missed. Always. We miss you. And he felt horrible, not telling you about what would happen to you. Sweetie, you need to know you are loved, and you need to remember it."

River took her mother's hand and gave it a squeeze, "Always."

"And then he left. Handed us the book—he wouldn't take it back—and left."

"You didn't hear from him again?"

"Nothing. And it was only a few days ago. I think he thought we ought to know. He'd had a peak through your diary and decided we weren't ever going to see you again. And now he's pulled this."

"Then why were you crying?"

"Found your note on the wine bottle."

"It wasn't sad."

"Usually we can go through the day and not think about the fact that we'll know you're dead. But your note goodbye—" Amy smiled, "We kinda lost it."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be." Rory smiled, "You're here now."

"Hello?" The Doctor's voice called from the living room, where a loud 'thud' indicated he had fallen off the couch.

River sighed, "In here. Are you hungry?"

The Doctor appeared in the doorway, disheveled, "Where are we?"

"At Amy and Rory's house."

"I'm sorry, I don't remember you." He smiled and shook their hands.

Amy leaned forward and checked his temperature, "Nope, no fever. You're right, this is terrible."

"What is?" The Doctor reached up and felt his forehead, worried.

"He's being so nice." Rory stared at him, and then shook his head, "Amy, we should probably feed him."

"Oh, right! You, sit down." Amy nodded to a chair and put his food in the microwave to reheat it, "And tell us what you know. Anything that comes to mind."

"Anything?"

"Yes, anything."

Rory rolled his eyes, "Amy, this isn't the proper way to do this."

The Doctor glanced between the two of them hesitantly, but said, "I don't like pears?"

"Nope, you've hated them for ages." Amy replied happily.

"Or apples."

"You were the biggest bother about that."

"You three are my friends."

"Do you know that or are you just guessing?" Rory crossed his arms.

"Guessing. But you're a nurse." He turned to Rory, almost sliding off of his chair.

Rory smiled slightly, "Doctor, actually."

"I was certain you were a nurse. Sorry."

"No, that's a start. Last time you saw me I was a nurse."

"And you're roman."

Rory glanced at his wife and daughter, who both hid smiles, "Kinda, yeah."

"Rory the Roman!" The Doctor announced proudly, "You're Rory the Roman."

"Yeah."

"And you're Amy. You remember things?"

Amy glanced over at River and waited until her daughter nodded, "Yes."

"So what's my name?"

The Ponds froze and turned their full attention to their daughter, awaiting her next move, "John." River said, guardedly, "John is what you have people call you. You have to remember your name. But we call you the Doctor."

"Two doctors in the same house!"

"I feel like he's looking for a treat." Amy muttered when they set him up in the bathroom to wash up a bit.

"What, like 'good boy, have a bone?'" Rory replied.

"Half tempted to give him a piece of chocolate for everything he remembers." River sighed.

"A bowtie?" His head popped out of the bathroom door, "I wear a bowtie?"

"Not if you don't want to, sweetie," River sighed, "Honestly, that man…"

"Why was I wearing one in the first place?"

"Why do you think?" River rolled her eyes.

He looked her over, and then looked in a mirror at his bowtie, "Costume party?"

"Oh, shut up you. I'm going to go get changed." River rolled her eyes, "Do I still have clothes down the hall?"

"Of course." Amy smiled, "A few of them are even clean."

"Thanks."

Once again, thank you so much for reading this story. It's been a brain child of mine for the past four months, and taken two months to write and perfect, so thank you for giving it a chance! Please drop a review!