4 reviews is enough for an update, wouldn'tcha think? :) Obvious spoilers for Angels Take Manhattan!

Chapter 2: Fear of the Dark

"Hello from the world below. I'm watching the sun burning As the road is slowly turning. And I know that in letting go, I'm learning how to live Through the life I have to give."

"I don't know, I just found her there, see if you can get her to wake up." Amy left the room, hearing Anthony start to cry. Rory leaned over the blonde lying on their couch. She was definitely from the future. This style of dress wouldn't be popular for weddings for another sixty years.

He wondered where she came from. Neither him nor Amy had seen anything weird like this, not since they had stopped travelling with the Doctor and became trapped in New York in the forties.

He checked the woman's pulse and found it steady. How did she get here in the first place? Why was she wearing a wedding dress from the future? He turned around to see Amy in the doorway, holding their young son. He smiled, feeling his heart warm in happiness. She looked so content, not like when they had first been trapped here.

But Rory finally had everything he ever wanted: a house, a family, Amy. Except his dad. He missed his dad. And good plumbing. He did the miss the Doctor, and the traveling a bit, but he wasn't one to throw a perfectly good gift out into the dust.

"Got...to find...the Doc-tor..." the woman muttered, shifting her head to the side. Rory spun around to look at his wife.

"Did she just say what I thought she did?" Amy didn't reply, only stood closer to watch. Rory pulled out his bottle of smelling salts. "Should be okay to bring her out now." He waved the bottle under her nose and she began to stir.

"John...John!" She shouted suddenly, leaping forwards.

"Woah!" Rory cried, forcing her to lay back down. "Slow down, what's the last thing you remember?" The woman looked confused for a minute.

"I...I was with my husband...no, fiance."

"John?"

"Yes. John Noble." She looked down at her dress. "I was getting married today." Her eyes began to fill with tears as she remembered leaning up to kiss him just before she transported. Suddenly her head snapped up. "Where am I?" She looked at Rory, realising she was in a stranger's house. "Who are you?" Someone in her head with a voice sounding suspiciously like her fiance said that she was the one being rude this time.

"You're in New York City. I'm Rory Williams, and that's my wife Amy, with our son Tony."

"Tony," Rose whispered, her heart aching.

"Rory, ask her," Amy nudged him with her leg.

"Not yet," Rory waved her away.

"Why? Ask me what?"

"Well, well, you were muttering in your sleep, you asked about a doctor..."

"No, the Doctor. He's a friend of mine, a Time Lord, I need to find him, he's the only one who can help me now." She frowned, seeing the surprised looks on the couples faces. "Why, have you seen him?"

"No, not for a while, but, we used to travel with him." At this Rose sat up again.

"You know of the Doctor! You have to tell me where he is! ...wait..." she looked around, mainly at the room they were in, and the clothes the Williamses were wearing. "What year is this?"

"So, you used to travel with the Doctor, the same one I used to travel with, before you got trapped here in New York in 1938. Am I correct?" Amy nodded from across the dining table. Rory came over and handed them each a mug of tea, which Rose drank gratefully. Rose put her head in her hands. "So basically, the Doctor's anywhere but here." She laughed a little to ease the tension. "Wondered why you had British accents when you said we were in America. He prefers us I suppose." The married couple smiled at her. Rose noticed the redhead, Amy her name was, seemed a bit more sad than the man Rory.

"So what's your story? Rory asked, coming back to the table with a mug of his own tea. Rose then began to relate how she had travelled with the Doctor, before being trapped in another universe, her journey to find him again, the creation of his clone and how he had left them again.

"Wow," Amy muttered after Rose had finished. "I would be downright pissed if I was you."

"But you'd have a copy of the Doctor so you wouldn't mind it that much." Rory muttered bitterly.

"Rory," Amy implored.

"I know, I know, I'll take care of the baby." He left the room. Rose looked at Amy quizzically. Amy began to blush.

"Oh I sort of had this small...uh thing for the Doctor. Just a little crush, Rory never got over it, no matter how many times I tell him I love him, and him only."

"I know how you feel." Rose replied. "It's hard not to, isn't it? I had a boyfriend before I met the Doctor. Just up and left him without a second thought." She looked over at Amy. "He never really forgave me for it. Just be thankful Rory is different." Amy looked around to make sure Rory wasn't coming back, then she leaned over and whispered to Rose.

"I left the night before my wedding."

"What?!" Rose spluttered her tea and began coughing. Rory was immediately back in the room, wondering if she was choking. "I'm fine, I'm fine," she waved him off, still coughing. Amy sat there, looking innocent as ever as Rory handed Anthony over to her. The four month-old gurgled happily at the sight of his mother. "You said his name was Tony, yeah? That's the name of my little half-brother." She half smiled. Talking about someone else seemed to ease her pain for the moment. "Is he your first?"

"Anthony's adopted but, no, not really. We had a daughter but...well she's gone now." Amy got up and walked away, clearly distressed. Rose dropped the subject, seeing how painful it was for both of them.

"So, if you were in the other universe, how did you get here, and in this time period?" Rose obliged and filled them in on what had been happening to her over the past year.

"And, hopefully, any second I'll be transported back." She rubbed her head, feeling a headache coming on. "Then I can finish getting married." Rory, in his typical way, finally noticed how unwell she looked.

"This can't be good for you though, speaking as a nurse. You were unconscious when Amy found you."

"Well what am I supposed to do about it?" She snapped back. "I don't want to be here. I don't even want to see the Doctor, I just want to go home and get married to my fiance." Rory nodded, understanding while Amy looked a bit shocked. No matter how much she loved Rory, she'd give almost anything to see the Doctor again, except her family. She guessed this was an entirely different situation.

Amy noticed Rory had gotten up during her musings and grabbed a pencil and paper. On the bright-side, she thought, he did look rather dashing in his period-fitting forties suit and vest. She knew from experience that he could pull off any time period's clothing. Rory continued to scribble on the piece of paper before handing it to Rose.

"You said John is a clone of the Doctor? Then he should know some rudimentary medical techniques to perform, if he knows what he's looking for. Here's some tips to help him find out how to help your problems, maybe get rid of some of that pain." He handed the paper to Rose.

"Thanks Rory." She smiled genuinely for the first time since her transport. "It means a lot, considering you most likely will never see me again."

"I'm a nurse. It's in my gut to help those in pain. I'd give you something now for your headache but it hasn't been invented yet." He looked away in embarassment as she stuffed the piece of paper in the front of her dress. Though he should be used to things like that from his wife by now.

"Rose, do you want some of my clothes to wear?" Amy interjected. "That can't be comfortable, love the style by the way, haven't seen a mermaid dress in years." Rose patted down the elaborate sequined front with the low cut top, wishing her mother hadn't picked something so uncomfortable.

"Thank you but no, I need to be wearing this when...if I go back," she hadn't stopped to consider she might be stuck here, in a place where the Doctor could never go without ripping the universe apart. Talk about a worst case scenario. "Besides, you're being polite, I don't think your clothes would fit me anyway." Rose felt a bit subconscious bringing it up (John would have her hide for even thinking like this) but Amy was a tall skinny rail compared to her...shorter and curvier state. Amy made a noise of disbelief while Rory sat there looking uncomfortable. A league of romans couldn't make him say anything in relation to this subject, not if he valued his life.

Suddenly Rose felt it, and her heart leaped in joy. She quickly got up and stumbled towards Rory in an attempt to shake his hand.

"Thank...you," she managed to grit through her teeth before the screams were ripped out of her mouth and she disappeared in a flash of gold light.

When Rose awoke from her dreams of oceans, golden light and red hair, her befuddled mind processed the weirdest sensation, as if her face was stuffed up against the best smelling pillow she had ever put her head on.

"Mm, don't let me go," she muttered to the amazing-smelling pillow, her mind still a bit delirious.

"I don't plan on it," a familiar sounding voice said. Suddenly Rose's mind snapped back into place.

"John!" She cried, reciprocating his hug. Why hadn't she ever noticed he smelled this good before? And then it hit her. He smelled like the Doctor, and it was familiar to her. A good familiar, like space dust, Time Lord and another thing she could never put a name to. "How long was I out for this time?" She frowned as John walked away to get her a glass of water. Why could she still smell the Doctor this strongly? She shook her head and noticed she was in her room, out of the wedding dress and in her pyjamas. She took in a breath and let it out sharply. Why did her chest hurt?

"A week." John said simply as he brought the glass over to her. He sat on the edge of her bed with a grave look on his face. "You were gone for two weeks." Rose put a hand to her mouth to cover a gasp.

"I'm sorry," she whispered.

"Don't be. It's not your fault. Besides, it gave me a chance to build this," he pulled out of his pocket what looked like his old sonic screwdriver, except with bits and pieces glued on to it to replace the things he didn't have. Rose smiled at seeing it. "With this screwdriver it'll be much faster to find what's going on. I'll take you to Torchwood's medical lab tomorrow, we need to find out how to cure you of whatever's happening. Your heart was stopped when I found you." Rose thought about him giving CPR to her; that explained why her chest hurt. John noticed. "Sorry, I went a little overboard trying to get your heart to work again, I bruised a few of your ribs."

"It's okay." Rose replied. She remembered what had happened after she transported. "Where's that piece of paper I put in my dress?"

"It's right here." John pulled it out of a drawer. "Where did you get this anyway, I read it and it's very helpful."

"A nurse named Rory." She didn't feel like going into all the details now, she'd tell him later. She grinned, her tongue poking out of her teeth. "You pulled it out of the front of my dress?" John just grinned right back.

"Nothing I haven't seen before." They both chuckled.

"What about the wedding?"

"What about it?"

"Don't you still want to get married?"

"Of course I do." John ran a hand through his hair, an action Rose particularly liked. "But don't you think it's more important to solve whatever's going on with you first?"

"But I want to be married to you, right now." She said, a bit petulantly. John gazed at her for a few seconds to determine if she was serious. Finally he nodded.

"Okay" he replied simply. Realising it, he grinned. "Let's get married today."

Their wedding was a small affair, just like they had planned. Their wrists were tied with a red ribbon and they recited their Gallifreyan vows. Rose stumbled on a few of the words but John was able to help her through it.

That night they faced each other as husband and wife for the first time.

"So, Rose Tyler-Noble." He stated simply. Rose laughed.

"If only Donna knew I had her name now." John's look turned sullen and Rose remembered too late what he had told her about Donna. "I'm sorry, I forgot."

"I forgive you. And I'm sure she'd be proud to call you her sister-in law. And it's way better than Noble-Tyler." For John could see Donna as his flesh and blood sister and nothing else, just like he would be the Doctor's brother. Born out of Donna's mind and the Doctor's flesh. In fact they could be his parents - he shuddered out of that horrible thought immediately.

But all those thoughts soon were forgotten as Rose's wedding dress slipped to the floor. He eyed her hungrily before diving in.

"Sorry we can't go on a honeymoon," John whispered as she lay in his arms. She leaned over and nuzzled in his shoulder. He grunted gratefully at the rush of love he felt for his new wife.

"It's okay. The important part is we're married now. We can always take one after you fix me."

They never got to go on their honeymoon.

Meanwhile...

The Doctor ran a hand over his face in frustration. He had been looking for Clara Oswin Oswald for months now. Just the thought of looking for her in another random place made his head hurt. Maybe that oddly-familiar little girl was right, he'd find her soon.

But there was one problem. He seriously thought he was going crazy. Maybe over the loss of his beautiful Amy and loyal Rory, or the fact that he hardly ever saw River anymore, but it was most likely due to all this intense searching for someone who didn't seem to exist. Not even Sir Arthur Conan Doyle had any clue where she could be, and he was supposed to be the expert, no matter how much the man hated it.

And why did he think he was crazy? It had only happened once or twice, but he'd bet his bow tie that, sometimes when he turned around, he'd catch a glimpse of someone he hadn't seen in lifetimes: Rose Tyler. Rose Tyler. And why should he see her of all people if he was indeed going crazy? Sure, he had never, ever loved anyone like he did Rose, but his time with her was done, and the last time he had seen her was so long ago...too many years to count.

But that didn't mean he never thought of her. Even before he started imagining her, he'd forget for a second, say or do something with the intention to make her laugh, only to realise she was no longer her with him, that he had left her on some useless beach with the excuse that she had to take care of his clone, as if he really needed looking after.

It was really his fear that caused him to make a stupid decision like that, fear of the unknown, fear of love, and most importantly, the fear of what he sensed in her, that raw untapped power that would only lay dormant as long as nobody messed with it. And as long as she was around him...he'd end up doing something even more stupid, just to satisfy his morbid curiosity, just like when he had nearly ruined Amy's life when not informing her she was a flesh copy right when he suspected it.

He'd poke and prod at whatever was inside Rose, without her even noticing, before it would all spring open, most likely killing her, if it didn't destroy the universe along with her. No, it was better that she was with his clone. They could be happy, and most importantly, the Metacrisis didn't have enough Time Lord in him to sense what lay dormant in Rose, that intoxicating smell that made his insides burn just thinking about it. But she'd be okay, of that he could bet on.

He seemed to forget that he was always a terrible better.

"Can we go home yet?" Rose had been strapped to an examining table all day while John tried to figure out what was going on in her body. She shuddered to think how long it might have taken him without Torchwood's advanced technology and his new homemade screwdriver, though it still had a few bugs to work out, as he had complained about numerous times in the past hour.

"Soon Rose. I'm nearly there, just one more test to get down deep into your cells, find out what's causing you to jump." Rose sighed and laid her head back down as a blue light ran over her body. Suddenly John gasped, his screwdriver clattering as it hit the floor. Her stomach clenched fearfully.

"John?" She was almost afraid to ask, judging by his reaction. He didn't say a word, only helped her off the examining table. After she was standing, she grabbed him by the shoulders. "John, what's inside me?" He looked her in the eyes, a shocked yet grave look on his face. Suddenly Rose crumbled. "No, not now," she gasped. John stepped back in horror as, for the first time, she began to glow. Instead of a scream, an unearthly-like howl issued from her lips. John stumbled backwards as a silhouette of a wolf in golden light howled behind her.

"Bad Wolf," he gasped. Then she was gone.

Rose was surprised. Not only had that trip not knocked her out, she was also standing up, clearly with no side affects. Plus, she seemed to be standing in a strange new console room of the TARDIS. It was different than the last time she had seen this room. Instead of an orange glow, it was blue and the room was much smaller than before.

But what made her heart nearly stop was the sight of a man in a dark brown jacket and a bow tie, with brown hair and eyes that held a sort of desperation she'd never seen before. Those eyes that were looking right at her. Strangely, he didn't seem surprised. He only gazed at her for a minute, as if appreciating her presence but not really believing it. Rose was too shocked to say anything. Finally, he nodded approvingly.

"You look older. Not in a bad way, just, a normal way." He turned away and started flicking switches on the TARDIS. "Funny how the imagination does that." Rose started at that. He thinks I'm a figment of his imagination? She was about to tell him he was wrong but then stopped. It was most likely she'd be going back to her universe soon, so she should take advantage of this. If he thought she wasn't real, he might tell her things he never would if he knew she was really here.

"Why'd you leave me Doctor?" She put a little airy mysteriousness in her voice to heighten the effect. He didn't turn around to look at her, just continued to fly the TARDIS.

"You already know. You're part of my head, something my weary mind has conjured to get my mind off of Clara." Clara? The Doctor's next lover? She swallowed that question down.

"Why'd you leave me?" She repeated instead. At this the Doctor turned and looked at her straight in the eye. He whispered something too quietly for her to understand.

"What?" She said before she could stop herself.

"I'm afraid." He said, a bit louder.

"Of me?" He nodded. "Why?"

"Because, I don't know what you are. You're not human, not anymore. And I don't want to hurt you trying to find out what it is you are." Rose clenched her fists angrily. He knew! He knew there was something wrong with her and he just dropped her off in the other universe for John to take care of. He hid it from her, praying on the small chance that she wouldn't be affected by it. Before she knew what she was doing, she strode up to the Doctor and brought her palm across his cheek.

SMACK! He reeled back in shock. After recovering, he rubbed the area ruefully.

"I guess I deserved that."

"Ya think?"

"Mm, it even feels real." Rose cocked her head incredulously.

"You really don't think I'm real, do you?" The Doctor's head snapped up in slight suspicion. But then he turned away in hopelessness.

"How can you be?" The air was thick and awkward for a few moments. The Doctor continued to fly the TARDIS, willing himself not to look at her. She still looked as beautiful as ever, and it hurt him to the core to realise he'd never see the real Rose Tyler again, no matter how much he wanted to. He just wanted not to see her again so he could get on with his life. Little did he know Rose was thinking the same thing.

"You left me there on purpose."

"I know!" He shouted, slamming his hands on the console. Rose jumped in fright. He looked at her, his eyes growing soft apologetically. He came up to her and kissed her forehead. "I wish I could tell her I'm sorry." He whispered. His eyes flicked down to see the wedding ring on her finger. Yes, he supposed they would be married by now.

Rose smiled at him sympathetically, subconsciously moving her ring finger out of his sight. She was still mad at him, but not as intensely as before.

"I'm sure she knows." She kissed him on the side of the cheek, lingering for longer than necessary. The Doctor closed his eyes, disappointed that even in his imagination she never said she forgave him. He wished with both his hearts that this was actually real and he could make up for all the things he ever did to her.

But when he opened his eyes she was gone. He shook his head, cursing the torture his mind was putting him through.

If you haven't seen it yet, I recommend watching the unfilmed deleted scene P.S. set after Angels Take Manhattan. You can find it on YouTube. It closes Amy and Rory's story nicely (and with Rory's dad).