They were about halfway there when Rory's phone rang. The Doctor glanced down at his pants pocket, preoccupied with driving. Alex quickly took charge, reaching over and digging her hand through the Doctor's pocket and pulling out the cell phone. The Doctor jumped at her very straight forward action and stared at her, shocked, but a little voice in the back of his head reminded him he hadn't hated it.

"Doctor?" Amy's voice called out when Alex opened the phone.

"Nope, just me," Alex said. "What's up?"

"We're at the hospital but we can't get through."

Alex felt like reaching through the phone and shaking Amy. "Look in the mirror," she said tightly.

"Oh!" Amy cried on the other end. "Look in the mirror! Ha! Uniform! Are you on your way? You're going to need a car."

"Don't worry. We've commandeered a vehicle!" the Doctor called out to her, flipping on the sirens. Alex hung up and leaned back in her seat.

She studied the Doctor's profile as they drove. He was really good-looking and Alex didn't even bother to mentally yell at herself. His hair was a little messy but in a cute and endearing way. His clothes were absolutely horrible, but she was sure he would change as soon as it was convenient.

Unbeknownst to Alex, the Doctor was studying her as well. Her hair was long and loose and the blonde highlights in it only accented the light brown. Her legs seemed long and never-ending, despite her 5'4 stature. He especially liked her intelligence and quick sarcasm. All in all, he liked this girl and couldn't imagine how she had ended up in a dreary town like Leadworth.

Seeing as they still had quite a ways to go, he decided to interrupt the silence between them. "So how'd you end up in Leadworth?" he asked. "You're American, judging by your accent."

Alex let off a little smile but the sadness in her eyes contradicted this. "It's kind of a long story. Shortened version is that I got kicked out of my dream college, Octavian, because the dean misused the scholarship fund that my scholarship came from."

The Doctor winced. He had heard about the Octavian scandal in his last incarnation with Donna when they accidentally landed near Vegas. Both had been disgusted with the dean and he had practically had to tie Donna to the TARDIS console in an effort to keep her from going out and killing the man. "I'm sorry," he said sincerely. "You seem pretty smart. I have no doubt you deserved that scholarship."

Alex brushed the comment aside modestly, but secretly, she was pleased. "I didn't work my butt off in high school for nothing. Well, afterwards, I was broke and university deadlines had ended, so I had to work at a club to make some money. I hated it though."

The Doctor decided that he didn't want to know what she meant by club. "And you ended up in England, how?"

"I saw a documentary on TV one night and I decided 'what the hell?' I packed my bags, booked a one-way ticket, and sent my car over. I, um…ran into Amy and Rory while blowing off steam and Amy practically begged me to move in with her." Alex shrugged. "And here I am!"

The Doctor nodded, but a part of his mind was mulling over something Alex had said. "Blowing off steam?" he repeated, sending her a curious look before turning back to the road.

"Have you never heard that expression before?"

"Oh, I've heard it," the Doctor assured her. "I'm just wondering why you would need to blow off steam, as it were."

"Family problems." Alex shifted uncomfortably. "I have a rightful inheritance and my greedy grandmother refuses to let me have any part in it. She spends it all on Gucci bags and cocaine."

The Doctor winced. "Less than ideal home-life," he stated more than asked.

"You could say that," Alex agreed. "My parents died when I was five. It was a boating accident." She paused and looked out the window as she said the next part. "I was with them. I almost drowned along with them. I don't know whether it was a miracle or not but I somehow survived. To this day, I'm terrified of water. Never put me within spitting distance of a pool unless you like seeing people have panic attacks."

"I thought your last name sounded familiar," the Doctor admitted. "G-Locke Publications? Malcolm and Daphne Locke?"

"So you've heard of it," Alex mused.

The Doctor grinned. "Something like that." He wasn't about to freak Alex out by saying that in the future, G-Locke Publications was the biggest magazine and book publishing company in the universe. Then, keeping one hand on the steering wheel, he reached over and patted her shoulder. "In all seriousness though, I am sorry about Octavian and your parents. Nobody should have to go through that within thirteen years."

This time, Alex looked over at him and genuinely smiled. "Thanks," she whispered, so quiet that he almost didn't catch it.

They probably would've stayed like this for the remainder of the drive until Rory's phone rang. The mood having been broken, the Doctor reached over and grabbed the phone out of Alex's lap. "Are you in?" he asked. "You need to get out of there." Suddenly, the Doctor's brow furrowed as the two heard some running and a bang on the other end. "Amy? Amy, what's happening?" he demanded. "Which window are you?"

Alex peered through the windshield at the fastly approaching hospital as Amy answered. The Doctor hung up the phone and quickly started aiming the fire truck, now with the ladder completely up, towards a certain window. "Text them 'duck'!" he instructed Alex, tossing the phone to her.

Alex did as he said and heard the sound of glass breaking a second later as the ladder broke through the window. A minute later, she found herself climbing up the ladder behind the Doctor, getting an excellent view of a certain part of his anatomy in the process. "I can't believe I let you talk me into this," she muttered as they climbed.

The Doctor just chuckled and stepped through the window into the coma ward. He reached out and carefully pulled Alex through, setting her down on the floor. Alex noticed Amy and Rory standing next to her, looking slightly terrified of a woman in a purple suit with two girls in matching purple dresses. Must be Prisoner Zero in another disguise, she figured.

The Doctor walked over to him. "Right! Hello! Are we late? No, three minutes to go. So still time."

"Time for what, Time Lord?" Prisoner Zero asked cockily. Time Lord? Alex thought. That's not a pompous title at all!

"Take the disguise off. They'll find you in a heartbeat. Nobody dies."

"The Atraxi will kill me this time," Prisoner Zero retorted. "If I am to die, let there be fire."

"You can't do that!" Alex interjected. "This planet's completely innocent!"

"Okay," the Doctor said, waving a hand to let Alex know to be quiet. "You came to this world by opening a crack in time and space. Do it again - just leave."

Prisoner Zero stared at him as though he were a complete dunce. "I did not open the crack."

"Somebody did." Alex nodded her agreement, remembering the creepy crack in Amy's room.

"The cracks in the skin of the universe - don't you know where they came from?" Prisoner Zero demanded. Suddenly, the truth dawned on him. "You don't, do you? The Doctor and his Ally in the TARDIS don't know. Don't know, don't know!" It sang this like a cheerful little schoolyard song.

The Doctor and Alex visibly started at the words his Ally. "Ally…er, Alex is not my anything!" the Doctor snapped.

Alex took a step forward and crossed her arms. "Exactly! We're NOT a couple. We've only just met!"

Prisoner Zero ignored their protests though. "The universe is cracked," he continued. "The Pandorica will open. Silence will fall." An ominous mood perpetrated the room until a distinct clicking sound was heard.

"And we're off!" the Doctor cheered, pointing to the clock on the wall that now read 0:00. "Look at that! Yeah, I know, just a clock, whatever, but do you know what's happening now? In one little bedroom, my team are working. Jeff and the world. And do you know what they're doing? They're spreading the word all over the world, quantum fast. The word is out. And do you know what the word is? The word is zero. Now, me, if I was up in the sky in a battleship, monitoring all Earth communications, I'd take that as a hint. And if I had a whole battle fleet surrounding the planet, I'd be able to track a simple old computer virus to its source in, what, under a minute? Wouldn't you say a minute Ally?"

Alex nodded. "I'd say a minute Doctor," she said, pleased to see the slightly nervous look on Prisoner Zero's face.

The Doctor took the mobile out of his pocket. "The source, by the way, is right here." At that moment, a bright light shined through the room, searching for the mobile.

"Oh!" Alex cheered, eyes sparkling. "I think they just found us!"

"The Atraxi are limited," Prisoner Zero said. "While I'm in this form, they'll still be unable to detect me. They've tracked a phone, not me."

The Doctor and Alex exchanged mischievous looks. "But this is the good bit. I mean, this is my favorite bit," the Doctor smirked.

"Mine too!" Alex chimed in.

"Do you know what this phone is full of?"

"Pictures of you," Alex informed the now slightly worried alien.

"Every form you've learned to take, right here," the Doctor continued, sliding his finger over the touch-screen. "Oh, and being uploaded about now." He looked at Prisoner Zero smugly. "And the final score is - no TARDIS, no screwdriver - two minutes to spare," he held his arms out victoriously, "who da man?"

Total silence. Alex groaned and slapped a hand on her forehead. Amy and Rory stared at the Doctor like the alien he truly was. Even Prisoner Zero failed to say anything. "Doctor," Alex said slowly. "No one has said that since 1995!"

The Doctor flinched slightly, embarrassed. "Oh, I'm never saying that again! Fine," he huffed.

Prisoner Zero suddenly smiled evilly. "Then I shall take a new form."

"Oh, stop it, you know you can't," the Doctor retorted. "Takes months to form that kind of psychic link."

"I've had years." Prisoner Zero began to glow and started transforming. Behind them, they could hear someone gasp and Rory call out "Amy!"

Whirling around, the Doctor and Alex raced over to Amy, the Doctor managing to catch her just before she banged her head on the ground. Alex carefully settled Amy's head on her lap and the Doctor put his hands on either side of Amy's head.

"You've got to hold on. Amy! Don't sleep! You've got to stay awake, please." Alex brushed a piece of hair off Amy's forehead and leaned down to whisper in her ear.

"Amy, please wake up," she begged. "Listen to the Doctor. Hell, listen to me for that matter, just this once. Please wake up."

"Doctor? Alex?" Rory suddenly said. Glancing up, Alex was surprised to see a copy of the Doctor standing where Prisoner Zero had been.

"Well that's rubbish," the Doctor said, examining the copy. "Who's that supposed to be?"

Rory stared at him. "That's you."

The Doctor shuddered slightly. "Me? Is that what I look like?" He looked down at himself to make sure of this before looking back up at the copy at the front of the room.

"You don't know?" Rory asked incredulously as Alex nodded her head excitedly.

"Busy day," the Doctor said absentmindedly.

"Like I said," Alex chimed in, "I approve."

The Doctor smiled at her. Well, so long as he had her approval… He trailed off, not wanting to finish that thought. He stood up, Alex following him. "Why me though? You're linked with her. Why are you copying me?"

"I'm not," a small Scottish voice replied. Out from behind the Doctor came a little red-headed girl Alex guessed was a seven year old Amy, holding the Doctor clone's hand. "Poor Amelia Pond," Prisoner Zero bemoaned. "Still such a child inside. Dreaming of the magic Doctor she knows will return to save her. What a disappointment you've been."

The Doctor shook his head. "No, she's dreaming about us 'cause she can hear us." The Doctor pulled Alex over to Amy and dropped down on the floor. "Amy, don't just hear me, listen. Remember the room, the room in your house you couldn't see. Remember you went inside. Alex and I tried to stop you, but you did. You went in the room. You went inside."

Alex caught on to what he wanted Amy to do. "Amy, dream about what you saw," she instructed.

"No…no…NO!" Prisoner Zero cried, transforming back into his wormy self.

The Doctor stood up again, turning to face Prisoner Zero. "Well done, Prisoner Zero. A perfect impersonation of yourself," he taunted.

A light came in through a window and surrounded Prisoner Zero. As he withered around in it, the Atraxi announced "Prisoner Zero is located. Prisoner Zero is restrained."

Prisoner Zero fixed his eyes on the Doctor and Alex. "Silence Doctor and Ally," he hissed. "Silence will fall." With this ominous message delivered, Prisoner Zero disappeared. A whoosh of air came from outside, announcing that the ship had left. The second it did, the Doctor raced towards the window and started dialing on the phone.

"The sun - it's back to normal, right? That's…that's good, yeah?" Rory asked, obviously quite relieved. Amy groaned and stirred slightly before slowing sitting up, Alex reaching out and holding her steady.

"What happened?" Amy asked.

"You feel okay?" Alex asked worriedly. "Don't feel like you're going to pass out or anything?"

"Alex, you're worse than Rory," Amy scolded playfully. "What happened?"

"He did it. The Doctor did it!" Rory responded quite happily.

"No, I didn't," the Doctor corrected. He typed some more on the phone before holding it up to his ear.

"What are you doing?" Rory questioned.

"Tracking the signal back. Sorry, in advance."

"About what?"

"The bill," the Doctor answered before he was connected to whoever he was calling. "Oi, I didn't say you could go! Article 57 of the Shadow Proclamation. This is a fully established Level 5 planet, and you were going to burn it? What…? Did you think no one was watching? You lot, back here. NOW!" Hanging up, he tossed the phone to Rory and winked at Alex. "Okay, now I've done it." He reached out, grabbed Alex's hand, and pulled her up. As they left the ward, Alex heard Amy and Rory following them.

"Where are you going?" Amy asked behind them.

"The roof. No, hang on." The Doctor and Alex took a sharp turn and ducked into a changing room. The Doctor immediately started sorting through the clothes, quickly finding a tweed jacket and holding it up for Alex to look at.

Alex shook her head. "You cannot be serious," she said exasperatedly.

The Doctor just grinned at her. This one time, he wasn't seeking her approval in his new regeneration's taste.

"What's in here?" Amy asked, shuddering slightly at the jacket.

"I'm saving the world," the Doctor replied. "I need a decent shirt. To hell with the raggedy!" He tossed a shirt over his head, which Rory caught at the last second. "Time to put on a show!"

"You just summoned aliens back to Earth. Actual aliens, deadly aliens, aliens of death…" Rory trailed off as he saw what the Doctor was doing next. "And now you're taking your clothes off." Alex and Amy noticeably perked up at this information. "Amy, Alex, he's taking his clothes off!"

"Turn your back if it embarrasses you," the Doctor told him as he took his shirt off. Rory immediately followed this advice while Amy and Alex stayed put, both admiring the muscles in his back. Alex felt her breath hitch and fought the insane urge to grab him and pin him to the floor as she kissed his face off. Glancing over at Amy, she saw that she was doing the same thing.

This unnerved Alex, who wanted Amy to turn around, not just for the sake of her relationship with Rory, but also because Alex wanted to be the only one to see the Doctor like this. Beside them, Rory babbled "Are you stealing clothes now? Those clothes belong to people, you know." He then looked at Amy sideways, unnerved just as much as Alex was by Amy's gaze on the Doctor. "Are you not going to turn your back?"

"Nope," Amy answered, eyes still trained on the Doctor.

This time, Alex turned and narrowed her eyes at Amy. "Amy," she said faux sweetly while a storm blazed in her eyes, "turn around." Still frightened of the look in Alex's eyes when they were narrowed, despite after knowing her for two months, Amy quickly whirled around. Rory shot Alex a sideways thank you look. Alex nodded, still keeping her eyes on the Doctor.

The Doctor could practically feel Alex's stare burning a hole in his back. It made him shiver slightly but also excited him, for whatever reason. He couldn't explain his weird physical attraction to Alex but he could contest to the fact that he liked her personality-wise. She was intelligent, witty, sarcastic, adventurous, beautiful, had gorgeous long legs…and he really needed to shut up and concentrate on defeating aliens.

A few minutes later, the Doctor, now wearing a red long sleeved shirt, pants with red suspenders - or braces, as he had told Alex on their way up - and a number of ties draped around his neck, headed out on the roof to meet the Atraxi ship. Amy and Rory stood back a bit while Alex stood just a step behind the Doctor.

"So this was a good idea, was it?" Rory sarcastically questioned. "They were leaving."

"Leaving is good. Never coming back is better," the Doctor said as he strode up to the Atraxi ship. "Come on, then!" he called up to the ship. "The Doctor will see you now!" The giant eye disconnected from the ship and scanned the Doctor. Surprisingly, it scanned Alex as well, who shifted closer to the Doctor as it did.

"You are not of this world," it said to the Doctor.

"No, but I've put a lot of work into it," the Doctor said as he examined a tie.

"Is this world important?" the Atraxi asked.

Alex gaped at it. "Important? Of course it's important!" she nearly screamed.

"What's that mean, 'important'?" the Doctor asked, not acknowledging her outburst. He tossed the tie he didn't like to Rory and said "Six billion people live here - is that important? Here's a better question. Is this world a threat to the Atraxi?" He tossed a tie over his shoulder to Amy, who passed it along to Rory. Acting like a clothes-rack, Alex thought humorously, sending Rory an apologetic look over her shoulder.

When the Atraxi didn't respond, the Doctor added "Well, come on. You're monitoring the whole planet. IS this world a threat?" The Atraxi responded by shooting out a round hologram of Earth, several scenes of history flashing by before Alex could register them all.

The hologram ended and the Atraxi said "No."

The Doctor smirked and tossed a few more ties over his shoulder. "Are the people of this world guilty of any crime by the laws of the Atraxi?" The way he said this, Alex knew that he knew what the answer would be.

Another hologram appeared, this one showing wars, religious festivals, and more. "No," the Atraxi said once this hologram finished.

The Doctor smiled and started fixing his shirt collar. "Okay. One more. Just one more. Is this world protected? Because you're not the first lot to come here." As the Doctor spoke, another hologram appeared, this one showing strange creatures Alex had never seen before. She studied each one as they appeared. There was one of some strange marching silver robots, what looked like an upside down trashcan with a sink plunger sticking out of it that she thought she recognized, a giant cackling spider, a blue humanoid in a space suit, and so many more.

The Doctor watched her as she studied the Cybermen, Dalek's, the Racnoss Queen, the Sontaran's and more, looking completely fascinated. He had expected her to react in horror to these aliens but she seemed to be intrigued by them. He continued as the hologram showed the Vashta Nerada. "Oh, there have been so many! And what you've got to ask is…what happened to them?"

The hologram switched to show an old man with Edwardian clothes. Alex frowned. Who was that? It then switched to a man with a bowtie followed by a man with curly white hair and wearing a smoking jacket. Several more appeared; a brown-haired curly man with a multi-colored scarf, a man with short blond hair, more youthful than the previous ones wearing a cricket suit with a piece of celery on the lapel, another blond-haired man wearing a hideous multi-colored coat, an older looking man with question marks on his suit, a man with shoulder-length curly brown hair wearing Victorian clothes, a man with a crew cut and leather jacket, and finally, a rather good-looking guy with brown hair and sideburns and wearing a pinstriped suit.

Suddenly, the Doctor dramatically stepped through the projection. He smiled cockily at the Atraxi before saying "Hello, I'm the Doctor. Basically…run."

The Atraxi looked terrified and wasted no time in zapping away, back to the safety of space. As soon as it was gone, Alex threw her arms around the Doctor and cheered. "You did it!" she cried. "I didn't think you wouldn't, I had the utmost confidence in you! You did it!"

The Doctor chuckled a little and moved to hug her back until he felt a sharp burn in his jacket pocket. Shifting slightly, he managed to pull out the glowing TARDIS key. Alex watched him look at the key for a moment before she turned and ran towards her friends.

Amy, Alex, and Rory shared a hug, all extremely thrilled with the idea that the Earth was safe. Amy broke away and said "Is that it? Is that them gone for good? Who were they?" She looked around for the one person who could answer these questions but the Doctor was already gone.

Amy's eyes widened. "He's leaving again!" she cried, racing off. Rory and Alex ran along behind her and got to her backyard just as the TARDIS was dematerializing. A spilt second later, it and the Doctor were gone. Alex turned away, not wanting to see Amy so upset and headed upstairs to her room.

Alex flopped onto her bed and stared up at the ceiling. She had expected the Doctor to run off again…it seemed like something he was supposed to do. She laid her head on her pillow but sat back up when she felt the crinkle of paper underneath her. Frowning, she examined the writing on the paper and her eyes widened as she read the letter.

Alex,

I don't have a lot of time. The TARDIS is finally ready and she just needs a hop to the moon to settle her in and then, I'll be back. Hopefully, I won't be too late and when I get back, I hope you'll travel with me. There are a lot of questions running through my mind about you, although I'm sure you know that.

You realize that you saw past a perception filter, which no one is meant to do? It wasn't a cheap fluke, although I hope it was. But don't let that scare you. I think it's brilliant.

Oh, the key is burning a bit more than before. The TARDIS is itching to leave. Gotta go! See you soon!

The Doctor

Alex grinned and bounced a little on the bed. She hoped the Doctor would hurry back, if not for her sake but Amy's. Hopefully, the Doctor would invite Amy along as well. Amy had known him longer and deserved to see time and space.

Still grinning, Alex carefully taped the letter to the inside cover of her diary lying on the nightstand, and raced over to her closet. She needed to get a head start on packing….


Two years later, on June 25th, 2010, Alex was curled up in her desk chair, re-reading The Count of Monte Cristo. It was one of her favorites and reading it kinda reminded her of the Doctor, always traveling like the main character in the book.

Even after two years, the Doctor still hadn't turned up. Alex hadn't been surprised and reassured herself with the fact that the Doctor would show up eventually. She just hoped it was sooner and not later, especially twelve years later. She didn't want to see the Doctor again when she was thirty-three. She shuddered to think what she might look like at that age.

Suddenly, from outside, she heard a distinct wheezing, groaning sound. The last time she had heard that sound, it had been when the Doctor was leaving. Now, he was back. Alex got up and ran to her window overlooking the backyard. Sure enough, the TARDIS was right there and the Doctor was just stepping out of it.

Alex wasted no time in grabbing the bag she kept packed and ready to go under her bed along with her diary, which she hurriedly shoved into the sack. The Doctor's letter was still taped to the inside cover, although a bit wrinkled now from so many readings. As she headed to the stairs, she saw that Amy's door was ajar and she smiled. It looked like her best friend would get to see the stars as well.

Alex noticed that the back door was open and saw that Amy, still in her nightgown, was standing outside talking to the Doctor. She leaned back and listened to their conversation.

"…kept the clothes," Amy said, sounding surprised. Sure enough, the Doctor was still dressed in that ridiculous tweed jacket and bow-tie. Alex shook her head at this.

"Well, I just saved the world, the whole planet, for about the millionth time, no charge. Yeah, shoot me! I kept the clothes."

"Including the bow-tie?" Amy questioned, an eyebrow raised.

"Yeah, it's cool," the Doctor said, straightening the garment a little. "Bow ties are cool."

Alex let out a snort at that, attracting the attention of the Doctor. He looked over and grinned as she stepped out, dressed in a white tank-top, black leather jacket, dark blue skinny jeans, black combat boots, and a black charm bracelet. Tossed over her shoulder was a green knapsack, indicating she had gotten his letter and had been ready all this time. She skipped over to the two of them and smiled at him.

"Hello," she chirped.

"Hello," he said back, his eyes twinkling at her. Again, he couldn't explain his physical attraction to her…he just liked her, a lot.

Amy stared at them for a moment but quickly resumed her interrogation on the Doctor. "Are you from another planet?" she demanded.

Obviously, Alex thought. How Amy hadn't arrived to that conclusion yet was beyond her.

"Yeah," the Doctor answered.

"Okay…"

"So what do you think?"

"Of what?"

"Other planets. Want to check some out?"

"What does that mean?"

"It means…Well, it means…" The Doctor stuttered awkwardly, searching for the right words. "Come with me."

"Where?"

"Wherever you like."

Amy shook her head, trying to register everything that was happening. "All that stuff, the hospital, the spaceships, Prisoner Zero…"

"Oh, don't worry," the Doctor dismissed. "That's just the beginning. There's a load more."

"Yeah, but those things, amazing things, all that stuff…" Her voice trailed off and she suddenly looked furious. Alex winced, knowing what was coming next. "That was TWO YEARS ago!" she screamed.

The Doctor looked rightfully embarrassed. "Oh. Oops."

"Yeah," Amy commented, snarky.

"So that's…" The Doctor trailed off, trying to do the math but Amy beat him to it.

"Fourteen years!" she cried.

"Fourteen years since fish custard," the Doctor summarized. Neither of them noticed Alex stick her finger down her throat at the mention of fish custard. She still thought it was disgusting. "Amy Pond, the girl who waited, you've waited long enough." He turned to Alex. "You too, Alex Locke."

Amy looked at the TARDIS in amazement and ran her hand down the wooden surface. "When I was a kid, you said there was a swimming pool and a library, and the swimming pool was in the library."

Alex shifted slightly. Okay, staying away from the library, she thought. She was still just as much afraid of water as she had been two years ago.

"Yeah, not sure where's it's got to now," the Doctor admitted casually.

"I'm sure it'll turn up," Alex dismissed, not liking the talk of swimming pools. "So?" she smiled, looking at Amy. "Coming?"

"No!" Amy cried.

Alex gaped at her. "WHY?!" she shrieked. "You wanted to come fourteen years ago!"

"I grew up."

"Don't worry. I'll soon fix that." The Doctor snapped his fingers and the TARDIS doors swung open, bathing the girls in a warm, orange light. Amy entered first with the Doctor and Alex bringing up the rear. Alex placed a hand on a nearby wall and smiled as a warm buzz ran up her arm. The TARDIS remembered Alex and was happy to see her again. The Doctor smiled at seeing Alex's reaction. His ship had kept begging him to get back to her after they had reached the moon.

Alex retracted her hand and entered the console room, carefully setting her bag down by a staircase. The console was seated on a glass floor and contained various gadgets and gizmos. She spotted a typewriter, what appeared to be a paper weight, and other items that looked like they had been arranged there by some deranged child. Regardless, she liked it.

"Well?" the Doctor said expectantly. "Anything you want to say? Any passing remarks? I've heard them all."

Amy said "I'm in my nightie," at the same time that Alex answered "I love it!"

"That's good," the Doctor replied to Alex. He turned to Amy and called "Oh, don't worry. Plenty of clothes in the wardrobe; and possibly a swimming pool."

Alex tensed slightly and sat down in a nearby console chair. She was going to make sure she stayed as far away as possible from the swimming pool…wherever it was, that is.

"You are so sure that I'm coming," Amy remarked. She knew that Alex was going. Nothing would stop that girl from tagging along with the Doctor.

"Yeah, I am," the Doctor confirmed.

"Why?"

"Cause you're the Scottish girl in the English village, and I know how that feels."

Amy looked surprised at this. "Oh, you do?"

"All these years living here most of your life…and you've still got that accent. Yeah, you're coming."

"Can you get me back for tomorrow morning?" Amy asked. Alex breathed a sigh of relief. That was good. Amy was still going through with her wedding tomorrow.

"It's a time machine," the Doctor reminded her. "I can get you back five minutes ago. Why, what's tomorrow?"

Alex was about to answer when Amy shot her a warning look. For some reason, Amy didn't want the Doctor to know about her wedding. That didn't sound good in Alex's opinion. Luckily for Amy, the Doctor hadn't noticed her glare at Alex. "Nothing, nothing," she dismissed. "Just…you know, stuff."

Yeah, wedding ceremony stuff! Alex mentally cried.

"All right then. Back in time for stuff." As he said this, a beep rang out through the room and a device similar to the Doctor's previous sonic screwdriver extended out of the console. The only differences were that this device was bulkier, had retractable claws, and the light on top was green.

"Oh! A new one!" the Doctor exclaimed, grabbing the new sonic screwdriver and testing it out. The familiar whirring noise rang out, echoing around the room. He leaned down and patted the console lovingly. "Thanks dear," he whispered.

As he set the controls, Amy asked "Why me?"

"Why not?"

"No, seriously," Amy said. "You are asking me to run away with you in the middle of the night. It's a fair question. Why me?"

"I don't know. Fun. Do I always have to have a reason?"

"People always have a reason," the girls chorused.

"Do I look like people?" the Doctor asked.

"Yes," Amy answered.

"Been knocking around on my own for a while - my choice - but I've started talking to myself." Alex snickered a little at this. "It's giving me an earache."

"You're lonely," Amy deduced. "That's it? Just that?"

"Just that. Promise."

"Okay," Amy agreed.

"So, are you okay then?" he asked, stepping around the console to stand next to her by the railing. "'Cause this place, sometimes it can make people feel a bit…you know." Alex stepped up to them, standing on the Doctor's other side.

"I'm fine. It's just…there's a whole other world in here, just like you said. It's all true. I thought…" Amy trailed off but she managed to find her voice again. "Well, I started to think that maybe you were just a madman with a box."

"Amy Pond, there's something you'd better understand," the Doctor said seriously. "It's important, and one day, your life may depend on it. I am definitely a madman with a box." Amy laughed. "Ha-ha! Yeah!" the Doctor crowed and raced back to the console.

The girls followed him and gripped onto the console. "Goodbye Leadworth. Hello, everything!" The Doctor threw a lever and the TARDIS shook off to its next destination.