They stayed like that for a long time; Rory, Amy and Evie on one bench, the Tivolian on the one in the middle and the Doctor in the bench at the end of the room. Silence filled the room as each of them concentrated on their own thoughts.

"OK." The Doctor said at last. "It preys on people's fear and possesses them. But Rita wasn't afraid… she was brave and calm. Maybe it's something to do with the people? Some… connection… between the four of you that'll tell me how to fight it."

"Yes, you keep saying that… but you never do." The Tivolian said, picking his teeth. Evie glared pointedly at him. "And while we wait people keep dying. And we'll be next."

"Hopefully you." Evie muttered under her breath, earning herself a nudge from Amy.

"Look… he'll work it out… he always does." She assured him. "Just let him riff and move anything expensive out of his way."

The Doctor's face crumpled as something occurred to him. "Oh, no… oh no, no!"

"Doctor, what's wrong?" Amy asked, bewildered by his words.

"It's not fear; its faith… not just religious faith… faith in something." He stood up, his eyes glazing over slightly as he thought about what was going on. "Howard believed in conspiracies; that external forces controlling the world. Joe had dice cufflinks and a chain with a horseshoe. He was a gambler. Gamblers believe in luck, an intangible force that helps them win or lose. Gibbis rejected personal autonomy and is waiting for the next batch of invaders to tell oppress him and tell him what to do. They all believe there's something guiding them, about to save them. That's what it replaces. Every time someone was confronted with their most primal fear they fell back on their most fundamental faith. And all this time I've been telling you to dig deep."

"So… we shouldn't have been doing that?" Evie asked, chewing her lip. He didn't even seem to have heard her.

"Find the thing that keeps you brave. I made you expose your faith. Show them what they needed." He said miserably, glancing at the briefly before looking down once more.

"But why us?" Rory asked. "Why are we here?"

"It doesn't want you. That's why it kept showing you a way out. You're not religious or superstitious, so there's no faith for you to fall back on. It wants her." He pointed to Amy. On either side of her Rory and Evie turned to stare at the wide-eyed red-head.

"Me?" She asked, horrified. Then she stood up quickly and sat on the bar stool beside the Doctor. "Why?"

"Your faith in me." He told her simply. "That's what brought us here." Then he turned to stare at his daughter. "Evie's faith in me isn't quite as strong… but it's still there. Strong enough to be an attraction to the creature."

She wasn't sure whether to be offended by his words. But as Evie thought about it her father's words made a lot of sense. Amy had a far more rose-tinted view of the Time Lord than she did; her trust in him was unfaltering, whatever happened. The younger woman was more cynical.

At the mention of Evie having a room, both her grandparents glanced at her, realising that this must mean she'd seen inside it.

"But why do they lose their faith before they die and start worshipping… 'it'." Rory asked.

"It needs to convert the faith into a form 'it' can consume." The Doctor explained. "Faith is an energy, the specific emotional energy the creature needs to live. Which is why at the end of her note, Lucy said…"

"Praise him." Amy cut in.

"Exactly."

There was silence for a moment. Evie, Rory and the Doctor looked at each other, wide-eyed and in horror. It suddenly dawned on the three of them that perhaps Amy hadn't been finishing the sentence as they'd first assumed.

"No!" Rory said. "Oh, please, no!"

They all stood as the sound of thudding footsteps approaching the room. There was a tinkling sound as the glassware around the room started to shake at the force. Evie looked around warily, trying to work out which direction the sound was coming from.

"Come on!" The Doctor shouted, rushing to the door and throwing it open.

They needed no encouragement to follow him out and along the corridors. The creature was following them; they could feel the thudding of its hooves on the floor. Every now and then they would throw glances over their shoulders to make sure it wasn't yet in sight.

"Amy? What are you doing?" The Doctor demanded, rushing back to her side as she stopped in the middle of the corridor. The creature was catching up with them now and they had no time to waste.

"He is beautiful!" She exclaimed as he got nearer and nearer.

"Amy!" Evie shouted, gripping her upper arms and shook her, trying to bring her back to her senses. She remembered what she'd seen in her room and felt tears springing to her eyes. A strange fuzziness threatened to take over, but she ignored it, shaking her head. "Come on, I'm not leaving you! I won't let anything happen to you!"

"Leave her! Just leave her!" Rory shouted at the creature, as the Doctor put Amy's arm around his neck and pulled her away.

They ran from the creature, barrelling down the corridor until the Doctor chose a suitable door and Rory wrenched it open. They almost fell into the room and Rory slammed the door. Evie, however, was staring at the figure that was in front of them, sitting on her suitcase and staring out of the window with her back to them.

It was little Amelia Pond.

"Praise him…" Evie muttered, the fuzzy feeling taking over her completely.

Behind them the creature was pounding on the door.

"What?" The Doctor turned to look at her, his voice unnaturally high. "Evie… no!"

She stared at him, horrified. "Dad… what…?"

"Doctor, it's happening!" Amy moaned, sinking to her knees. The Doctor's gaze moved agitatedly between the pair of them. "It's changing me… it's changing my thoughts."

He sank to the ground beside her. "I can't save you from this, there's nothing I can do to stop this."

"What?" Amy gasped.

"I stole your childhood and now I've led you by the hand to your death. But the worst thing is, I knew." He told her in a low voice. "I knew this would happen. This is what always happens. And if it wasn't bad enough that I've put you in danger, I've also got my daughter… my own daughter… in exactly the situation that I've always tried to avoid. She's going to die and it's all my fault."

The door flew open, sending Rory who had been leaning against it flying face first into the wall. Framed in the doorway was the creature, looking directly at the two women. He roared and snorted alarmingly. The Doctor squeezed Amy's shoulder as she knelt on the ground. Evie squeezed her eyes shut and felt his hand take hers and hold it tightly. She could feel what was coming.

Evie clearly imagined the scene that had been in the room; the disappointment, the feelings that she had let people down… people who had needed her. She clenched her jaw, determined to fight this.

"Forget your faith in me. Both of you. However small that faith is, forget it." The Doctor commanded.

Evie tried to do as he'd ordered. She closed her eyes and concentrated. She dragged up every negative memory of her father she could find; every time the Doctor had got her into a dangerous situation, every time he hadn't got her to the right place or the right time, every time he'd turned up late or not known what to do. She thought about how many times she'd heard her mother crying over him.

Apparently Amy was having a harder time losing faith in the Time Lord, because he started to speak to her. "I took you with me because I was vain; because I wanted to be adored." He told her softly. There was self-loathing in his eyes and Evie found that she had to squeeze hers closed again to keep the negative thoughts alive. Even though she couldn't see him, just hearing the Doctor's voice was enough. "Look at you… glorious Pond; the girl who waited for me. I'm not a hero… I really am just a mad man with a box. And it's time we saw each other as we really are."

The words went straight to Evie's heart. They may not have been intended for her, but they certain struck a chord. Since she was a little girl the Doctor had always been her hero, even when she didn't know who he really was. There may have been times when she'd argued with him or refused to do as she was told, but she adored him more than anything. She'd put him on a pedestal.

Now, hearing his words to Amy she realised that he really was just a man.

A stupidly idiotic mad man with a big blue box.

Hey lovelies!

After a conversation with NaviRebel16 I decided that I quite liked the idea of people doing fanart for this fic!

So this is me with a very unsubtle hint - more of a demand, really - for any of you lovely people who fancy it to have a go. I would really love to see what you think Evie looks like. I have a very clear picture in my head, but I'm interested in how you imagine her!

Obviously if you do have a go and send me links or whatever I'd put them in a chapter so everyone could see - unless you didn't want me to!

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I probably won't get the chance to update again until at least Sunday, but the next chapter will be up ASAP. Promise :)

:D

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