The Angels Take Manhattan (Part 2)

"Doctor?" River frowned, seeing Evy freezing down the hall, the Time Lady having seen what the Doctor had in his mind, "Doctor, what is it? What's wrong? Tell me," but he was silent, "Evy?" she tried, "Evy, what is it? Please tell me."

She knew better than to ask Older LJ, he'd never say. He was frustrating like that, always so tightlipped about the future.

"Ok," she frowned, seeing the Doctor's expression darkening, Evy shaking her head and rushing off, "I know that face. Calm down. Calm down! Talk to me. Doctor!"

"No!" he snapped, before glancing at his son, "Get her wrist out, without breaking it!"

"And how am I supposed to do that?" Older LJ shook his head, not putting bite behind his words, knowing how his father could get, how upset he'd have to be to start barking orders, "It's impossible."

"You're Evy's son too," he countered, "Figure it out. Change the future!" before heading after his Link and infant son.

~8~

"Rory?" Amy shouted as she tried to run down into the basement.

"Amy don't!" Evy called, reaching out a hand to pull her back, "Stop! They're Angels," she pointed to the cherub statues at the bottom, their heads turned to stare up at them, "The babies, Grayle gave Rory to them…those are the Angels that sent us back in the first place."

Don't blink! LJ added, staring as hard at the statues as he could.

"Did they get Rory?" Amy panted as they moved back up, not taking their eyes off the statues, "Where is he? Did they take him?"

"I think they might have," Evy whispered, the two of them making it out of the basement, only for the Doctor to appear, shutting the door and sonicing it locked.

"So is this what's going to happen?" Amy looked at them, tears in her eyes, "We just keep chasing him and they keep pulling him further back?"

"He isn't back in time," River remarked as she and Older LJ stepped into the room, River holding a scanner, "I'm reading a displacement, but there are no temporal markers."

Amy looked confused so LJ tried to elaborate, They moved him in...

Only for his older self to cut in, "They moved him in space, but not in time, so he's somewhere around here, right now..." he hissed though his teeth a moment, eyeing the readings, "It's not that far from here actually."

LJ pouted and crossed his arms at being interrupted, Older LJ just winking at his younger self as though to say 'that's what you get when you can't talk.' His parents glanced at each other, sharing a small look, they supposed this would be the quietest they'd ever hear their boy being, that time before he could really talk out loud.

"You got out," the Doctor grinned, seeing River free.

"So, where is he?" Amy spoke before River could answer.

"Well, come on, come on, come on, where is he?"

"If it was that easy, I'd get you to do it," River remarked, making Evy laugh at the pout on the Doctor's face before she gave him a peck.

"But…" even Evy had to comment, "How did you get out without breaking your wrist?"

"Dad asked," Older LJ remarked, shrugging, though looking down and shifting from foot to foot, "So we did. Problem?"

"You just changed the future," the Doctor beamed sounding remarkably proud of that, he might have even had a little tear in his eye.

Look at that, his little boy, all grown up and changing the future...

And then Evy whacked him on the back of the head, that wasn't always a good thing as they'd learned in Lake Silencio.

Older LJ laughed, "I get it from you dad," he remarked, "Changing the future. Doing the impossible, that's mum. And besides," he shrugged, "I'm 237 years old, I know what I'm doing," River scoffed, making him roll his eyes, "I'm always calling you two up to see if something's alright to change. Half the time you tell me to do it dad..."

The Doctor started to smile...

"And then mum smacks you and tells me not to."

And he pouted.

Evy rolled her eyes and gave him another kiss.

"Hush," River called, tense, "I'm working."

"She's good, have you noticed?" the Doctor asked, "Really, really good."

Older LJ grinned, "That's my Riv."

Oi! LJ grumbled, MY Riv too!

Older LJ shook his head at him, leaning in to look the boy in the eyes, "Maybe when you're older."

"Ah," River cheered, "Wherever it is, it's within a few blocks. There's a car out front. Shall we steal it?"

"Always," Older LJ nodded, whipping out his sonic and tossing it in his hand, grinning like a...well, either madman or an idiot, Evy wasn't sure which, though both proved he was the Doctor's son.

"Show us!" the Doctor dashed off, moving to grab River's right hand, when she gasped in pain, making the Doctor pause and look down at it…

What's wrong with River? LJ looked up at his parents, but they couldn't answer...

River's wrist was still broken.

~8~

The Doctor was pacing through the foyer of Grayle's home, River sitting stiffly on the steps, Older LJ leaning on the end of the banister beside her, sonicing the scanner to look for Rory faster while Evy sat with LJ on the bottom step, Amy leaning against a wall, waiting.

"Gotcha," Older LJ called, flipping his sonic in his hand and putting it away in his coat, tossing Amy the scanner, "When all those numbers hit zero, that's when it's locked on, right? Keep an eye on it, it's how we'll find him."

"Got it," Amy looked down at the scanner intently, watching the numbers closely.

"Why did you lie to us?" the Doctor looked at Older LJ as he moved to sit beside River. He walked over to stand beside Evy, the woman reaching up to take his hand, sensing it hurt to know their son had lied.

"When one cares for ageless gods who insist on the faces of a twelve-year-olds," River answered instead, glancing between them and Older LJ, "One does one's best to hide the damage."

"I'm sorry," Evy said quietly as Older LJ reached out to look at River's wrist, "That has to hurt."

"Yes. The wrist is pretty bad too…" but then her attention was pulled away by a warmth in her hand, she looked down to see her wound glowing golden-orange, Older LJ siphoning his regenerative energy into it, healing it as he could since she was part-Time Lady, "No," she tried tugging her hand away, "No. No, stop that. Stop that," and then she did something that surprised the Time Lords, only a bit though, she slipped into Gallifreyan, "Stop it!"

She must have REALLY wanted him to stop what he was doing to use their language against him.

Older LJ just ignored her a moment longer, smirking as his younger self cheered him on, healing River completely, "There we are," he set her hand down with a pat, "Better?"

River just glared, "Well, let's see, shall we?" before she slapped him in the back of the head, hard, "That was a stupid waste of regeneration energy. Nothing is gained by you being a sentimental idiot!"

"Riv…" he began, rubbing the back of his head.

"No, you embarrass me!"

"Riv!"

She just shook her head and moved to leave.

"River!" he shouted, rushing after her, following her outside, leaving the trio back inside with Amy, "Riv," he grabbed her hand, tugging her to face him, "Why shouldn't I heal you?" he asked, "You're my best friend! You're my Timegirl!" River just huffed, "And it's not like I lost a life doing that. You know this is my first incarnation, I've got plenty of regeneration energy left, I only skimmed off the top!"

"But that's just it," she snapped, "You keep skimming off the top and one day that'll catch up to you! What if you lose one of your lives because you insist on healing me? I'd rather you just let me deal with my pain myself."

"Yeah, I know," he rolled his eyes, "Because I know you River. I knew you before I was even born. I knew you through my parents. I know what sort of woman you were, are, exciting, adventurous, brilliant…that's why I spent four plus years in a human education system, just so I could get to meet you! You really think I'd just let you suffer?"

She was quiet a moment, seeing an opening to finally ask him something that had bothered her ever since she'd learned who her LJ really was, "If you knew me through your parents, then you know what I did to the Doctor, to Evy, in Berlin."

"I didn't need to know from them…I was there, remember? Just because I hadn't been born yet didn't mean I wasn't aware."

She shook her head, tears in her eyes, "Then how can you be friends with me after that? After what I did to you?"

"Yeah, you did something bad, but then you saved us," he countered, "Cancels out the bad doesn't it?" she just frowned, "Come on Riv, we all make mistakes. And fine, you think me healing you is a mistake, but I'll make it again and again, because I don't want to see you hurt."

She shook her head, she should have known. He was just like his father in that regard, if he saw someone hurt he just had to help. It was why she'd always tried never to let him, or the Doctor and Evy, see the damage, to never let them see her age, because, for him and the Doctor especially, to them it meant the end coming.

They both hated endings.

"Just like you don't want to see me hurt," he nudged her a bit, pulling her from her thoughts.

She sighed, she had to agree to that. She didn't like it anymore than he did.

He smiled, "Are we ok now?" she nodded, offering him a smile in return, "Good," he beamed…

Though...if he was being completely honest...there was a little more too it. He knew, from his baby self, what River's future would hold, what was waiting for her in the Library. He knew she would one day die saving his parents and for that, he'd forgive her anything.

"Got it!" the Doctor shouted as he ran out the door with Evy, LJ, and Amy, Amy holding the scanner, "He's at a place called Winter Quay. The car, yes? Let's go."

Older LJ ran over to the driver's side of the car, sonicing it unlocked and the engine on as River got in beside him, the others piling in back as they drove off, none of them noticing a mother and son statue across the street disappear as the door to Grayle's home was left open.

~8~

"Why would they send him here?" River asked, taking the scanner from Amy to direct Older LJ, "Why not zap him back in time, like they normally do?"

"We'll know that when we know what this place is," the Doctor remarked.

"Winter Quay," Amy nodded.

"LJ," Evy began, when the baby looked up at her too.

Yes mummy? LJ asked.

She winced a bit, "Sorry, um, Older LJ?"

Ooh, that sounded rubbish didn't it?

"You could call him J," River suggested, "To differentiate him and baby-him, that's what I call him."

Evy nodded, that was reasonable, yes, she liked that more, "J…"

"Yeah mum?" Older LJ...well...J called back.

"Just curious…we've been running into you a lot lately…" she began, thinking of the whole mess with Lake Silencio, seeing him again when they'd tried to pick up River on her first night of Stormcage, and now this, "Why is that? I mean, we've had adventures with River before, and you two are clearly very close…why didn't we see you earlier?"

J grinned, the group able to see him in the rearview mirror, "Because you didn't know who River was then, and because you were having a baby, couldn't really have another Time Lord pop up. You two are both ultra-sensitive to Perception Filters now so I couldn't wear that. I just had to wait till after you had me, or very nearly, didn't want to break tradition of what I was being a surprise. But I was always there you know, in the background."

The Doctor had to laugh at that, J definitely seemed to inherit Evy's not breathing thing...or his rambling ability...either way he was most certainly their son.

"You were?" Amy asked, trying to think if she might have seen the man lurking about during earlier adventures with her daughter.

He nodded, "Oh yeah. Who do you think organized her pardon from Stormcage so you could handle the Angel in the Byzantium? Or how River got a call from Winston Churchill directing her to Van Gogh's painting? Who do you think picked her up from Stormcage to get her to America and all the other places she went when she 'escaped?' I was even the one to give her the tour of Luna University. I was always there, in the background, keeping this one," he nodded at River, "Out of trouble."

Evy smiled, "That sounds remarkably familiar," she glanced at the Doctor who just smiled in return.

~8~

As soon as they arrived at Winter Quay, Amy was out the door and running into the building, the gang behind her. She spared a single glance to the first floor of the apartment complex before heading for the lift, "Rory?" she called as they passed a few floors.

"He's close," River looked at the scanner, when the lift stopped on the 8th floor.

"Rory!" she dashed out, running to an open door to apartment 802, spotting someone standing inside it, "Rory!"

"Amy!" he ran back to her, hugging her tightly.

"Doctor, Evy," River paused at the door, her eye trained on an Angel at the end of the hall, smirking at them, "Look at this. Why is it smiling?"

"I'm more worried about this actually," J tapped the nameplate of the door, 'R. Williams.'

"Oh that's never good…" Evy frowned.

How does Uncle Rory have a room here? LJ frowned, squinting at the writing.

"Amy," the Doctor quickly made his way into the room, "Rory! Get out of here! Don't look at anything. Don't touch…"

"Who's that?" Amy called. The group slowly moved further into the room, J shutting the door behind them, sonicing it locked for more protection, he wouldn't put it past the Angel to try to get in. The small group slowed near the back room, spotting an old man lying in bed, pointing at them.

"Amy," the man wheezed, "Amy, please. Amy, please. Please…"

Who's that? LJ squirmed in Evy's arms, trying to get a better look, but for once Evy held him back, her hearts breaking as she and the others realized who the man was.

Amy frowned and moved closer till she saw exactly who this old man was, who he looked like, "Rory?" she took his hand, looking at his younger version, "He's you."

"Amy," the Old Rory smiled, before his eyes closed.

J closed his eyes a moment, though no one saw as he stood behind them, a terrible pain etched on his face as he sagged, seeming as though a weight had settled on him.

"Will someone please tell me what is going on?" Rory asked.

"I'm sorry, Rory, but...you just died," the Doctor breathed.

What?! LJ looked at his parents alarmed, But he couldn't...he's right there! he began to reach for Rory as though wanting to touch the man and prove he was real.

"It seems like this place is being policed by Angels," Evy frowned, "If you try to escape, you just get zapped back in time."

"So this place belongs to the Angels?" Amy moved back over to Rory, "They built it?"

"Displacing someone back in time creates time energy, and that is what the Angels feed on," the Doctor explained, "But normally, it's a one off, a hit and run. If they could keep hold of their victims, feed off their time energy over and over again. This place is a farm. A battery farm. How many Angels in New York?"

"It's like they've taken over every statue in the city," River stated.

"The Angels take Manhattan because they can, because they've never had a food source like this one. The city that never sleeps."

Suddenly loud, heavy footsteps sounded from outside the window.

"What was that?" Rory asked.

Evy moved over to the window, looking out but unable to see anything, "Not sure…but Rory, whatever it is…safe betting is that it's here for you."

"What does that mean? What is going to happen to me? What is physically going to happen?"

"The Angels are gonna find you," J spoke up, sounding...so sad and...tired...like he was...resigned, "Then zap you back in time, right back here, to this room, thirty, maybe forty years ago, over and over again until you live out the rest of your life in this room, till you die in that bed."

River closed her eyes, knowing exactly how J knew that and knowing she couldn't blame him for not speaking earlier, for giving some sort of warning. He'd lived through it as a baby, whatever he was saying, he'd only say as the event was happening, as an offered explanation but never a warning, he was that careful about timelines.

"And will Amy be there?" Rory continued.

"No."

"How do you know?" Amy frowned.

J glanced at Evy, silently pleading with her not to make HIM say it.

"Because that man," Evy nodded at the old man, taking pity on her son to have to experience this twice, "He was far too happy to just SEE you Amy."

"Why didn't they take you?" Amy looked at Evy, "The Angels sent you back too…"

"But the babies didn't get me," she countered, "The babies were the ones who sent Rory here. And…I can't exactly live out my life here, I'd never age. It would be hard for them to collect the energy of the life I would have lived if my life never comes to an end."

"Ok," Rory swallowed hard, "Well, they haven't taken me yet. What if I just run? What if I just get the hell out of here? Then that never happens."

"Wun!" LJ agreed.

"It's already happened," the Doctor shook his head, "Rory, you've just witnessed your own future."

"Dad," J cut in, smiling just a little, "He's right."

"No, he isn't."

"If Rory got out, it would create a paradox!" River argued.

The footsteps continued, making Amy frown, "What is that?"

"This farm thing is the Angels' food source," J added, "Probably their only food source if they've put so much time into it. If the paradox poisons the water and the soil, if the crop goes bad, which it would, it'll kill them all. This whole thing would unhappen…literally."

"It would be almost impossible," the Doctor replied.

River smirked, "Loving the almost."

"And you've got two impossible people here," J smirked, smug, which made River roll her eyes, "Well," he nodded at his baby self in Evy's arms, "Three."

The Doctor had to smile at that, before shaking his head, needing to make sure this could work, he wasn't about to risk the safety of his Link and child, not even for Amy and Rory, "But to create a paradox like that takes almost unimaginable power. What have we got, eh? Tell me. Come on, what?"

"I won't let them take him," Amy stepped up, taking Rory's hand, "That's what we've got."

Rory glanced nervously out the window as the thumps got louder, "Whatever that thing is, it's getting closer…"

"Rory," Evy stepped up, needing him to understand what had to be done, "If you get out, you have to keep running. Probably for the rest of your life. The Angels will never stop chasing you."

"Well, then," Amy took a breath, "Better get started," before pulling Rory to the door of the flat and throwing it open, only to see an Angel outside it, "Husband, run!" she pulled him past the Angels as the lights flickered, the ones in the doorway now entering the room, knowing their kin would head Amy and Rory off in the stairwell.

"River, L…J," the Doctor corrected, "I'm not sure this can work."

"It's a stretch," Evy agreed, though believing it more than the Doctor, "An impossible stretch, but…" she took the Doctor's hand, "We can do it, together."

"Wun!" LJ agreed, as determined as a baby could be as he helped his parents, River, and his older self stare down the Angels.

The lights flickered again and the Angels made it into the room completely. The Doctor pulled out his sonic, flashing the lights to keep it on as he handed Evy the papoose from his pocket, River quickly helping her put it on and fix LJ into it as J kept an eye on the Angels with his father till they had finished.

"We can't keep doing this," the Doctor remarked as the Angels surrounded them.

"Any ideas?" River glanced over as she tightened the last strap.

"Yeah, the usual."

"Wun!" LJ shouted once more, and they made a break for the door, dashing out into the hallway and towards the stairs, only to see Angels scattered along them.

"Fire escape," J pointed, leading them off, helping Evy and his younger self through the window, followed by River, then him and the Doctor, who shut the window and soniced it locked.

They rushed up the fire escape, heading for the roof, not seeing Rory or Amy on the ground, but hearing them above.

"No, I can't take you too…" they could hear Rory say, worrying them, pushing them on.

"You said we'd come back to life," Amy countered, "Money where your mouth is time."

"Amy, look…"

"Shut up. Together, or not at all."

They finally reached the top, just in time to see Amy and Rory standing on the ledge of the building, "What the hell are you doing!?" the Doctor demanded, rushing over.

"Changing the future," Amy smiled, "It's called marriage," before letting her and Rory fall off the side of the building.

"Amy!" Evy screamed along with the Doctor as they ran to the edge, looking over at them falling, LJ crying at what was happening, "Amy! Rory!"

"Dad!" J shouted behind them, "Mum!"

They looked back to see balls of energy gathering, flickering around the roof.

"What's happening?" River called.

"The paradox," Evy smiled.

The Doctor laughed, "It's working!" he grabbed Evy's hand, and River's, Evy taking J's as well, "The paradox is working!"

And a bright white light lit up the sky…

~8~

Amy and Rory gasped as they shot up into a sit, back in 2012, in the graveyard the TARDIS had bounced to before, "Where are we?" Rory looked around.

"Back where we started," the Doctor called as he and Evy rushed over with LJ, "You collapsed the timeline. The paradox worked. We all pinged back where we belong."

"What, in a graveyard?"

"This happened the last time," Amy explained, "Why always here?"

"Does it matter?" the Doctor chuckled, "We got lucky. We could've blown New York off the planet."

Evy sighed, "We won't ever be able to take the TARDIS to back there, the timeless are too scrambled now."

"We could have lost you both," the Doctor breathed, pulling the Ponds into a hug with Evy, mindful of LJ who was grumbling about being squished but claiming it was a good squish as he tugged on the fronts of their shirts and calling out in Baby that he loved his Ponds, "Don't ever do that again."

"What did we do?" Rory frowned, "We fixed it. We solved the problem."

"I was talking to myself," the Doctor told them, pulling away, before taking Evy's hand and tugging her back to the TARDIS, the box sitting there with quite a bit of fire extinguisher damage to her outside.

River stepped back from behind it with a bucket in her hand, J with a handful of rags, ready to help the Time Lords clean the TARDIS off.

"It could do with a repaint," River remarked as the Doctor took a rag, him and J getting to work cleaning it with her, while Evy went inside to put LJ in his bouncy chair.

"We've been busy," the Doctor countered.

"Does the bulb on top need changing?"

"I just changed it."

"Rory and Amy…" J began.

"Yes. I know, I know."

"They'll be bored out of their minds stuck here all day."

"Doctor…" Rory spoke, walking over with Amy, "Look, next time, could we could just go to the pub?"

"I want go to the pub right now," the Doctor spun around, "Are there video games there? I love video games. I can show LJ some video games, he'll love them…" he looked at J, "Don't you love them?"

"Oh yeah," J grinned.

"Right," River laughed, "Family outing, then."

The Doctor opened the doors to the TARDIS, letting River in, following her.

J paused in the doorway, looking back at Amy and Rory, a sad look on his face, before he took a breath, steeling himself...and headed in as well.

"Amy, come and see this," Rory called, a gravestone having caught his eye.

"What?" Amy turned, already halfway to the TARDIS.

"There's a gravestone here for someone with the same name as me."

Amy tensed, "What?"

And then Rory disappeared right before her eyes, an Angel behind him.

"Doctor!" she cried, "Evy!"

The Doctor, River, and Evy, who was holding a squirming LJ, who had been far too excited to sit in his bouncy chair, in her arms, bolt out. J followed behind them at a much more solemn pace.

"Where the hell did that come from?" River gasped, looking at J for an answer.

"It's a survivor," J said quietly, his voice thick with emotion, this was hard enough to live through as a baby, and now to do it again...he hated it, but the laws of time...he was powerless to stop it, "It's weak, but still…best keep your eyes on it."

"Where's Rory?" Amy demanded of the boy, not looking away from the statue with its arm held out, finger pointed where it had touched Rory.

"I'm sorry Aunt Amy," J sighed, "But that gravestone, the one with his name on it…he died, age 82."

"Why didn't you say anything?!"

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry," he shook his head, tears in his eyes, "But, in my timeline, it's an established event, I've already experienced it," he glanced at his baby self, "I can't change it."

It was even worse than reading the future, to have lived through it, seen it happen. This wasn't like when Amy had gotten trapped in Two Streams, this was far, far worse.

"No," she begged, "No, we...we can just go and get him in the TARDIS. One more paradox..."

"It would rip New York apart," J finished quietly.

"No, that's not true," Amy started to cry, tears in her eyes, "I don't believe you."

"Mother," River spoke softly, her voice cracking, "It's true."

"Amy, what are you doing?" the Doctor called as Amy started to make her way towards the Angel.

"That gravestone," Amy breathed, "Rory's...there's room for one more name, isn't there?"

"What are you talking about? Back away from the Angel."

"Amy please," Evy pleaded, bobbing LJ as he started to cry, working out what was happening, what was going to happen if Amy continued, "Just come back to the TARDIS and we'll figure out what to do…"

"The Angel," Amy shook her head, "Would it send me back to the same time? To him?"

"We don't know."

"Nobody knows!" the Doctor added.

"I know," J spoke up.

"Don't say it!" the Doctor snapped, pointing warningly at his son.

J just looked at him, so sad, but understanding. This was a painful moment, and his parents were slowly realizing that, him being there, him knowing if the Angel would send Amy back to the right spot...meant she had already done it in his past...their hope at stopping her was fading fast.

"Will it?" Amy tried to speak, but her tears choked her.

"Yes," J nodded, though she couldn't see.

"No!" the Doctor cried.

"Dad…" J began, shaking his head.

"Shut up," River agreed, before turning to her mother, "It's your best chance mum."

"Amy…" Evy breathed, seeing the determination. She couldn't even truly talk her out of it…if it had been the Doctor…she'd be doing the exact same thing.

"Well, then," Amy swallowed, "I just have to blink, right?"

"No!" the Doctor shouted as LJ truly began to cry.

Aunt Amy! the boy wept, Don't go!

"It'll be fine," Amy said, as though understanding LJ's cries, "I know it will. I'll be with him, like I should be. Me and Rory together. Melody?"

"Stop it," the Doctor begged, Evy taking his hand, trying to calm him, "Just...just stop it!"

River stepped forward and took Amy's hand, kissing it, "You look after the three of them," Amy told her, "You be a good girl, and you look after them."

"Always," River promised.

"Amy…" Evy began, needing to make sure Amy truly understood all the consequences, "Do this and you create fixed time. We'll NEVER be able to see you again."

"I'll be fine" Amy nodded, believing it, "I'll be with him."

"Amy, please," the Doctor whispered, tears in his eyes, "Just come back into the TARDIS. Come along, Pond, please."

"Evy," Amy sniffled, "Take care of him. LJ…be good to your parents for me eh?"

Yes Aunt Amy, LJ sniffled.

Amy smiled, almost swearing she could understand the baby in his gurgling.

"Of course," J had to add as well.

"Raggedy man, impossible girl," she spun around, "Goodbye!"

And let the Angel take her.

She vanished before their eyes, her name being added to Rory's gravestone, his loving wife, having died at age 87.

"No!" the Doctor shouted, falling to his knees, in tears, Evy immediately beside him, hugging him as LJ cried in their arms.

J looked over, seeing River just staring at the statue, tears in her eyes, and moved to her, putting his arm around her, squeezing her tightly, feeling so, so guilty that he hadn't been able to stop it.

But it truly was too impossible for even his mum to do.

~8~

In the TARDIS later on, the Doctor sat on the steps, silent, inconsolable, LJ in his arms as he held his boy to him, Evy beside him, her arm through his, resting her head on his shoulder, the trio unnaturally quiet, while J and River set the coordinates and piloted them away.

"River," the Doctor glanced up at her, "They were your parents. I'm sorry, I didn't think..."

"It doesn't matter," River cut in.

"Of course it matters Riv," J reached across and took her hand.

She gave him a sad smile before turning back to the Doctor, "What matters is this...Doctor, don't travel alone."

He offered her a weary smile, "Travel with us, then."

"Oi!" J cried jokingly, "Get your own companion, no stealing mine…ow!" he winced as River whacked him on the shoulder, making his parents chuckle a bit, even getting his baby-self to smile, "What was that for?"

"I'm not your companion J," she crossed her arms, "I'm your partner, remember Spaceman?"

He smiled at that, "Of course, Timegirl."

Who? LJ gurgled.

J looked over, "You'll find out one day."

"Come on," River interrupted lightly, "We've got to get back to your TARDIS…"

"You've a TARDIS?" Evy looked up, actually surprised at that, more so than the fact he had a sonic.

J rubbed the back of his neck in a familiar move, debating what to say before deciding it wasn't too detrimental to the timelines, "Your graduation gift to me," he told them, "Chunk of TARDIS that Auntie Donna was growing for you."

They nodded, they'd probably have to check in with Donna soon, see to that.

"But yeah," J nodded with a glance to River, "We should head out, you've got that book to write."

"'Harmony Brooks?'" she looked at the Time Lords to double check the name, they nodded, "I presume I send it to Amy to get it published?"

"Yes," the Doctor nodded, rubbing his head, "Yes."

"I'll tell her to write an afterword," River commented as she and J moved to leave, "For you. Maybe you'll listen to her."

Evy stiffened suddenly, making the Doctor look at her in concern, "Oh my God, the last page!"

"Weed!" LJ cheered.

~8~

The Doctor and Evy ran through Central Park, back in 2012, right to where the Doctor had left the picnic basket, having dropped everything but LJ to save her from the Angels.

He snatched the last page from the basket and slipped on Amy's reading glasses, moving to sit on a nearby bench to read it to Evy and LJ.

"'Afterword, by Amelia Williams," he began, "Hello, old friends. And here we are, you and me, on the last page. By the time you read these words, Rory and I will be long gone. So know that we lived well, and were very happy. And above all else, know that we will love you always. Sometimes I do worry about you, though. I think once we're gone, you won't be coming back here for a while, and you might be alone, which you should never be. Don't be alone, Doctor. Evy will need another friend and LJ another special friend," they smiled at that, when Amy had learned that LJ called her 'Aunt Amy' she'd remarked it made her feel old and that she'd rather be his special friend, at least till she felt old enough to be an aunt...which was odd considering how old the Time Lords were, "So find someone, please. And do one more thing for me. There's a little girl waiting in a garden. She's going to wait a long while, so she's going to need a lot of hope. Go to her. Tell her a story. Tell her that if she's patient, the days are coming that she'll never forget. Tell her she'll go to sea and fight pirates. She'll fall in love with a man who'll wait 2,000 years to keep her safe. Tell her she'll give hope to the greatest painter who ever lived and save a whale in outer space. Tell her this is the story of Amelia Pond. And this how it ends.'"

He slowly lowered the paper as Evy took his hand, pulling him up, leading him back to the TARDIS, they had a little ginger girl to find in a back garden and talk to.

And boy did they have an adventurous tale in mind for her.

~8~

Brian sat on the sofa of Amy and Rory's house, his elbows on his knees, his hands clasped together, his mouth pressed firmly against them as he listened to the Doctor and Evy finish telling him what had happened to his son and daughter-in-law. The Doctor had nearly left after meeting with young Amelia Pond, but Evy had made him return to Brian, the man deserved an explanation.

"I'm so sorry Brian," the Doctor said, tears in his voice.

"We both are," Evy added, her hand clasped tightly in the Doctor's as LJ sat in her lap, as solemn as a baby could be.

Brian just shut his eyes and shook his head…

When the doorbell rang.

He took a breath, wiping his eyes as he stood, heading for the door, needing something to pull him away from the Time Lords and their big blue box that had taken away his son.

He opened the door to see an older woman, about her mid-sixties, there, reddish hair with a few streaks of gray in them, pulled back in a bun, wearing a tan trench coat, "Oh, sorry," she smiled, an American accent to her, "Are you Brian Williams?"

He blinked, startled, "Yes…" he hesitated, eyeing her, "How did you know I was here? This isn't my house."

"This is for you," she held out an envelope, well kept, to him.

"I don't understand," he shook his head, looking at the word 'Dad' written on it.

"You should read it," she told him, "May I wait inside?"

He nodded numbly, stepping aside to let her in. She followed him to the sitting room where the Doctor and Evy were still waiting for him. She paused, her eyes widening as she stared at them and the box, before smiling and shaking her head, moving to sit beside Brian on the sofa, the Time Lords eyeing her with a small, curious smile, recognizing her from a very distant glance they'd gotten when they'd visited a meadow quite a few years in Amy and Rory's future.

She gave them a nod, as though to confirm their thoughts, and Evy beamed, the Doctor giving a small laugh, hugging Evy close as LJ stared at the woman...till she winked at him and he began to clap.

Brian frowned, eyeing them and their joyous reaction, given what had just happened to Amy and Rory, before opening the letter and reading, "'Dear dad, this is the difficult bit. If I got this right, you're reading this letter a week after we left in the TARDIS. The thing is, we're not coming back. We're alive and well and…stuck. In New York. 50 years before I was born. We can't come home again. I won't ever see you again. And that breaks my heart. I'm so sorry dad. I thought about this for years and I realized there was one thing I could do. I could write to you, tell you everything about how we lived and, despite it all, that we were happy. But before I do, I need you to know…you are the best dad any son could have had. And, for all the times I drove you mad, and you drove me mad, all the times I snapped at you...I'm sorry. I miss everything about you. Especially our awkward hugs. I bought a trowel, we have a small yard, I garden. But one more important bit of business, the woman who delivered the letter, Evelyn, be nice to her. 'Cos she's your granddaughter. We finally adopted in 1946, Evelyn Bryn Williams. She can tell you everything, she'll have Brooke, her daughter, bring the family albums over. And I realize having a granddaughter who's older than you and a great-granddaughter the same age as your child is so far beyond weird, but…I'm sorry. I love you dad. I miss you.'"

Brian blinked a few times and looked at Evelyn who was smiling softly at him, "Hello grandpa."

He just reached out and hugged her tightly, the Time Lords smiling as they stood and made their way to the TARDIS, knowing Brian needed time with his family.

A/N: I'll definitely have some version of the 'P.S.' that never made it into the series play out in any and all DW OC stories, Brian deserved to know what happened! Grr...writers! -shakes fist- Lol, but awww...the Ponds are gone! :'( That makes me so sad! And it was even more heartbreaking, I think, for LJ because not only did he have to experience it twice, had to go the second time knowing he couldn't change anything, only that he could try to comfort them as it happened. That broke my heart to write. I see LJ, well, J as being as adventurous as the Doctor, but with Evy's consideration for timelines, like he'll push anything to an impossible stretch, but...there are just some things not even he can do :(

But at least we get the Snowmen next :) I can say that LJ will be older in it and hit another milestone in his development. I'm still not sure if I'll be doing one long chapter or 2, so if anyone wants to try to convince me one way or the other, I'm still open to it :) The 'next times' will be about the 1st half of the episode though, just in case I do 2...

I'm also, from here on out, going to call Older LJ just J, or possibly the Captain, depending on the chapter/point in his timeline. There WILL be a time where he prefers to be called the Captain and it will have A LOT to do with River calling him J, care to guess when that might be? ;) And...LJ gets a TARDIS in the future! Lol, you have NO IDEA how many chapters I wanted to write for TAOSAT that had him appearing in Stormcage with it, but I kept it vague and wanted to wait till here to reveal it :)

Also, I mentioned on tumblr that I had thought of theme songs for both LJ and J to be announced here. I really hope you like them, I tried to give LJ's a playful yet adventurous feel while having the same adventurous theme but a bit more mature for J :) they should be easy to find on youtube if you want to give them a listen. So, without further ado...

LJ - 'Captain Universe' by Two Steps From Hell

J - 'Racketeers' by Two Steps From Hell

I hope you all loved LJ and J :)

Next time...someone caught a cold :( The Doctor wants to save a species. Vastra's not alone when Clara comes a'calling. And what's this? There's TWO Sherlock Holmeses? How does THAT happen?!

Some notes on reviews...

I'm going to try and respond in French (used Google translate so if it's really bad, I'm SO sorry!) Merci beaucoup! Je suis content que vous les aimez :) ...if that is completely wrong, I was trying to say 'Thanks so much! I'm glad you like them :)'

I meant the Claras like Clara Oswin Oswald, the Governess, and Clara Oswald, the original :) And that's awesome! I completely freaked when one character in DW had my name too for like an episode...and then she died...so I was sad, but yay for names! :)