A/N: Prepare the tissues...tis time... :'(
~8~
The Angels Take Manhattan: Farewells
"What does that mean?" Rory shook his head, staring at the Doctor, alarmed, not knowing what was coming for him exactly. He knew the angels seemed to be gunning for him, but what was the thing outside, and why did they want HIM so badly? "What is going to happen to me? What is physically going to happen?"
"The angels will come for you," the Doctor sighed, rubbing his head, "They'll zap you back in time to this very spot, thirty, forty years ago. And you'll live out the rest of your life in this room, until you die in that bed."
Was he a terrible person for being thankful Ayla hadn't been caught in that as well? Yes, his daughter had been sent back in time with Rory, but the 'baby angels' were the ones who sent him there, HE was the one with the name on the door. Ayla had been safe in Grayle's home, she hadn't been taken and trapped in the apartment complex like Rory had. And...being a Time Lady...it would be impossible for her to live out her life and die there, not that he even wanted to imagine that happening, he did NOT want his daughter to die ever. But being a Time Lady meant she couldn't be used by the angels either, so she was safe, they couldn't feed on her because she'd live on, there was no potential life to eat up if her life was still going.
"And will Amy be there?" Rory glanced at his wife.
Angel frowned, "No Rory, I'm sorry."
Amy turned to her, "How do you know? Do you feel that?"
"Because that man," she nodded at Old Rory, tears in her eyes to see his unmoving body.
She had...a hope that, in the future, she would be able to be there for all the family when their time came and they passed on peacefully, old and loved in their homes, surrounded by family. She had been with them through the most terrifying moments of their lives, she was not going to abandon them near the end either. She wanted to be there for them, to let them know they were not nor would they ever be forgotten by her. To hold their hand and offer them comfort was something she wished to do...but in the future, in the very far from now future, when they'd lived out full and happy lives, not like this, never like this. She didn't want Rory to have lived this particular life, trapped in the complex, alone, without Amy, and to die in front of her when, only moments ago he'd been a young man...it was wrong, it was SO wrong.
"He held on for that long just to see you Amy."
"Ok," Rory swallowed hard, not liking the quiver in Angel's voice, when her voice shook like that he knew something was very, very wrong, beyond perhaps even what she could do to fix it, "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."
"It's already happened," the Doctor shook his head, "Rory, you've just witnessed your own future."
"He's right my love," Angel looked at him, her eyes wide, recalling the bright orbs from her vision earlier, knowing something had to have happened for them to be there, she got the feeling it was a paradox at work. She remembered seeing the Ponds falling and...maybe Rory and Amy escaped. Maybe, if they were quick enough, they could get the Ponds out of there before that event happened and they wouldn't have to jump, they just...had to get out of the complex.
"No, he isn't."
Angel shook her head, "If Rory got out, it would create a paradox."
"What is that?" Amy glanced at the window, hearing the footsteps again.
"This is the angels' food source," River spoke, biting her tongue fat the fact she was agreeing with the woman, but...if it would save Rory, then...maybe he would be a bit...less distant with her.
She...had been trying the last few times she'd seen her parents, visiting them, to be more...of a daughter to them. Amy had accepted her well enough, still treated her with caution though, which she didn't blame her for. But her father...he was harder to get through to. He truly did care about Angel and Ayla, more than her probably. She...understood, in a way, women became mothers when they found out they had a child, men...didn't become fathers until they were holding their child in their arms...something her father hadn't been able to do. That connection she should have had with her parents, had she been born naturally, had been stripped away, hadn't even had the chance to form. She understood why her father was so short with her and distant and seemed to endure her presence more than enjoy it, she had shot and murdered his 'sister' in front of him, but...it actually...hurt a little to know, especially to know that she'd brought it on herself by choosing to act as she had in the past.
"The paradox poisons the well. It could kill them all. This whole place would literally unhappen."
"It would be almost impossible," the Doctor spoke.
Angel just smiled knowingly, "Almost."
"I love impossible things!" Ayla cheered too, getting excited at the thought that her Uncle Rory would be alright again.
The Doctor smiled at Ayla briefly before shaking his head, looking at the adults, "But to create a paradox like that takes almost unimaginable power. What have we got, eh? Tell me. Come on, what?"
"We have Amy," Angel said simply.
Amy nodded and stepped up, taking Rory's hand, "I won't let them take him. That's what we've got."
Ayla tugged on the Doctor's coat till he looked down, "Aunt Amy can be REALLY scary when she wants to be," she whispered to her father, knowing her auntie sometimes scared him and even Rory, never her mummy though, but that was because her mummy was the bravest woman ever.
"Don't I know it," the Doctor murmured, glancing at Amy as she smirked (he would have said) evilly at him.
Rory glanced at the window as the thudding got louder, "Whatever that thing is, it's getting closer."
"Rory," the Doctor stepped over, "Even if you got out, you'd have to keep running for the rest of your life. They would be chasing you forever."
"Well, then," Amy nodded, "Better get started," she ran to the door, throwing it open to see an angel standing there, she shoved Rory to the side but there was no room to squeeze past...the lights flickered within the room, forcing the Ponds back as the angels drew closer.
Angel looked around, trying to find a way out for the Ponds, knowing they needed to get past the angels, she, the Doctor, and River could distract them, keep them froze, but Amy and Rory HAD to get out first. She swallowed hard, thinking up a rather mad idea she wasn't even sure would work, before she ran to them, placing her hands on their shoulders and focusing. The Doctor watched as, a moment later, there was a flash of gold, as though Angel had teleported, but SHE was still there. He looked past her, seeing the same flash appear in the hall...the Ponds appearing there after disappearing from the room. His eyes widened, well that was new...Angel had never teleported someone else without going with them before...but then again it was just a few feet away...
He leapt forward though when he saw her stumble back, clearly that had taken a bit of doing on her part. He knew she always did that, put too much of the Vortex behind her when she tried something new, something she wasn't sure would work. He knew that if she disappeared then the angels would get closer, using her disappearance as a distraction for them inside the room...so she'd stayed, but sent the Ponds away.
"Run!" he shouted to them, helping Angel stagger back, his eyes on the angels, "GO!"
The Ponds hesitated, Rory looking at Angel, "Thank you," he whispered.
She nodded, "Go," she urged and they took off down the hall.
The Doctor swallowed hard, stepping back with Angel more, reaching back to take Ayla hand, pulling her closer, all of them with their eyes on the angels, "I'm not sure this can work," he admitted out loud.
"Daddy?" Ayla tugged on his arm.
"Yes, sweetheart?" he called, not looking down though.
"Be quiet," she told him, with the most adorable pout on her face that no one saw.
He smiled and nodded, focusing on the angels as the lights flickered again and the angels entered the room...
~8~
Amy and Rory ran to the stairs, looking down them to see the angels on their way up, "Up!" Amy shouted, pushing him up the stairs.
"What good's up?" Rory scoffed.
"Better than down!"
~8~
The Doctor soniced the lights to keep them on, Angel creating a small glowing ball of Vortex energy to help as the angels surrounded them.
"We can't keep doing this," the Doctor said, starting to grow a bit frantic at the enemy encroaching on him and his family, this was...not good, not good at all. They were essentially trapped in a very small room with no fire escape, the door blocked, the lights flickering, and River Song, with Weeping Angels getting nearer and nearer.
He didn't know how it could get any worse!
"Any ideas?" River snapped.
And it did, River had to speak didn't she?
"I have one," Angel nodded, thinking more about what she'd just done for the Ponds, how much energy it had taken.
"What?" the Doctor asked.
Angel just put her hand on the Doctor and River's shoulders, knowing that the Doctor had a firm grip on Ayla as well, and the four of them disappeared in a flash of golden light, appearing on the fire escape Angel had noticed outside the building, the one attached just outside the hall window.
"Brilliant!" the Doctor cheered, kissing her quickly for having managed to teleport all of them.
True it had only been about two rooms down and on the other side of a wall, but that was 4 of them she'd teleported. Oh his Mate was getting stronger every day and...it seemed, she was slowly starting to get back into using the Vortex again. The last few adventures had been calm, hadn't involved her losing control the way she had earlier. It really did seem like it was just that one time it had happened. They were both hoping it was just a reaction to Daleks and not something more serious, he'd managed to convince her to try and practice in the Vortex more and while it hadn't exactly happened, she was more ok with using the Vortex again.
"Go up!" Ayla called, starting to climb, knowing that's where her Uncle Rory had gone and...feeling like it was a BAD place for him to be.
~8~
Amy and Rory made it to the roof, staring in shock at the statue of Liberty, now a Weeping Angel statue, snarling at them just behind the building.
Rory let out a breath, "I always wanted to visit the Statue Of Liberty. I guess she got impatient," he looked around before noticing the ledge and running for it.
"What?" Amy asked, not turning her back to see what he was doing, not willing to risk it with the statue able to move, she wasn't going to let it grab him, "What is it, what?"
"Just keep your eyes on that," he looked over the ledge.
She glanced back, only for a moment, before snapping her head back"Is there a way down?"
"Er, no," he swallowed hard, "But there's a way out," he took a breath and climbed onto the ledge.
"What are you doing?" Amy called, feeling her heart freeze at his words, feeling her veins pumping ice water at how she couldn't look back, couldn't see what stupid thing her stupid husband was doing now, "Rory, what are you doing?" she couldn't take it any longer and turned around, ignoring the statue and running over to him at the sight of him standing on the ledge, staring at the statue, FAR too close to the edge of it for comfort, "Rory, stop it. You'll die!"
"Yeah," he nodded, his eyes on the statue, "Twice, in the same building on the same night. Who else could do that?"
"Just come down, please."
"This is the right thing to do. This will work. I've learned a lot from Angel you know, the Doctor's not the only clever Time Lord around," he reminded her, "If I die now, it's a paradox, right? The paradox kills the angels. Tell me I'm wrong. Go on, please...because I'm really scared," he admitted, he really and truly was. He...hadn't faced anything like this without...without Angel there to reassure him it would be alright, "Oh, great," he mock-scoffed at Amy's silence, "The one time you can't manage it. Amy, I'm going to need a little help here," he took her hand and put it on his chest, waiting for her to push him.
"Just stop it!" she cried, curling her fingers around the fabric of his shirt instead, holding him there.
"Just think it through. This will work, this will kill the angels."
"It'll kill you too!"
"Will it?" he honestly had to wonder that, "They said that this place would be erased from time, never existed. If this place never existed, what did I fall off?"
"You think you'll come back to life?" Amy stared at him.
"When don't I?" he laughed.
"Rory…"
"And anyway, what else is there? Dying of old age downstairs, never seeing you again? Amy, please," he looked at her, "If you love me, then trust me, and push."
"I can't," she sobbed, shaking her head, tears in her eyes blurring her vision...the Statue of Liberty appeared frozen despite them not having their eyes on it, one wrong move and the boy would jump.
"You have to!"
"Could you? If it was me, could you do it?"
"To save you, I'd do anything," he whispered to her.
Amy nodded to herself, making a decision and getting up on the ledge next to him, "Prove it."
"No," he shook his head, tears in his eyes, "I can't take you too."
"You said we'd come back to life. Money where your mouth is time."
"Amy, look…"
"Shut up," she cut in and he could hear her voice shaking, "Together, or not at all."
"What the hell are you doing!" the Doctor's voice shouted as he and the others reached the top of the roof.
"Uncle Rory!" Ayla cried as they ran over to them.
"Changing the future," Amy smiled at Rory, "It's called a marriage," before hugging him to her as they fell off the roof.
"Rory!" Angel ran to the ledge, the Doctor beside her reaching out towards the humans as they fell, "Amy!"
She'd been too late.
River gasped as orbs of white energy began to gather and flicker on the roof as the humans fell, "Doctor! What's happening?"
"The paradox," he breathed, his eyes wide, "It's working! The paradox is working!" he quickly grabbed Angel and Ayla's hands, holding them close, as the white light enveloped everything…
~8~
Amy and Rory gasped, sitting up, back in the graveyard in 2012.
"Where are we?" Rory looked around.
"Uncle Rory!" Ayla shouted, running over and launching herself at him, nearly tackling the man back to the ground as she hugged him, Rory laughing as he hugged her tightly back, looking up over her shoulder as her parents walked over.
"Right back at the beginning," Angel smiled, her hearts finally slowing down from the fright of seeing her companion, her brother, and his wife falling to the ground, "You did it. The timeline collapsed on itself."
The Doctor nodded, "We all pinged back where we belong."
"What, in a graveyard?" Rory asked as he got to his feet, Ayla in his arms, the little girl literally clinging to him with her arms and legs wrapped around him. He could have literally let go of her and she would still be where she was. He held out a hand though and helped Amy up too.
"This happened the last time," Amy commented, "Why always here?"
"Does it matter?" the Doctor laughed, "We got lucky. Which is to be expected with the most powerful good luck charm ever around," he winked at Angel as she playfully shook her head at him, "We could've blown New York off the planet."
"We won't be able to take the TARDIS there again though," Angel reminded them sadly, her head still a bit fuzzy from all those time distortions, "All those paradoxes made the timelines far too fragile."
"We could have lost you both," the Doctor pulled them into a hug, Angel as well, Ayla squirming her way to let go of Rory so she could hug all of them at once, she loved group hugs, "Don't ever do that again."
"What did we do?" Rory smiled, proud of himself for working out a way to stop the paradox and get them all out, "We fixed it. We solved the problem."
"I was talking to myself," the Doctor pulled away, taking Angel's hand as they headed back to the TARDIS, which had quite a bit of fire extinguisher damage to the outside.
Ayla jogged ahead of her parents, hugging the box before dashing inside to tell her Aunt Idris what had happened, making her parents laugh, the TARDIS already knew of course, she could see practically everything, but Ayla could be quite the chatterbox with the TARDIS and the old box loved hearing her niece's stories.
River stepped out from behind the box with a bucket of water and a rag, making them pause, "It could do with a repaint," she commented, eyeing the box.
"She's beautiful," Angel countered.
"Does the bulb on top need changing?"
The Doctor rolled her eyes, "We just changed it."
"So. Rory and Amy, then."
"Yes. We know, we know," the Doctor rubbed his head, feeling a migraine of his own coming on with River STILL there. He had hoped she might just be transported to wherever her Vortex Manipulator had first deposited her, but noooo...she had to be taken along with them for the ride.
"I'm just saying," River defended, "They're going to get terribly bored hanging round here all day."
"Doctor," Rory called as he and Amy walked over.
"Ha!" he turned and pointed at him as Angel began to wipe off the white damage with a rag.
"Look, next time, could we could just go to the pub?"
"I want go to the pub right now," he nodded, "Are there video games there? I love video games."
"Me too!" Ayla called from inside, "Can we go daddy!?"
"Yes we can sweetheart," he called back.
"Right," River nodded, "Family outing, then."
The Doctor tensed at that, but forced himself to remember that River was technically Amy and Rory's daughter, biologically speaking at least, and that if the parents were coming, the child would too...even if the child was an adult and a murderous assassin. He had to remind himself again that Ayla was likely older than River and would have had the same fate if she hadn't escaped the Silence when she had...which made him wince, recalling one of his nightmares. He sighed but Angel just took his hand and squeezed it, pulling him into the TARDIS, he knew why she was so eager to get inside the box. That little bit of home, that temporal energy of the TARDIS might set her head right, get rid of all those fuzzies still lingering in her noggin, help clear her mind to be back in a temporally stable place.
Rory paused as he followed Amy, spotting something written on a tombstone, "Amy, come and see this."
"What?" she turned, already at the doors to the TARDIS.
"There's a gravestone here for someone with the same name as me."
"What?" she frowned, when suddenly Rory blinked and...vanished, a Weeping Angel behind him, her arm outstretched, having touched him, "Doctor! Angel!"
The Time Lords ran out of the TARDIS with River, Angel gasping and pulling Ayla back towards her at the sight of the angel, not wanting her to get taken again.
"Where the hell did that come from?!" River gasped.
"It must have survived the paradox," Angel called, her eyes on it, "It'll be weak, but...dangerous, everyone keep your eyes on it."
"Where's Rory?" Amy asked her.
The Doctor held up a hand to the women, telling them to stay back as he carefully stepped closer to Amy, till he was before her and able to see the tombstone the angel was standing before, for Rory.
In Loving Memory
Rory Arthur Williams
Aged 82
"I'm sorry," he breathed, looking at Amy though he could hear Ayla gasp and see her out of the corner of his eye putting her hands to her mouth, her eyes wide with tears in them as Angel hugged her back to her, "Amelia, I'm so, so sorry."
"No," Amy shook her head, swallowing hard, "No, we...we can just go and get him, in the TARDIS. One more paradox…"
"Would rip New York apart."
"No, that's not true," Amy started to cry, "I don't believe you."
"Mother, it's true," River said quietly, tears actually coming to her eyes at this. Yes, her father, a man who hadn't exactly been close to her, had just been taken by an angel, but...he was still her father. Oh how far she'd come from how she'd first felt about them, that they were just the genetic source for her creation and unnecessary...now she...she thought more of them and felt more for them, even her father.
"Aunt Amy don't!" Ayla cried, tears streaming down her face as her Aunt Amy started to make her way to the angel. She was shaking in her mother's arms as she realized her Uncle Rory was...gone. Just like that, her most favorite, best uncle ever...was gone. That he was...dead...if the tombstone was to be believed. And he couldn't be! She hadn't...she hadn't gotten a chance to hug him, to say she loved him, to...to say goodbye...
"Amy, what are you doing?" the Doctor asked, halfway back to trying to get to his daughter, to comfort her as Angel knelt down to hug the girl from behind.
"That gravestone, Rory's, there's room for one more name, isn't there?" Amy asked.
"What are you talking about? Back away from the angel. Come back to the TARDIS. We'll figure something out."
But Amy just shook her head, getting closer to it still, "The angel, would it send me back to the same time? To him?"
"I don't know," the Doctor told her, desperate, not wanting to lose her, his companion, but not wanting his Mate to lose her 'sister-in-law' or his daughter her auntie either, "Nobody knows. Angel can't sense that with the lingering distortions!"
"But it's my best shot, yeah?"
"No!"
"Doctor, shut up," River snapped before turning to her mother, "Yes. Yes, it is."
"Amy…"
"Well, then...I just have to blink, right?" Amy let out a shuddering breath, now only two feet away from the angel.
"No!"
"It'll be fine. I know it will. I'll be with him, like I should be. Me and Rory together," she nodded, "Ayla?" she called, smiling sadly, knowing she couldn't turn back just yet, but needing to say goodbye, for her and Rory, knowing that this would hurt the little girl terribly but...she just couldn't leave Rory alone, she couldn't, not for anything, not even for that sweet little girl, "I'm going to miss you, so much."
"I'll miss you too Aunt Amy," Ayla sobbed quietly in Angel's arms, bringing tears to her mother's eyes at hearing her little girl's hearts breaking all over again, "Give…give Uncle Rory a hug, for me, ok?"
"No problem," Amy nodded, her own heart breaking for the little girl, forcing her to experience this, with Rory it had been a shock, but now...Ayla knew where her aunt was going, what would happen if she chose to do this. She took a breath, steeling herself, she had to be strong, she had to give her husband the biggest hug in the world, but to do that...she had to get to him, "Melody?"
"Stop it," the Doctor cried, shaking his head, seeing Ayla turning to Angel and clutching her tightly as she cried, not wanting to watch her Aunt Amy disappear too, "Just...just stop it!"
River stepped over and took Amy's hand, kissing it, "You look after them," she told her daughter, a firm note in her voice, "You be a good girl," she ordered lightly, "And you look after them all."
River closed her eyes and nodded, knowing what her mother was asking. Her dying wish essentially, that she give up her mad hope that the Doctor would be hers and just…be good, be a good person. To him, to Ayla, especially to Angel. Just...be someone her father would be proud to call his daughter.
"Of course," she whispered, promising her that.
She was...so old now. She had spent so much of her life so focused on the Doctor and claiming him and battling with Angel over him that...she'd missed a lot. Her entire life had been consumed with him, being with him, finding him through time and space, learning about him. She'd even managed to teach herself how to read and write in Gallifreyan from fragments found all over the Universe, that's how desperate she was to prove she was clever enough for him, more clever than Angel. Everything she'd done in her life had been for him...so much of her anger and her bitterness because of Angel. So much so that...she'd lost herself, she'd lost who she was in basing her life so much around theirs, she hadn't lived it for herself.
She was just...tired. Of hoping for something that wouldn't happen with the Doctor, she'd seen it, more so the last few years, how happy he was with Angel, how proud he was of Ayla, how content he was with his life. She DID see it but she denied it over and over, looked for any detail that might hint he wasn't as happy as he appeared. And there was never any. She was tired of working to hate a woman that hadn't truly ever done anything to her but try to be a good person. It was becoming a job more than something she actually felt. If she didn't hate Angel...then who was she? So much of who she was, or had been, was based on her dislike of the Time Lady, what would she be if she didn't have that hate anymore?
Well, she supposed she'd find out. She...did still hate Angel, but it had...faded, over time. She hated that Angel got the Doctor, got the Vortex, got the attention and affection and love of the most wonderful man ever. But...at some point, she'd realized that, in hating her and acting as she did, all it did was push the Doctor away. And...if she absolutely couldn't have him in her life as a 'Mate' then...she just didn't know. She didn't wan to picture her life without him there in some context at least. She knew she would always hate Angel, deep down, but...she was just tired of trying to actively express it.
Anger...took a lot of work.
"Amy," Angel called, standing up, squeezing Ayla's hand, "You need to know...you'll be creating fixed time...that's not something we'll ever be able to break through. We...won't be able to see you ever again."
"I'll be fine," she nodded, "I'll be with him. And you'll be fine, you have each other. Please, just..." she sniffled, "Remember that. And...goodbye Angel."
"Goodbye Amy," Angel let out a breath.
"Amy, please," the Doctor begged, he just...he couldn't do it, not like this. He...he hadn't lost a companion to death in...centuries, he...never wanted to go back to that, to losing them like that, and it was happening all over again, "Just come back into the TARDIS. Come along, Pond, please."
"Raggedy Man," Amy sobbed, before spinning around, "Goodbye!" she called out, a moment before the angel touched her, sending her back in time as well.
The Doctor looked at the tombstone now with a new line...
And His Loving Wife
Amelia Williams
Aged 87
"No!" he fell to his knees, Ayla running over to her father, hugging him tightly as he rocked her back and forth, knowing she was suffering as well, having lost not just her Uncle Rory but her now Aunt Amy as well. He tried to be strong, but he could feel tears in his eyes as well as he hugged her, "I'm sorry," he whispered, feeling Ayla shaking in his arms, "I'm so sorry sweetheart."
"They're gone," Ayla cried, unable to say anything else...it just...hurt too much. Her family was supposed to be there forever, all of them, all her uncles and aunties and now...two were gone.
"Angel," the Doctor gasped, watching as his Mate took a step towards the Weeping Angel, its arm still outstretched from where it had just taken Amy, "What are you doing?"
"I have to stop it," she whispered, her gaze fixed on it, keeping it in place, "I can't let it infect the city, not again, they are not getting Rory again," she stepped right up to the angel, reaching out her own hand towards it, "You will leave my companion alone!" she warned it, feeling the power gather and surge within her, before touching her finger to the statue's.
There was a blinding golden light, the Doctor forcing his eyes to remain open even as River and Ayla shielded theirs, watching in amazement and utter shock as the Weeping Angel literally disintegrated into ashes before his very eyes. The power of the Vortex had tapped into the lingering effects of the paradox, contradicted it, countered and cancelled the one that the angels had created, and used its energy to turn it to ash.
"Angel!" he shouted as she swayed and collapsed to the ground, him scrambling over to her with Ayla.
"Mummy!" the girl cried, terrified she would lose her mother as well.
River knelt at Angel's side, and held out a scanner, "She's fine," she told them as the Doctor cradled the woman in his arms. She swallowed hard, "She's just exhausted herself…too much power in one go."
The Doctor nodded, scooping Angel into his arms and carrying her into the TARDIS, Ayla rushing ahead to hold the doors open for him. He glanced at River, telling her to stay there in the console room, silently telling the TARDIS to keep an eye on the woman, as he carried Angel through the halls, to their room. Ayla pushed the door open and followed her father to the bed where he gently laid her mother down.
"Will mummy be ok daddy?" she asked, frowning, worried.
He tried to smile reassuringly at her, even though he honestly wasn't sure himself, kissing her head, "Yes, of course, this is mummy eh? Mummy's the strongest woman ever."
Ayla smiled, "She's very strong."
He nodded, scooping her up and placing her on the edge of the bed, "I'm going to drop River off, will you watch mummy for me?"
She nodded and turned to do just that, watch her mother.
He smiled softly at that before quietly leaving the room, shutting the door behind him before leaning against it, rubbing his head, before wiping below his eyes. This was far too close, far too much like his nightmares for his hearts to slow down. Seeing her fall from using the Vortex…it scared him. He knew there were times the Vortex got the best of her, times where she had no control and it did worry him. But...it was the times when she was in control and knowingly used too much of the Vortex...those times scared him so much more. Because he never knew if it was lingering feelings from her last body, one he knew she had actively considered suicide in, or just her trying to help and overestimating the power needed.
And...it was...alarming yet, very...her, for her to have done what she had to the statue. In the Asylum she had lost control, destroyed the Daleks, and just now...she'd been IN control and destroyed the Weeping Angel. She hadn't...ever really done that. Destroyed something and been aware she was doing it. He knew it should have worried him, to see her use the Vortex like that but...she'd done it to protect Rory and Amy. That angel...all it would take was one Weeping Angel to start to infect New York again, to make them stronger to go back in time and hunt down Rory once more. And she was stopping that, she was protecting not just him but everyone else in New York from it ever happening again. It wasn't Angel turning into a vengeful god, but just...being a guardian angel, like she always was, watching over the people she loved.
He took a breath, shaking his head, unwilling to think any more on the subject before heading to the console room to see River already at work setting coordinates to take somewhere else.
"River," he began, despite his dislike for the woman, he could see she truly was upset at what had happened to Amy and Rory, he winced, her parents, "They were your parents. I'm sorry, I didn't think…"
"It doesn't matter," she cut in, shaking her head.
"Of course it matters," he frowned, he could...see it, a change in her, a change in her tone. She'd implied much the same in Berlin, that Amy and Rory truly didn't matter to her, at all, but...he could see it now, that they...DID matter to her, quite a lot.
"What matters is this," she turned to him, "Doctor, don't travel alone. You…" she swallowed, "Angel, and Ayla, you need someone with you."
He nodded, before something slipped out of him before he could stop or think about what he was saying, "Travel with us, then."
The TARDIS's lights turned red and the old box began to hum angrily at that, making him wince, rather glad that Angel and Ayla weren't there to translate what he was sure were death threats against him.
River glanced at the rotor though, "Oh hush," she rolled her eyes at the box, "All of space and time and you can't see my answer?" a moment later the lights turned normal and the humming quieted slightly. She sighed, turning back at the Doctor with a frown. She knew what he was doing, letting his guilt get the best of him. On any other day he'd NEVER make her that offer, he just...felt terrible for the loss of her parents and thought it would make up for that. She shook her head, "I can't," she said quietly, looking down.
She may have agreed to be good for her mother, but to see them every day, to see him and Angel and Ayla being a happy little family…it would kill her. It would put thoughts in her head that would make it hard to keep her promise to her mother. She cleared her throat and looked up, "This book I've got to write. Melody Malone. I presume I send it to Amy to get it published?"
"Yes," he nodded, "Yes."
She nodded, pulling a lever, landing, "I'll tell her to write an afterword. For you. Maybe you'll listen to her," she turned and headed to the door, stepping out and leaving him alone.
A moment later, his eyes widened, "The last page!" he quickly got to work setting the TARDIS on another trip.
~8~
The Doctor ran through the TARDIS, having gone to modern day Central Park to get the last page out of the picnic basket, the last page that was currently clutched tightly in his hand. He slowed though, nearing his bedroom and quietly opened the door. He smiled at Ayla as she looked over from where she was still watching over her mother before walking in. He knelt at the bedside and brushed a piece of hair from Angel's face, gently waking her.
She blinked and spotted the paper, smiling and nodded.
He put Amy's glasses on and read the Afterword aloud to them, "'Afterword, by Amelia Williams. 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 three, always. Sometimes I do worry about you, though, Doctor. 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. Angel will need a companion again. And Ayla's family deserves to grow even more. 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.'"
Angel smiled, reaching out to cup his face, brushing a tear from his cheek, "Go," she whispered, "Find Amelia, and tell her."
He nodded, kissing her palm and standing, Ayla reaching out to take her mother's hand as she fell back asleep, too weak to go with him, and...knowing this was something he had to do for himself. She wasn't happy with what happened, she was deeply hurt by the loss of Rory, but...she was content in knowing that he would survive and thrive in 1938.
Her companion was strong.
And she had helped him become so.
~8~
The Doctor sat in the lounge of the Pond house, Brian across from him, the man hunched over, his hand pressed to his mouth as he learned about what had happened to his son, to his daughter-in-law, all because of this alien sitting before him. He closed his eyes, feeling angry tears building behind them, he'd promised they'd be ok! He'd promised to bring them back! He'd failed, and now…now he'd never see his child again. It wasn't fair. It wasn't…
"Daddy?" Ayla called, opening the door to the TARDIS and peeking out at them.
"What is it sweetheart?" the Doctor turned, his voice quiet.
"Mummy's awake," she told him, "She said I should bring you and granddad to the TARDIS. She wants to show you something."
And with that, she stepped back into the box.
The Doctor sighed and looked at Brian, "We should…" he nodded at the box.
Brian just sighed and got up, not wanting to enter the box that had stolen his son from him, but needing to know what Angel had to say. He and Rory had talked quite a bit about the woman once he'd learned she was an alien and a psychic, how she'd always offered Rory reassurances and strength and hope, perhaps…she could give him some as well.
"Brian," Angel walked over to him as he stepped up to the console, hugging him tightly, "I'm so sorry," she told him, "But…I think I can help just a bit."
"How?" he shook his head, the Doctor had said that it was impossible for them to go back and bring Rory or Amy to the present.
She just took his arm, leading him over to the monitor. She stepped beside it as the Doctor came over with Ayla in his arms. She put her hand to the side of it and closed her eyes, her hand starting to glow gold as the screen flickered on, a golden hue around the edge of it, and then…images began to flicker across the screen, scenes playing out before their eyes that reminded the Doctor of Apalapuchia.
Of Amy and Rory.
They watched as the lives of the Ponds played out, a combination of Angel's abilities and the TARDIS helping her show them what was of the Ponds. They watched as key moments popped up, blending into one another. They'd married again, bought a house, Rory even took up gardening, Amy…pregnant. They smiled as they watched the family grow, four children in all, grandchildren, great grandchildren even. They watched them grow older, grow more loved, grow closer, lead successful lives as an author and a doctor, and just...living. Living a happy life, full of so much love…
Angel blinked as the last image, the two Ponds surrounded by their family shortly before Rory would pass faded out. She smiled at the Doctor, "I told you it would be alright," she told him, "Look how they lived…happily…" she swayed again, stumbling as he caught her.
He sighed, but smiled, leave it to her to tax herself with using the Vortex again after having used too much of it earlier, just to give them comfort.
"Thank you," Brian said softly, reaching out to take Angel's hand.
"You're welcome," she breathed, leaning on the Doctor, resting her forehead to his shoulder, weary and spent, as Ayla walked over and hugged her granddad, knowing he needed one terribly, knowing she needed one too...it wasn't a Rory hug, but it was close.
As Brian held her, he started to cry, sad he'd lost his son, but happy he'd been happy in the end.
A/N: All I can say is... :'(
But now we know why River sort of semi-tried to be nice at the end of Last Night, Amy asked her to as her 'dying wish' :(
Some notes on reviews...
Lol, as I've said in the past, it's still, and always will be, fine if you hate Ayla. Same goes for the wanting to see Ayla suffer. To each his/her own. For the last scene with Brian though, I'm always open to suggestions, less so to being told what to do or not do in my own stories :) In that case, might I suggest you try your hand at writing a story of your own? It's a lot of fun and that way you'd get scenes just how you like/want them ;)
River will semi-grieve for her parents. Amy DID care for her, more than Rory did. And the River we see here is VERY different than how she was in Berlin, Berlin she didn't care one way or the other about the Ponds, but here, being so near the Library, she's started to come around and actually care for them :)
I'm not sure if I'd do one where canon meets, it's an interesting idea though :) Something like that will/might semi-happen in the 50th for Proffy and Evy, depending where in Series 2 10 and Rose are. We'll definitely see very-close-to-canon Doctor meeting Evy in that case ;)
Oh I had to have Ayla hug Brian :) I can say that we'll see more of Ayla's reaction and how she's dealing with losing Rory at some point in the Snowmen ;) There probably won't be a scene for River and Ayla, so far...she hasn't really done anything to Ayla, mostly to Angel :) I agree, if River hadn't done all she had to Angel, I think Ayla would have been a good friend for her. That's why I had River be best friends with the Doctor and Evy's son in the Lunar Cycle ;)
I think, in the Doctor's mind, he feels a bit justified in 'wanting River dead' as she DID kill his Mate, twice, and had a hand in a large amount of her suffering and torment through the last 2 series. He truly does hate River but, unlike River's hatred of Angel, River has actually done things to merit it. That's why I like having Angel there, she definitely balances that and keeps him from letting that hate get him to that point, she tries to make up for it and just be a good person :)
Lol, I plan to keep Ayla in the series as long as possible, with her growing up and the Doctor dealing with 'girl issues' and things :) I think he'd be the best father in the Universe :) I think Ayla would take after Angel a bit more than the Doctor, though I think she'd keep the bowtie in some sense somewhere just for him :) I'm glad you liked Angel's reactions, I tried to keep them angry but not outright threatening or OOC for her :)
I think River's changing too, to the Doctor though it'll almost be too little too late and not because she WANTS to change (to him), he'll see it as her doing it for Amy or having some other motive. He truly can't trust River ever again. But River will change, the River we'll see in TNOTD will be very different than the earlier ones ;)