A Good Man Goes to War: A Loss
The Doctor paused before the doors to the communication room of the base, taking a breath, steeling himself for what the absolute worst might be when he entered. He didn't want to be there, not at all, all he wanted to do right now was be with Angel and Ayla and hold them both in his arms...but he had to do this, he had to see what they had done to his Mate and daughter and, apparently, the systems were locked and they couldn't get the information to transfer off the mainframe, so he had to leave them (as much as it pained him to do) and see for himself. And he knew, even without seeing the scans right at that moment, he would memorize every single aspect of it, every single word, because it was too important for him to forget like he did so many other things he came across.
Not this, this was about HIS family, and he would find out what, if anything (and there had BETTER be NOTHING), had been done to them. And if he found that Angel or Ayla had been harmed in any way...well, he'd prove to Kovarian how dangerous he could be without an army of his own, without people there to hold him back or stop him.
He took a breath, shaking his head and stepped into the room to see Dorium sitting at the controls, the scans up on the monitor, "You've hacked into their software then?" he asked, having asked the blue man to look for any hidden files Rory might have missed. The boy was searching for medical files, as they would have likely been the only ones he understood, but he wanted to know everything, every detail no matter how disgusting or heartbreaking.
"I believe I sold it to them," he replied with a roll of his eyes.
The Doctor just nodded, "So what have we learned?"
"That anger is always the shortest distance to a mistake," Vastra replied from the back of the room where she was watching him.
"I'm sorry?" he glanced at her.
"The words of a shining old friend who once found me in the London Underground, attempting to avenge my sisters on perfectly innocent tunnel diggers," Vastra smiled.
"Well...you were very cross at the time."
"As you were today," she gave him a look, "Point taken, I hope?"
"They took my Mate and child!" he nearly growled, the anger back in full force when he so much as thought about those six little words, "I think I have every right..."
"You do," Vastra cut in gently, not wanting to experience his wrath once more, "But you should not let it consume you. YOU told me that," she reminded him.
HE had been the one to tell her that, ironically. It had been, she thought, before the man had learned his Mate was dying and had had all the hope and happiness in the Universe inside him. He'd told her that he spoke from experience, that all she needed was one person, even just one, to pull her out of the darkness that threatened to overtake her.
She had heeded their advice, been able to see it in their hearts, they were the last of their species too (or so she had thought of herself till the Doctor had taken them to a Silurian civilization below the Earth's crust and revived her hope for more of her species awakening one day). But they had had each other, and she had seen it...in his eyes, that darkness he spoke of, but then in Angel's...she'd seen a light to balance him. She knew the girl was the one who pulled the Doctor from his own darkness and had wanted that, and she'd found a girl of her own that did the same, Jenny.
"I was not the only one who noticed," Vastra continued, "Miss Smith..."
"Which one?" the Doctor joked, trying to push the anger aside, think of something happier.
Vastra smiled, seeing him coming down from his brief bout of rage, "Sarah Jane," he nodded, "She saw you slipping away, she was worried. I hope you realize, had Angel not arrived when she had..."
"Yes," he sighed, nodding as he closed his eyes, he knew exactly what he would have done to Manton if Angel hadn't stopped him when she had, "I know, I know."
Vastra nodded, understanding that he got it, "Angel and Ayla are safe now," she added.
He smiled softly at that, thinking on his girls, "Yes, they are," and they always would be if he had anything to say about it.
"Now…your daughter…"
"What have they done to her?" he asked them seriously, getting back to point.
"They've been scanning her since Angel was taken," Dorium called, making them both look back at him, "From the womb it seems. And not just her, they were examining Angel as well. Looking for something," he pulled up another screen to reveal a string of DNA.
"Time Lord DNA," the Doctor frowned at it, shaking his head, "But...it's not quite right," he squinted, seeing the difference, "Ganger Time Lord DNA," he corrected, realizing it was from Angel's clone.
Dorium nodded, "They've been examining it, it's near enough your species' DNA. It appears they've been testing it against any number of things, temperature, radiation, chemicals…trying to find the limits of it, it would seem…"
~8~
"I don't think everyone's gone," Lorna told them the concerns that she'd been telling Strax and that the potato had agreed with, "I've been here training, they were all ready for the Doctor to come at any time. We prepared drills, we had special weapons, we had different plans and strategies...but they just...left," she shook her head, "This all happened too easily."
"How do we know you're not just setting a trap?" Rory asked suspiciously.
Despite how she'd helped get Angel to the med-bay and despite Angel's vouches that Lorna was 'ok,' he just...he couldn't make himself believe her completely. Ever since Ganger Jen and the mess that had been, he'd promised himself to be more wary of anyone who could be a possible enemy that offered them help. The humans had been wary of the Gangers, Ganger Jen had proved they had good reason to be, but he'd trusted her and so many people had nearly died because of it. The Original Jen herself had nearly died because he'd trusted her Ganger. He was NOT going to make that mistake again, until they proved it, he would be just a bit suspicious of everyone. He didn't care if that made him seem paranoid, he wouldn't treat someone else badly or openly distrust them, but he'd be...more cautious than he had been. He couldn't afford to trust blindly anymore, not with his wife and sister and niece to think of.
And given Lorna had been a part of the army that took Angel in the first place…well, that didn't sit right with him.
"Why would I lie?" Lorna frowned, though she understood where he might be coming from.
"Well, you might want to take a look at your uniform."
"The only reason I joined the Clerics was to meet the Doctor and Angel again."
"You wanted to meet them, so you joined an army to kidnap her and fight him?" Jenny shook her head, not following.
"Well, the Doctor's a legend. How else do you meet a great warrior?"
"He's not a warrior," Amy told her.
"Then why's he called the 'Doctor?'"
"I don't understand…"
"Doctor," Angel explained gently, "In the language of the Forest, means 'Mighty Warrior' like Ayla means 'Gift.'"
"And 'Angel' means 'Great Mother,'" Lorna nodded...
And then the lights went out.
"It's starting," Lorna looked around, startled, "Please listen to me, Angel, you and your daughter must get out of here!"
~8~
"Why would they be testing her?" the Doctor frowned, looking at the number of test results, all the different ones run.
It was like anything and everything that could be tested had. They'd even introduced samples to different diseases and poisons to see how it reacted. They had been testing Angel as well, learning about her biology, watching her, running scans on their child. He dreaded to think what they might have done to the baby during the time Angel was unconscious though he prayed that the feelings he got from Angel were right, that the baby had been protected even then by the Vortex and that she hadn't...missed something.
He knew they'd taken Angel, knew from her that they had wanted to stop him, probably kill him and he could understand using Angel as bait. But...Angel had said they DIDN'T want HER or him, but their baby. So why? Why did they want the baby? Why scan her so much if they weren't going to use her stem cells or cord blood or...and he shuddered to think...parts of her for something else? Why scan her? Why take her in the first place?!
"Why else would you test someone for their strengths and weaknesses," Dorium remarked with a shrug, more thinking aloud, "For their endurance and abilities."
The Doctor looked at him, seeing Dorium had come to a conclusion he hadn't, "Why?"
~8~
"Confirmed," Strax read the results of his scanner, "No life forms registering on this base, except us and the Silurians."
"The Headless Monks aren't alive..." Lorna continued, "They don't register as life forms."
Angel tensed at that, recalling how she'd said much the same when River had gone into the sewers in the warehouse. She couldn't help but feel...afraid, truly afraid. She had been so tired, the labor had taken so much out of her, that she was just...numb. It was like she could barely feel herself moving let alone feel the future. She had no idea what was coming, had no sensations, got no feelings, and that was...truly frightening.
~8~
In another part of the base, a Headless Monk quietly made his way up behind a Silurian that was guarding a hall...
~8~
"I think what we really need to focus on," Dorium avoided the question, swallowing hard, which made the Doctor frown at why he wasn't answering, "Is how they gave in so easily. Does that not bother anyone else? Or do you not take stock in the instincts of a coward? This is too easy. There's something wrong."
"Why did they do it?" the Doctor turned to him, seeing that both he and Vastra seemed to know something he didn't, "Why test a Time Lord for...for all that?"
Vastra and Dorium exchanged a look before Vastra sighed, "A weapon," she suggested softly.
But he shook his head, confused, utterly confused, "Why would a Time Lord be a weapon?"
"Well...they've seen you," she reminded him, "Just now Doctor, they saw the potential a Time Lord had in how you infiltrated the base, subdued the arm, handled Manton..."
"Me?" he asked, stunned, sitting down heavily on a crate.
"Can you imagine a better weapon?" Dorium asked him, speaking what he and Vastra both feared, "Your child, the one thing in the Universe you wouldn't be able to fight or hurt or kill…"
"Mr. Maldovar, you're right," Vastra straightened up, seeing this was getting to the Doctor, that he needed a moment and, thinking on Dorium's words...it made sense, "This was too easy. We should get back to the others."
"Me?" the Doctor breathed a moment after Vastra and Dorium left, still completely stunned by the thought.
He could understand that he could be seen as a weapon, yes he'd done horrible things. He was a soldier as much as his daughter Jenny was, trying to stop the fighting, using what was at his disposal to do it. He was a fighter, a strategist, dangerous. Yes, HE could be a weapon...but Ayla? The girl was just a baby, had only been born an hour ago and she was just...so innocent. The way she'd clung to his finger, reached for her parents, her innocence in calling them 'Squishy Bed' and 'Warm Thingy,' he could see a bit of Angel's 9th self in her already. The girl was sweet and innocent and small and...good, so good, so pure, how could SHE EVER be a weapon?! How could someone like her ever even become one? He refused to let it happen, he refused, his daughter would have the best life he could give her, full of hope and light and love and...
The monitor behind him turned on and Madam Kovarian appeared on it, "I see you accessed our files," she called, pulling his attention up to her, making him jump up and stalk up to it, a dark look on his face, "Do you understand yet? Oh, don't worry," she rolled her eyes, "I'm a long way away. But I like to keep tabs on you. The child then...what do you think?"
"Why did you take her?" he demanded, feeling himself starting to shake again as he was confronted with the woman responsible for the capture, for her and Angel being taken from him, his hands clenched into fists as he tried to calm but found he didn't want to, not at all, "Why did you scan her? What use is she to you?!"
"Hope," Kovarian's eyes narrowed, "Hope in this endless, bitter war."
"What war? Against who?!"
"Against you, Doctor," she sneered.
~8~
A lift opened and a Headless Monk emerged, firing energy right from his hand, killing the Silurian on guard who had turned to see who it was.
~8~
Amy turned, willing to listen to Lorna's words now, and ushered Angel, who had scooped up Ayla into her arms, towards the TARDIS, Rory behind them with the cot...
When a glowing light appeared around it, cutting them off.
"What's that?" Amy jerked back as it suddenly appeared.
Vastra approached it slowly and reached out a hand to touch it, snapping it back when she felt the energy sting her, "Force field."
~8~
The Headless Monks gathered in the halls and began to chant as they made their way to the hanger.
~8~
Rory quickly set down the cot, on alert, as a loud clicking noise echoed through the hanger.
"And those are the doors...locking," Lorna swallowed hard, all of them tensing as they felt the danger mounting.
~8~
The Headless Monks formed a line as they walked past the bodies of the Silurians littering the ground.
~8~
Jenny ran back from checking the lifts which had shut down as well and shook her head negative.
"Apparently we're not leaving," Vastra commented.
And then they heard the chanting as the Monks drew nearer.
"Is that the Monks?" Rory asked as Angel tried to soothe Ayla who had woken up.
"Oh, dear God...that's the attack prayer!" Dorium's eyes widened.
Rory turned around the room, looking it over quickly, letting the door in his mind that he'd kept closed for so long fly open, needing all the military advantage he could get from his memories as a Roman, and nodded to himself, "Angel," he walked over and moved her closer to the force field. He didn't like the idea of hiding her around one of the crates, she would be defenseless and they wouldn't be able to see if she needed help and, having just given birth, he knew she'd be too weak to truly fight back, "Stay here, we'll protect you," he turned to the group who nodded, forming a semicircle around her and Ayla as they stood just a hairbreadth away from the force field.
"Commander Strax!" Vastra turned to him, seeing him fiddling with a device instead of preparing for war.
"I'm trying to seal off this area of the lighting grid," Strax remarked as the lights came back on.
"This is where we'll make our stand. Clear lines of sight on all approaches."
Lorna moved over to one of the larger crates nearby, frantically searching through them, "There should be some plasma pistols somewhere. They left everything."
"Then find them, boy!" Strax shouted as Amy went to help her, neither woman comfortable with using guns but...if they were about to be attacked...desperate times, and lives were on the line and, well, the Headless Monks weren't exactly alive right? They wouldn't be killing anyone, not really.
"We don't have to fight," Dorium said as he moved towards the edge of the light, "I'm friends to the Monks, they know me."
"Yeah, and they know you just sold them out to the Doctor," Rory commented.
"Oh, they'll understand. It's only me, only silly old me," he held his arms out wide as he turned to the light's edge as the shadows of the Monks became visible in the darkness, "You understand, don't you?"
"Mr. Maldovar, get back here!" Vastra shouted.
"Arm yourself, fool!" Strax called.
"Dorium!" Rory cried.
But he was too late, there was the sound of a sword slash and then something hit the floor, Angel winced, holding Ayla closer to her as she started crying at the bad noise.
"Mr. Maldovar?" Vastra called.
"Dorium?" Rory added, but there was no reply.
Lorna and Amy ran up, passing out the guns and taking some for themselves. They took their places in the semicircle, Jenny, Vastra, Rory, Amy, Lorna, and Strax as the Monks marched forward, swords glowing. A headless Dorium began walking towards them as well.
"The child!" Vastra gave the war cry, "At all costs, protect the child!"
Rory drew his sword in one hand, the pistol in the other as the rest took aim, preparing, none of them about to let the Monks anywhere near Angel or her daughter.
~8~
The Doctor slammed his hands down onto the control base of the monitor in anger, shouting at Kovarian, "My child is not a weapon!"
"And that's just it," she smirked, "She's YOUR child, isn't she? Give us time and she can be. She will be."
He glared at her, heaving as he struggled to breathe through his anger, "ANGEL's child could never be."
No matter what, no matter how dark HE could get...Angel was always brighter. Always. She was always that light in his darkness, even when he'd forgotten her, even when he hadn't known who she was to him (a moment that made him sick to think about), she had ALWAYS had an affect on him, always got him to see things differently, calm him, soothe him, push the darkness back. That little girl, if she even had a darkness in her...which he couldn't imagine because her eyes, her green eyes were so bright and innocent...she had a light too, she had Angel's light, and that would be enough to keep her from ever being capable of the things HE had done.
"We'll see," Kovarian's smirk just widened.
"No, you won't see," he sneered, "Because you've already lost her and I swear I will never ever let you anywhere near her or Angel again."
"Oh, Doctor," she laughed, shaking her head as though she were so amused, "We did it once, didn't we?"
"Fool me once, shame on you," he spat, "But there will BE NO fool me twice."
"And how would you know?" she eyed him, seeming far too pleased about something, "You didn't even realize you'd forgotten your precious Mate."
He stiffened at that.
"Oh we know ALL about it," Kovarian's smirk returned, reading his mind, "Aren't you curious how someone so important and dear to you just...escaped your notice for so long? It's simple really, we needed her vulnerable," she shrugged, "We needed her alone, without you to protect her and you...Time Lords...you never leave your Mate far. We needed to change that."
"What..." he let out a breath, feeling his hearts stopping at that.
"I'm sure you're aware," she continued casually, "That information about the Silence erases itself over time if not refreshed?" she didn't wait for him to answer, "I must say, I enjoyed refreshing this..."
The screen flickered and his eyes widened, seeing new footage playing...of a very familiar setting. It was the TARDIS, the last console room, and...Angel was there, HE was there, his last self struggling to walk up the ramp. His breath left him as he realized what this was, his last moments as his last self but...why did it look like the camera had been stuck to the ceiling, looking down at them.
He watched, confused, as he and Angel spoke, as he gave her the Whitepoint Star necklace she still wore, as they shared a tender moment, as he kissed her...before throwing his head back in regeneration. He frowned, seeing something he hadn't noticed, hadn't remembered...his eyes were wide open, staring right at the camera, at the ceiling, fighting the regeneration...and then he heard it.
"Forget her, Doctor..." he heard a voice rasp, a Silent's voice, but he didn't see one as the voice was coming from behind the camera, "Forget your Mate. Forget your love for the Angel..."
He felt tears fill his eyes as he realized...there had been a Silent on the ceiling of the TARDIS, that HE'd been looking at it, had listened to it, heard it in the TARDIS...and then the man on screen turned, the regeneration too much to bear, and spun to Angel, a new man, a man who had forgotten her.
He should have realized, his first words to her, his first words TO HER, had been that he'd forgotten something important, he'd thought it was the crashing TARDIS, but it was HER. He'd felt things for her, his memories trying to break through, his feelings, the Mating instinct, but pushed it back because he was supposed to forget he was Mated to her. He had started to fall in love with her again but hadn't made the connection because he was supposed to forget he loved her, forget what loving her was like...
"Your TARDIS even realized Doctor," Kovarian was back, her smirk impossibly wide, oh the plan had worked brilliantly, the combination of his amnesia and another helping hand driving distance between the Doctor and Angel had given them all the opportunity they needed to get the girl alone, to get it so the Doctor wouldn't notice if she had disappeared or that she wasn't real. THIS Doctor, with his memories, would have noticed in an instant it wasn't the real Angel, and they couldn't have that, "An old, stupid box knew before YOU did."
He frowned, feeling the tears falling from his eyes as he closed them, recalling how the TARDIS had been bucking violently after he'd regenerated. He'd thought, had guessed earlier, that the box had known he'd forgotten Angel, had been trying to 'kill him' so to speak by throwing him out the doors...but now he knew, Kovarian's words...the TARDIS had been trying to throw the SILENT out! All that time, the box had been trying to get the Silent out and must have succeeded because she stopped bucking. And then she had sparked and hurt him because he had let himself be manipulated, the box had known he'd hurt Angel and had reacted much like Jack and Donna had, much like he knew the other companions wanted to as well. But the box knew it wasn't his fault and...
He stopped, his mind freezing.
It wasn't his fault.
Even Angel had thought it might be, had feared HE hadn't wanted to be her Mate any longer. It had crushed her, it had devastated her, had made her feel like he regretted the bond they shared. And then to find herself pregnant and, for all the world cared, alone...she had suffered so much, broken down before his eyes, been kidnapped and dealt with things she never ever should have that caused her such heartsbreak...
And it wasn't HIS fault.
He felt the fury rise up in him again as he looked at Kovarian, his eyes narrowed into slits, it was THEIR fault. It was THEIR fault he'd forgotten Angel, forgotten she was his Mate, had treated her so badly. Did they really have no concept of how deep and how powerful his anger could run? And this was more than about them tricking him, this was about how they'd led him to hurt the ones he loved. His Mate, his daughter, his world!
And they would pay for it.
If they thought he'd seek vengeance for simply taking them from him...they sorely underestimated how much he loved them.
"I will NEVER forget her again," he swore.
Kovarian laughed, "The only reason you didn't forget her watching that footage is you couldn't see the Silent," he stiffened, realizing just how close he had come to nearly being forced to forget her again just then, "And besides, Doctor, that wasn't what I was talking about. Making you forget again would be boring, repetitive, no, my employers are FAR more creative," he frowned at that, "Did you really think you'd manage to get everyone out of the base?"
Before he could even respond, a pain and fear and sorrow shot through him.
'THETA!' Angel's voice screamed heartsbrokenly in his mind.
"Angel!" he shouted, running from the room, ignoring Kovarian as she cackled behind him, the screen switching off, "Angel!"
~8~
Angel tried to comfort her crying daughter as the sounds of fighting drifted to them, this was NOT what she wanted Ayla's earliest memories to be. She was torn between wanting to focus entirely on her baby and wanting to help the others. She owed them after all they had done for her and Ayla.
Rory and Strax fired at the Monks…
~8~
The Doctor ran as fast as he could through the base, trying to get there in time…
~8~
"Demons run when a good man goes to war…"
~8~
Vastra swung her sword at a Monk, Strax firing wildly, laughing as he did so, as Rory ended up pushed back to Lorna's side, Amy firing at one of the two Monks ganging up on Jenny…
~8~
"Angels fall and lose it all, when a good man goes to war…"
~8~
Angel watched in horror as the Monks slowly drew the semicircle farther and farther apart…
~8~
"Friendship dies and true love lies."
~8~
Lorna flinched when something blew up behind her as Jenny swung at another Monk, Rory quickly glancing around as three Monks headed towards him, forcing him back and away from the center of the semicircle where he had been the last one blocking Angel completely...
~8~
"Light will fall and the dark will rise, when a good man goes to war."
~8~
"Angel!" the Doctor shouted as he ran, his heats pounding, his mind racing, just...feeling her utter devastation.
~8~
"Amy!" Angel cried as the girl took out a Monk, "Lorna!" she pointed.
Amy whirled around and fired at the Monk, who was aiming a blast at the young woman, taking him down. She ran over to Lorna, the two working together.
~8~
"Demons run but count the cost…"
~8~
The Doctor ran over a platform, "Angel!"
~8~
"Strax!" Angel warned.
He spun around, blasting the Monk, who had lifted the sword about to strike him, back and running past it to fire at the others behind it…
~8~
"The battle's won but the child is lost..."
~8~
Angel gasped as four Monks managed to make their way through the fray and towards her, "No!" she shouted, frantically trying to back up but the force field was behind her, "Get back!"
"Angel!" Rory tried to fight his way through, but their line had been broken, they were all being held back by the Monks around them.
"Angel!" Amy turned, firing at the Monks, but was overwhelmed herself.
~8~
The Doctor ran to a locked door, struggling to get through it, "Angel!"
~8~
One of the Monks reached out to Angel, for Ayla.
She tried desperately to bring up the Vortex but, for the first time, it failed her, her body was just too tired to sustain it, "NO!" she screamed as they ripped the baby from her arms, another backhanding her to the ground before they ran from the room, the other Monks trying to follow as the small group of fighters went after them…
Angel curled up in a ball, sobbing, not even noticing the sting in her cheek as she wept, pounding the floor with a fist, 'THETA!'
~8~
"When a good man goes to war."
~8~
The Doctor flashed the sonic, his mind finally remembering in his panic that he had it, and ran through the door, "Angel! The Monks are still here!" he pounded on another door, "Angel!" the door opened and he ran into the hanger...
Only to see that a massive battle had already gone on and been finished.
There were Monks lying on the floor, Dorium's headless body among them, as Vastra, Jenny, and Strax scouted the rest of the room.
He was too late.
It was over.
"Yeah, we know," Rory looked up from where he was standing near the TARDIS, solemn.
He blinked, seeing Angel on the ground before the TARDIS force field, sobbing brokenly as she huddled, curled up, beside Amy, who had tears in her eyes, and Lorna, who was crouched down with a hand on her shoulder, "Angel!" he ran over to her, skidding to the ground on his already soundly bruised knees before her.
Angel just launched herself at him, holding him tightly as she sobbed into his chest, needing comfort, needing her Mate, needing him, "They took her," she sobbed, her voice thick with emotion, her words halting as she struggled to breathe through the pain she felt, "I only held her...for an hour...and she's gone..."
Rory close his eyes tightly at that, he'd thought...for so long that the Angel in the diner, when she said she had lost the baby, that the baby had died soon after birth. And when he'd seen the baby was alive, seen the scans that it was ok, that it was healthy, seen it surviving (with him watching her closely) he'd thought...maybe something in the timelines had shifted. Maybe, somehow, they'd managed to change something. The Angel at the lake...he felt like, HER Doctor hadn't remembered, he couldn't have, why else wouldn't he have been there with her seeing how much THIS Doctor hated leaving her side. And if HER Doctor hadn't remembered but THIS Doctor did...maybe it meant the timelines had shifted, maybe it meant that they'd changed something and the baby would be ok, that Angel wouldn't lose the baby, that it would survive.
He hadn't anticipated this.
He hadn't anticipated someone trying to take the baby, physically take the baby. The baby really was...gone. His niece, Angel's daughter, she was just...gone. And he felt his heart break at that, at seeing the state Angel was in. If he'd SAID something before instead of listening to River, hinted, done something, they could have prepared for this. The Doctor or Angel might have devised something else from the Future Angel's words than he had, maybe THEY would have been more suspicious that the Monks were there or that there was some other plot to steal the baby. But he hadn't realized, he really hadn't, not till just then, that 'gone' could mean many different things.
Death was only one interpretation.
The Doctor, though, swallowed hard, tears in his eyes as well as he clung to Angel, holding her as tightly as he could, trying to be strong despite how he could feel her hearts breaking, the utter torment of her soul as she blamed herself for what happened. Her mind was racing, cursing herself for being so tired that the Vortex and her abilities had failed her, cursing herself for not being strong enough to fight, cursing herself for saving Lorna and Strax and not their child…
He gripped her tighter in his arms, "I'm sorry," he whispered, clutching her, rocking her, trying not to let the tears into his voice as he had to be strong for her, she needed him to be strong, "I'm so sorry…I should have been here. I should have…" he swallowed again, shaking his head as his hearts broke too. He rested his head on hers, his cheek on top of her head as he took a shaky breath, feeling her shaking terribly against him. He pulled away only a bit, "Angel..." he reached out and took her face in his hands, "Look at me," he whispered as she forced herself to open her eyes, swimming with tears, "We'll get her back," he swore it, looking into her eyes so she'd know he meant it, "I swear it, I promise, we WILL get ber back," a hard edge came to his voice as she let out a deep sob, bowing her head and shaking it, more at the situation than his promises. He pulled her to him again, just...holding her, the sounds of her sobs, the sound of his Mate so distressed, eating away at him, closing his eyes at the pain he himself was feeling, at the thought that their daughter had been taken from them again.
The Silence thought he was angry about them switching his Mate for a Ganger?
They knew nothing about him.
He would tear the Universe apart for his family, and he would do so now…he would get their daughter back if it was the last thing he ever did.
There was a sudden bright flash of light and clap of energy behind them and River appeared, dressed exactly as she had been during their time with Canton in America, exactly as she had been when they'd kissed, "Well, then, soldier, how goes the day?" she asked casually, a smirk on her face as she looked at the Time Lords, standing as though she didn't know what had happened, what they'd just endured, except they knew she had to know...why else would she be there and ask that?
The Doctor stiffened instead, the glare he'd been about to send to River turning into alarm as he looked at Angel, feeling her literally want to curl up and die against him at just the sound of River's voice. He looked down at her, startled at her reaction to River, to how entirely her hearts shattered at the woman's appearance, and another barrage of memories hit him…but this time, not all of them were his…
~oOo~
The Doctor ran to the doors and actually had to struggle just a little to get them opened, reaching out a hand to pull River in…only for both of them to fall to the floor in a heap, River seeming to take a moment to spread herself over the Doctor and make no move to get up.
"I'm not gonna be there to catch you every time you feel like jumping out of a spaceship."
"And you are so wrong."
"Oh, Doctor!" Amy teased, "You soniced her." ...she looked away a moment at that, playing it off as eyeing the beach.
"Her diary."
"Our diary."
"The Angel…a Time Lady? His…friend," River's eyes widened a bit at her introduction as a small pleased smile grew on her face.
"Is River Song your wife?" ...she swallowed hard as that hit her in the gut, every single time the Doctor denied it, denied how close they'd been, how much they had meant to each other, every time he denied that she was his Mate it just...stabbed her in the hearts, made them hurt to beat. She closed her eyes a moment, turning and pretended to look at a setup of equipment even more intently, moving slightly to the left so her back was just a bit to the two of them. It was the only way they wouldn't see the heartbreak in her face.
"Yes, you're right," the Doctor muttered, and her hearts twisted painfully at the thought that he was answering Amy's question, until he continued.
The Doctor mouthed 'sweetie' before realizing River meant him and turned to head after her, she watched him go as he didn't even protest at being called 'sweetie' or even hesitate to follow the woman, a difference from his earlier remarks of River not dragging him anywhere, a difference she was trying not to think about.
It was just like the Library all over again. River truly was much better than her, smarter, braver, a much better match than she was for the Doctor. And that was what killed her, because the River in the Library was obviously very close to the Doctor, how close she could only guess though the fact she knew his name worried her immensely. But the fact that the Doctor didn't remember he'd Mated to her…it left him open to others. To River.
"You're so his wife," Amy laughed. River though glanced at her before smirking…
"I'm not saying you're right...but you are very good, and it's not like he's married," River looked over to see her, having glanced over at them, look away and walk off a little bit further.
~oOo~
"I hate you!" River turned to the Doctor, sending him an almost playful glare, not seeming to notice his momentary anger directed at her.
"The last time we saw her, she…she apologized to me for everything that she did to me...um, was going to do me, would do to me in the future," she rubbed her head, "Tenses," she muttered, "My future, her past. I don't know what she's done or will do or even why she's so cross with me. But…she seemed truly sorry for whatever it was in the end."
"River Song, I could bloody kiss you," the Doctor beamed.
River glanced at her, seeing her wince and look away sharply out of the corner of her eye, and smirked, winking at the Doctor, "Maybe when you're older."
"Why do you hate me so much?"
"No one ever stood a chance with him because of you."
"It doesn't look that way from here."
River just smiled, pleased, "Good."
"You know," River continued, tilting her head as she eyed her critically, as though trying to see what was so...impressive about her and failing to find it, "You should have married him when you had the chance."
Her eyes widened in alarm, "You know about that?" it had been a private moment between him and her, with Donna and Lance there, how could River know?!
"You'd be surprised what I know," River smirked, "What he's told me," she glanced at the Doctor, "What he will tell me," she gave her a pointed look, "There are rumors, you see, that I'm the woman who marries the Doctor."
"You, me...handcuffs," River smirked at him playfully, a far different smirk than the one she'd just been bestowed with. River held out her cuffed hands at him, her smirk turning to a sly grin, casting a small victorious look at her, "Must it always end this way?"
River smiled, "Oh, Doctor, aren't we all? I'll see you there."
"I look forward to it," the Doctor grinned.
She winced and closed her eyes, the annoyance was gone now. It seemed the adventure, the excitement, how the woman had rescued them, had allowed River just enough time to become...interesting...to the Doctor instead of annoying.
~oOo~
It was how she felt about herself every time River was involved. Every time she saw River...it just made her doubt herself all the more. This incarnation of herself, it had started out so...confident, but every time River came along...it was like the woman's mere presence just chipped away at that, made her feel like she was just someone standing at the sidelines, unable to contribute anything. And she hated that, she didn't want to feel that way, she didn't want to let it affect her like that. She tried, she tried to help but...River was smart and brave and resourceful and skilled and so many other things she wasn't.
And every time the Doctor encountered River, he seemed that much closer to her, that much more intrigued by her, that much more noticing of the woman where as he barely noticed her at first. She didn't know how this would go, how it would affect the Doctor to see River again.
~oOo~
The Doctor looked at her, shocked, "Angel please…I don't want to be alone."
She swallowed hard, her glance flickering to River for just a split second, "You won't be."
"Are you married, River?" the Doctor asked, handing back the Manipulator as well.
River shot a glance at her as she winced at the question and how it could be taken, before turning a smug smile at the Doctor, strapping on the Manipulator as well, "Are you asking?"
She shook her head, not wanting to know how the conversation would go, not wanting to hear any of River's innuendo, and turned, entering the TARDIS quietly...
~oOo~
"Hippie!"
"Archaeologist…" ...she flinched at their little jibes, it was far too similar to how she and the Doctor used to toss 'psychic' and 'thief' at each other.
River was very capable, very quick, very sharp and talented and handy in a dangerous situation. She was clever and daring and brave and able to handle herself. She was really rather impressive and quite lov...he blinked, realizing his thoughts were getting away from him.
River ran out of the TARDIS, "They're Americans!"
The Doctor leapt up as some of the agents turned their guns on River, which made her wince as...well, one guard had been holding a gun to HER the entire time and he hadn't reacted, hadn't seemed to notice really, which she supposed was understandable, from his angle at the desk, but it still hurt.
"I hate you," River muttered.
"No you don't," the Doctor grinned, he was starting to find, for how much River seemed to love irritating him by calling him 'sweetie' he got just as much enjoyment out of irritating her.
"And Dr. Song," he turned and leaned against a window to look at her, his back to her, "You've got that face on again."
"What face?" River asked.
"The 'he's hot when he's clever' face."
"This is my normal face," she smirked.
"Yes, it is."
"Oh shut up," though she couldn't help but laugh at the uncomfortable look on her face before the Time Lady turned away.
"Not a chance."
"Don't worry," River grinned, glancing at her before flirtatiously looking at the Doctor, "I'm quite the screamer. Now there's a spoiler for you!" she winked.
The Doctor stood as she disappeared down the hole, a fierce blush on his cheeks, not even noticing her close her eyes and shake her head, before she turned away, moving to look at the room instead of the Doctor.
~oOo~
She couldn't lie and say she wasn't uncomfortable with how close the Doctor and River seemed to be getting. It unnerved her how easily he got on with her now, after the Byzantium incident she'd noticed him becoming more amused and intrigued by River instead of annoyed with her as he had been.
It was even worse because she could see into his mind, she could hear his thoughts about the woman, how they were changing, how they were growing just that little bit more…non-platonic. And that hurt her, badly, especially since all her instincts were telling her it was wrong of him, he was HER Mate, not River's…but he didn't exactly know that, he couldn't see it that way.
She sighed, closing her eyes a moment, knowing she had likely missed her chance to tell him about them being Mates. With River there…she was afraid he'd think she was just jealous of River and making up stories. He might even spend more time with River as a result.
"Oh, and this is my friend, River. Nice hair, clever. Has her own gun, and," the Doctor looked around at the Silence, "Unlike me she doesn't mind shooting people. I shouldn't like that," he turned to River, having to admit, "Kinda do a bit."
"7, really?" the Doctor remarked, actually sounding a tiny bit impressed.
River smirked and leaned her head back onto his shoulder, whispering in his ear, "8 for you honey."
"Stop it…" the Doctor grinned, not looking at River though he seemed far too comfortable with her being so close…
"Make me," she said in a breathy way as she rubbed against his back.
"Yeah, well, maybe I will," he actually…flirted back.
She stepped out of the TARDIS…and her hearts shattered at the sight of the Doctor and River kissing before the Stormcage cell...
~8~
He felt ill…no, he felt worse than ill as Angel's memories raced across his mind unbidden but accepted. Their mental bond was back, it had never left but now he could connect to her mind once more, he could see everything now. He could feel what she felt as she stood there, watching as River sunk her claws in him, being unable to do anything about it because she didn't know what she could do. He swallowed the bile rising in his throat as more memories hit the surface, of every single little look or remark or action River had dealt Angel that he hadn't seen, that had been less than kind, he'd seen some of it...but it appeared there were even more that he'd missed. And knowing that, knowing that he'd failed to protect his Mate...it killed him. But nothing twisted the knives in his hearts more than feeling her anguish at those memories of him being pulled towards River, at that last one in particular.
He looked down at Angel in his arms, shaking, and realized how broken she really was by everything. He'd broken her by forgetting her, the beautiful, confident, blooming woman she'd regenerated into years ago was now a trembling, insecure wreck in his arms…he had done that to her. It was his fault, he'd…he'd hurt her, something he'd sworn never to do.
'Don't you DARE pull away from me Theta,' she called in his mind, clinging to him as she saw his thoughts shift, 'Not now.'
'But…' he couldn't help it, the guilt, the pain, the knowledge that she had suffered so much because of him...
'You're the 'Doctor.' Make it all better. Please,' she let out another small sob, half-begging him, 'Please make it better.'
He nodded, kissing the top of her hair, he would, he would make it better, he'd make it all better, somehow. He looked up as Amy reached out and squeezed her hand…and he looked around, at the small group of six that had stuck by them, at the TARDIS, knowing that the rest of the 'family' would have stayed and been there and helped if not for their own assurances that it was ok to leave, at the hanger that had held a little more than a thousand people from all across time all come to help…and then landed on River.
His eyes narrowed into slits, his lips pursing as his body tensed instinctively, knowing this woman also had a hand in harming his Mate, emotionally and mentally if not physically, "Where the hell have you been?" he demanded, more angry at her than anyone else, "Every time you've asked, every time, I have been there. Where the hell were you today?!"
He had been there, he had saved her, he had come when she called and helped when he could. Having no idea what he was getting into, but helping nonetheless. He had done what he could, more than he could, protected her even...and THIS? THIS was how she repaid him? Yes, he knew it was possible that all those adventures hadn't happened for her yet, she might not know the different ways he'd helped, but he couldn't help it, all he saw was River. No...all he saw was someone they had asked for help from, him, who rarely ever asked for help but simply wanted to give it instead, and had said NO. And now...he and his Mate were devastated.
So where the hell had she been? What had been SO important that the ONE time he asked for help, she refused?
"I couldn't have prevented this," River defended simply, not seeming perturbed by his anger.
"You could've tried!" he nearly spat, his nostrils flaring as he panted, trying his best to keep calm, Angel was still in his arms, he didn't want to let go of her to lunge at River and demand the answers from her, but it was getting hard. Having seen Angel's memories, all the little things River had done and said just to get to her, to hurt her...he wanted nothing to do with the woman after this...after he got his answers and he damn well would get them!
"And so, my love, could you," she sighed as the Doctor's eyes snapped shut, feeling Angel wince at the endearment, and tightened his hold on her even more. River didn't even bother to glance at her, "You brought this on yourself and your Mate."
His eyes flew open at that, something hitting him, something he probably would have realized in the TARDIS had he been paying any attention at all to what River and Rory were speaking of given how angry the companions had looked watching the interaction before Rory returned. But he had refused, he hadn't wanted anything to do with River Bloody Song. So he'd just complained and ranted to Jenny and Amy instead, talking so he'd hear himself and not have to suffer through River's voice and claims of 'spoilers.'
If he'd listened, he might have realized...
He had broken Angel, yes, but River…River had beaten the girl down with her flirting and innuendo…and she knew! She knew Angel was his Mate! If this was a younger version of River, then her older selves knew as well, if this was an older one...he didn't even have to wonder if her 'younger selves' had known, looking back on it, River always had some sort of comment or reaction that he realized now was her knowledge of the Mating, she had known even then. And she never said, instead she'd just flaunted herself in front of the girl, worming her way into their lives, wiggling her way closer to him…
His eyes darkened as his mind worked out exactly why she hadn't mentioned the Mating to him either. Angel he could understand, memory loss was tricky, she technically HAD told him and he hadn't listened to her and so she'd thought that he wouldn't believe her if she tried again. Admittedly, it had taken him all that time to even slightly believe AMY's claim that he was Angel's Mate before the memories returned. But this...this had NOTHING to do with his memory loss or timelines or spoilers or anything…everything fell into place, her hatred of Angel, her victorious smirks thrown at the girl whenever he said anything remotely sweet to her, her flirting.
Angel was his Mate, which was something River wanted to be, which was something River had tried to almost trick him into believing she was (well, not the Mate part, but someone equally as important to him).
The only thing keeping him from lunging at her and wrapping his hands around that neck of hers was Angel's trembling and sniffles, her quiet sobbing as she tried desperately to calm down...so she could calm HIM down. And that reminded him that she needed him far more than he needed to kill River for what she had tried to do. To manipulate someone with missing memories into a lie you wanted...it disgusted him, especially when others were hurt because of it. And the worst part was, he was absolutely sure there was even more to it, to her plots, to her reasonings, to her hatred of Angel...
He looked at her with a dark anger that made her flinch and he realized something else as well...she knew he'd figured it out, "You think I wanted this?!" he nearly snarled, "You think I wanted my Mate captured, my child taken away from me?! I didn't do this. This was NOT me!"
"This was exactly you," River countered, "All this, all of it. You make them so afraid. When you began, all those years ago, sailing off to see the Universe, did you ever think you'd become this? The man who can turn an army around at the mention of his name? Doctor? The word for healer and wise man, throughout the Universe. We get that word from you, you know. But if you carry on the way you are, what might that word come to mean? Hmm? To the people of the Gamma Forests, the word 'Doctor' means 'Mighty Warrior...'"
The Ponds and the others tensed as they stared at the Doctor, seeing him getting more angry and more worked up the longer River spoke. Couldn't the woman see this was NOT helping at all? Everything she was saying...it wasn't working, it wasn't helping, and it wasn't even remotely something that he needed to hear. To Rory it seemed like River was trying to do what Angel did, get through to the Doctor with words, but this wasn't like what Angel would say, Angel's words would be done with love, with concern, with feeling and empathy and kindness. She'd be gentle, make him listen to her quiet words and hear her, not shout at him and contradict him and shove it in his face and almost...scold him. The Doctor could only be snapped out of extreme feelings by one of two things, an extreme moment or the barest of words, two ends of the spectrum. Something River hadn't seemed to grasp.
And she claimed to know him?
"How far you've come…" River shook her head at him, "How far will you go? How deep into that darkness inside you will you fall?"
"I won't let that happen to him," Angel said shakily, her voice hoarse with tears, as she spoke for the first time since the Doctor had arrived, "I will never let the darkness consume him. Never."
"So you claim," River spoke, her voice only barely not sounding like a scoff, "Others would say you truly are the light that guides him," she shook her head, making the Ponds wince at how much more narrow the Doctor's eyes had gotten at that slight against Angel, "But what happens when the light goes out? What happens when the Angel falls? It happened today and you were still alive," the Angel had fallen, she had failed to save her daughter, failed to keep the most important thing in her Universe safe, and because of that...the Doctor was suffering too, "What will happen to the Doctor if you're hurt? Who will stop him then?" she turned back to the Doctor, "They've taken your child...and they're going to try to turn her into a weapon, just to bring you down. And all this, my…" she cut off, seeing the absolutely loathing look the Doctor shot her, "All this, Doctor...in fear of you."
The Doctor shook his head at her. Here, before them, was a woman from their future, one who popped up at the worst times, brought them all manner of heartsache, dragged him deeper down INTO that darkness she was raving against. This was a woman he'd been so desperate to know who she was, who she was to him, to them...and now...
He found he didn't care.
At all.
Not for her identity, not for who she was to him, not even for her.
The only thing he cared about was Angel and finding their daughter.
'Not without me,' Angel whispered to him.
He looked down at her to see a fierce determination in her red eyes now, not a darkness, no, but a protectiveness that only a mother could have, a protectiveness, he felt, she had always had. He nodded and helped her weakly to her feet. He glared at River before glancing at the small group of six, "Vastra, Jenny, Strax," he nodded his thanks to them, "Till next time. Lorna, Rory, Amy, thank you, for everything."
He knew he had to leave, now, quickly. Another moment with River and he really would kill her. She came there, showed up out of the blue, hadn't bothered to help them save Angel, hadn't offered them a word of warning about Ayla, and now she was scolding him?! The nerve...to abandon the people who had helped you (or would help you) and leave them to suffering like THIS? Out of bitter jealousy?! He couldn't stand it any longer and every moment there was another moment Ayla got farther and farther away from them.
"Doctor?" Rory called as the Time Lord flashed the sonic on the force field.
"Where are you going?" Amy shook her head.
"To find our daughter," Angel replied, stepping into the TARDIS, the loud humming within audible to all those gathered around the box.
"Strax," the Doctor's turned to the dwarf, the only one with transport besides him, ignoring River, "Get them all home and your honor is restored."
"But we can help!" Rory ran forward.
It was too late though, the Doctor had shut the door, locking it with the sonic.
Amy stepped back as the TARDIS lowly disappeared, "Where're they going?" Amy turned to River, she was someone from their future, she had to know where they were going, she had to! If she knew about the baby, about Angel being the Doctor's Mate, then she HAD to know where they were going or even...what happened to the baby.
Because the River they'd met hadn't acted at all as though the Doctor was someone's father.
"Amy, you have stay calm," River put her hands up, trying to get through to the girl.
Amy just aimed the pistol still in her hand at her, "You didn't come to help, the least you can do is tell us where they went so WE can go help them!"
"Amy," Rory walked to her side, making no move to restrain her though.
He was just as angry with River as Amy, if not more as he'd known about the child longer and he'd been the one to go try and recruit her himself. He felt betrayed, and now he knew the Doctor had as well, to have River openly call Angel his Mate, they all knew that the woman had known now. And what's worse...he knew that she knew about the baby, she had to have known, in Stormcage, what had happened to Ayla, and he could guess one reason she hadn't come earlier, besides not having wanted to help them...her words about Amy having another man's child, River didn't want to see the baby, to be around the Doctor and Angel with Ayla being born. But he maintained what he believed, the baby was innocent, no matter the parents, the baby hadn't deserved to be taken like that, who knew what Kovarian would do to her!
"It's ok," River nodded, "You're upset…"
"Upset?" Amy shook her head, glaring, "I'm not UPSET! I'm…I don't even know the word for what I'm feeling right now. How could you River?! How could you not come to help?! If you loved the Doctor so much you would have helped him no matter what! If you...no," she shook her head, "I want to know what happened to you River?" she looked at the woman, "I looked up to you, I thought you were amazing, the way you handled the Doctor, I wanted to be more like you...but this?" she took a breath, "This is NOT the person I want to be, that I'd turn my back on the man I claim to love."
"Where did they go?" Rory cut in, before River could answer, knowing how Amy's temper could get, not wanting a fight to start when they needed River to tell them what they wanted to know.
"I can't tell you," River replied.
"Why not?" Amy glared.
"Because I don't know," she supplied, "And even if I did...I'm sorry, but I can't let you go help them…what happens...MUST happen," she looked at them, "You'll want it to happen."
"How can we trust a word you say?" Rory shook his head at her, unable to believe that she could say that to them, tell them they'd WANT Ayla to be taken, "We don't even know who you are!"
"But you will," she said, looking down a moment. The Battle of Demons Run, she'd been told once, was the day the Doctor's companions found out who she was. She swallowed hard and looked at Amy, knowing that, even if they weren't ready, the timelines had to be maintained, "Have you been given the Prayer Leaf yet Amy?"
Amy blinked, eyeing the woman a moment, "What about it?"
"May I see it?" Amy hesitated a moment before pulling the green swatch of cloth from her pocket and holding it up. River took it gently from her and smiled down at it, "One day you're going to ask to have your daughter, Melody's, name stitched into this," she felt along the blank cloth.
Amy would have been thrilled to find she would have a daughter in the future too…but right now, she couldn't see what that had to do with anything, whether River was trying to stall or distract them or something, she just...she couldn't trust the woman anymore, "And?"
River just pulled out another swatch of cloth from her own pocket, holding it up to reveal and older, more worn, slightly stained, Prayer Leaf, identical to the new one in her other hand, but with stitching on both sides.
"What…" Amy shook her head, not able to wrap her head around how River could have that cloth, why she would have it.
"What's that?" Rory frowned, looking at the odd symbols on it.
"It's the TARDIS translation matrix," River explained, holding it up for them to see the symbols on the cloth, "It takes a while to kick in with the written word..." she trailed off, seeing Amy glance at the Doctor's name written on the side of the cot that had been left where the TARDIS had been, forgotten in the Time Lords' rush to get out of there and go after Ayla, and knew Amy was trying to see what it would translate too, "It doesn't work on Gallifreyan," River told her, and Amy knew she was telling the truth about that, the Home Box hadn't translated either. River reached out to take Amy's hand, pressing the older Prayer Leaf into it, "You have to concentrate. This is Melody Pond, in the language of the Forest."
"I know what my daughter's name would be," she glared, she'd had it planned since she was a child.
"Except they don't have a word for 'pond' because only water in the Forest is the river…"
Rory frowned at the familiar words Idris had spoken as Amy looked down, watching as the stitching changed before their eyes, the word 'River' becoming visible on one side. Amy, with shaking hands, turned the leaf over to see 'Song' on the other.
"It's me. I'm Melody. I'm your daughter."
They could only look up at her, stunned.
To be continued...
A/N: OMG! We know how/why the Doctor forgot! O.O I hope it made sense/was believable the reason why and also why he wasn't able to make the connection between what he was feeling for Angel and love (more about that in the note too) ;) But for here...the Doctor really WAS staring right up at the ceiling during his regeneration, his eyes wide open, and since the Silence seem to be telepathic, it would make sense HE would be the only one to hear the command and the TARDIS through him. And the TARDIS, yay, she wasn't trying to kill him! She was bucking to throw the Silent out the doors and the Doctor just got caught in the middle ;)
To tap into my inner psychic (if she exists) and answer some questions before they're asked lol...yes, I DID say that Angel held the baby for an hour and it was 'gone,' I didn't say it died in her arms, Rory assumed that and I didn't say anything to dissuade you from thinking that ;) Yes, I did say the baby dies...but I never said it was at Demons Run }:) Yes, River Song will still have her upbringing, yes she's still Melody Pond, but you'll have to imagine why till we get to it }:D No, Angel will not be able to move on from this instantly, she and the Doctor will have quite a lot to work out. But...yes, the fluff WILL be back, maybe not in the next episode in HUGE amounts (they just lost their daughter! and have no idea what's coming for her :'( ) but it WILL be there as they heal ;)
I think it's almost more alarming, what happened to Angel, than Amy in the show. To be holding your child and they disappear...as opposed to holding it and someone else physically ripping it out of your arms, knowing that you could have protected it better if you were stronger, and failing :( As though Angel doesn't have enough insecurities to worry about right? :'( I think it's also more impactful to the Doctor as well, having AYLA be the target for Kovarian, as terrible as it is to say...I really do think that, if worse came to worse and River was completely out of control and a danger to all...even being Melody Pond...he would stop her, forever. But his own daughter? I can't see him ever, under any circumstances, doing that. And a FULL Time Lord? Imagine one raised to be a weapon?! And they were afraid of the DOCTOR? But there's so much about that that may not even happen...the baby dies, River exists, how?
I know a few more questions will be brought up, especially about River, about why she said nothing to warn them of Ayla being taken, how she even knew, of why she hates Angel, when the hatred begins, how she exists with Amy not currently pregnant (believe me, the Ponds are JUST as confused lol), and many, many more, or at least I hope this chapter brought up more ;) And I can say quite a few will be answered in this particular story ;)
Just to mention something about the 1000-answer thing, since this chapter answered the why/how the Doctor forgot, that's off the table lol :) And...I mentioned in a few 'notes' that when Angel forgets, she will forget everything and she will forget forever, even if it's not long at all (which I honestly can't answer either what that means). So...I really can't answer when she remembers in the 1000 as she does NOT remember, ever. BUT! I know some of you are probably worried about what that means for fluff, but I swear, the fluff will be present in copious amounts despite that. And that there is a twist to it ;) So I can't really say when she remembers as she won't ;) We're about halfway to the 900 if anyone has any more suggestions of questions they want to know the answer to ;)
And, just to finish...next chapter will be the LKH prequel, the Doctor and Angel, in the TARDIS, listening to their companions trying to contact and check on them :(
Happy National Talk Like a Pirate Day! ^-^
Some notes on reviews...
Lol, I have no idea how I can do this or why I'm so cruel lol :) I'm usually the complete opposite :) All I can say is there's a twist as to why Angel won't remember }:)
Donna can't quite slap River here, she and the others have left :( But there's always hope for later in the saga ;) I think he released a bit of the storm on River here, but nope, no double chapters lol, just one a day ;)
Lol, love the poem ^-^
Definitely trust issues to come, exactly what Jenny saw on Angel's face yup ;) Good catch! :) I think that the Doctor will struggle to forgive himself yup, even though we see it wasn't his fault here, he'll still blame himself that he wasn't able to overcome the Silent's command and that the Mating was able to be blocked :( Yup, Angel will still be leaving at some point in this saga, but I won't say when ;) It might be why he ends up on the cloud, you never know :) It might have something to do with the final episode, but then again...it might not ;)
I can say that River hates Angel for quite a few reasons we'll see coming up in a few episodes :) We'll have to see if that might be a reason too :)
I've sort of already answered that question in other notes, Angel will forget everything }:) And we got the answer to how the baby was 'gone' in this episode, that still leaves open how the baby dies though :'( And thank YOU! I'm glad you're enjoying the story :)
Nope, it won't be the end of the HOTS :) It won't be like in Series 4, the story will go on, there's a twist for that aspect of the saga. But nope, the Doctor won't off himself so Angel wouldn't die because of it either :)
Even if the army was doing their job…it's still wrong. Kidnapping, holding a pregnant woman hostage, plotting to take her baby, trying to kill the Doctor…it's wrong. You deal drugs, get paid for it, it's still illegal and saying 'but it's my job!' wouldn't mean anything to police. To the Doctor, using it as an excuse doesn't make it ok to do it if it's inherently wrong and they should know better not to do it :) Like he reacted to Solana and others saying it was their jobs, they were just doing their job, he didn't like it then either :) I already had one OC miscarry, I wanted to stay away from that, I had one OC give birth and the baby lived happily on, stayed away from that too :) Having a baby only to lose it moments later is more impactful as it was alive to the end, and then was lost :'( I think you could get everyone in the TARDIS though, it's infinite lol but they were also using the Rift and other teleports and (I'd assume) the Judoon and Sontaran ships to help as well :) I don't think the Doctor wanted subtle either, he wanted a surprise and then boom! moment :) Angel does have some flaws, she IS actually clumsy and uncoordinated. We saw more of it in the 10-specials and in the start of Series 5 but she became more careful of it when she found out she was pregnant and tried to not have a moment like that to avoid harming the baby :) But we'll be seeing more of it coming up ;) I don't think she's perfect either, she has A LOT of insecurities which we'll be seeing, and, in a way, not standing up for yourself IS a character flaw that she'll have to work on. It stems mostly from the fact that, all the confidence she had at the start of her 11th self is just…gone :( She has no confidence in herself, which is also only one part of why she didn't tell the Doctor, she already thought that she wasn't good enough for him, why would the new him believe that SHE was his Mate sort of thing :)
I'd be happy if River was done in the show too. But then again, I think I'd only be interested in her continuing in Series 8 or beyond just to see what point in her timeline she's at and how she'd treat Angel :)
There will be some happy moments coming up yeah, there was a tiny hint of it in Sneak Peeks, Angel seemed healed and happy in the Snowmen chapter, so there'll be a bit of happiness coming :) Lol, yup, Lance was there too, even the snooty woman popped up ;) Oh River definitely had a bad time to come in, and definitely didn't help }:) And now we see a hint of how the Doctor will react to her in the future and this wasn't even the Oncoming Storm moment ;)
I think it's a combination of things, sad today because the baby is 'gone' now, but sad too when the baby dies :(
Yup, Angel won't remember when she forgets }:) I said that she would forget forever, but not that long at all ;) But I can't say what that is, that's a twist to come :) But I can assure you the fluff will be back in epic amounts and there will be happiness again :) I can say, for this story especially, there'll be issues to resolve for Thella, but still have quite a bit of fluff. LKH might be a bit strained on that front at times, because they JUST lost their daughter, but there'll be much more fluff to come, and even some fluff in the strained moments too ;) I can say the fluff WILL be back, quite a lot of it ;)
Rory does remember about Angel's baby, I think it's more that, when the baby was born, seeing the scans that the baby was healthy and nothing was wrong, made him feel like the baby would be ok, that the timelines had changed and that everything would be ok :( Sadly that didn't happen :(
I'm glad you like the angst, there'll still be plenty of that coming, along with fluff though ;)
I tried to balance Donna and Jack with all the other companions, I didn't want one to overshadow the others, though Jack did get to punch the Doctor ;) And they, and the rest of the companions, will be popping up again throughout the rest of the saga ;)
That was definitely an intention to hint that Angel had an affect on Jack too, made him more responsible, more mature and more remarkable :) I think, having her in his life, made him seel the better side of things, and having her there really helped him cope with his immortality :) And he knows Angel will always be there and support him :)
I mentioned in another note, Angel won't remember :( But I can say that the fluff will be back yup ;)
Lol, I think the question would have to be why she forgets, Angel won't remember, so the 'when' can't be answered :)
The baby WILL die yup :) The Angel we see in TIA is from the future, after she lost the baby :( Rory assumed it meant the baby died an hour after it was born on Demons Run. We're at the point here where an hour has just passed, so the baby would still (at that point) be alive. But the baby WILL die :'( But thanks, I'm glad you liked the revision to the episode :)
Lol, it's not mean at all :) I get invested in characters in shows too :) I'll definitely add that question to the list ;)
We'll find out very soon when River learned the Doctor and Angel are Mates :)
I've seen a few of JB singing :) My favorite is the Weakest Link, he sings a few times, even the DW theme tune ;) I do that too, when I find a new show, I look into the actors and things too :)
We might see someone hit on Angel in front of Jack, yup never know :) I think Gray's more of a quiet protection, like he'll watch Angel and he'll stick with her, but he's the more quiet of the two brothers :) Jack will have plenty of overprotective brother moments to come, he'll be popping up a few times in the saga ;)
Lol, I could totally see Jack meeting the creators of Pirates and being the inspiration for Captain Jack Sparrow ;) That's definitely Jack in a nutshell ;)
I think the tumblr post is more about when River is officially done with the show, like she's finally, truly died, and not coming back (in future episodes either) :) Because then Thella will have no one trying to cause problems or hate on Angel :) I can say the family will find out about the baby very soon, but it might not be the Doctor or Angel who share it with them :(