"Why is no one dancing?" asked the Doctor. "What's the point of even having a party and music if no one dances? Come along my dear, it's time to rectify this sin."

The Doctor offered Melody his hand, but she swatted it away.

"Oh no, I only agreed to let you take me here, dancing was not part of the deal."

"I did warn you that you'd have to put up with my atrocious dancing."

"I thought you meant you'd be dancing on your own."

"Never if I have a partner. Now, the sooner you dance with me, the sooner this will all be over."

Melody relented and accepted the Doctor's hand, and he began spinning her around and around. Judging by the looks they were getting, no one had actually expected anyone to do any dancing.

"I don't know how to dance," said Melody, for the first time showing a chink in her armor.

"Where I'm from, they didn't do much dancing," said the Doctor, with one hand holding hers, and the other on her waist as they moved in time to the music. "When I left, I learned other people's ways of dancing, took my favorite moves from each one, and combined them to make my very own unique dance style. I usually reserve it for only the wildest of parties, though. For tonight we'll just do a simple waltz. Just follow my feet and you'll be fine."

"You look like a kid, but you act so ancient," remarked Melody. "I mean, most kids wouldn't get excited by waltzing and classical music. It's like your face is a mask, and you're hiding someone beneath it. Who are you, really? And why are you so interested in a homeless girl?"

The Doctor finally understood how River must have felt when he'd first met her. She'd known him and loved him, but he'd known nothing of her and had felt nothing for her. And then she'd sacrificed her life for him, to make sure he would live long enough to one day meet her. The pain she must have felt in her final moments, and there was nothing he could do about it.

She only knew what Madame Kovarian had brainwashed into her, she had no idea that she would one day love him very much, and that he would love her back. If she knew who he really was, she wouldn't hesitate to kill him. Here they were dancing, and while it enraptured him and broke his heart at the same time, it meant nothing to her. He was just a weird boy, a stranger, someone not to be trusted, someone she couldn't love. He kept smiling, but it was killing him inside.

"I can tell you're more than just a homeless girl. You've got your whole life in front of you, and it's going to be one hell of a ride. I think you're going to be absolutely amazing, and when you are, you can look back and remember the silly ginger boy who believed in you."

"You don't know me. How can you even think that?"

"Maybe it's just a guess. But my guesses are usually right."

Melody smiled for the first time since he'd met her. She pulled away from his hold and said, "Show me this dance you made up. I bet you look like a fish flopping on a deck."

"That's probably the nicest thing anyone's ever said about it," he said as he started showing off his moves. Melody laughed as she watched him, and soon joined and mimicked him. The crowd stared at the two children moving wildly, as though offended by it. But they just ignored them and kept on going, until they could barely breathe from laughing.

Meanwhile, Sherlock and Molly stood off to the side awkwardly. Neither of them had any idea what to say to each other, and they didn't want to talk to any of the other guests. He noticed a punch bowl and got her some punch, but after that they were out of options.

A girl about their age in a stunning blue dress and shimmering jewels approached them. "I don't remember inviting either of you. Did you sneak in? I should tell Daddy."

Molly took a step back, her face reddening. "I thought you said you were invited…"

"Like I would ever invite vagrants like you. I mean, just look at your clothes. Mom insisted on having a princess theme, but I think you two took it too literally. Are you wearing family heirlooms, or has the costume store reached the bottom of the barrel?"

Sherlock ignored her and put on a fake smile. "You must be the birthday girl. This is some party you've got going on, very big, very fancy. It is such a shame when parents have to buy their children's love. Even worse when said child only cares about attention, and will do anything to get more, wouldn't you say, Ashley?"

"What are you talking about?" she asked as she put her hands on her hips.

"I mean that all this isn't enough. This is the kind of party most kids can only dream of, for you it's not even that big a deal. All this has brought you much attention, but you still need more. You were considering using someone else to get it, but the spotlight would be on them, not you. You're going to set your expensive dress on fire to feed your black hole of an ego. The money spent on that dress could feed an entire village for a week, and you're going to ruin it. This whole party is for you, but you're compelled to make certain that no one forgets who the center of attention is. Now, I'm not the most modest person in the world, but even I can tell you that that's just sad. Leave us alone, or I'll alert someone of your pathetic scheme. Good evening."

Ashley's mouth dropped open, but she quickly closed it. She then turned around and walked off with a huff.

"Maybe we should go," said Molly uncomfortably.

Sherlock knew he had a promise to keep to the Doctor. And he would never admit it, not even to himself, but he found that he actually wanted to spend a bit more time with Molly, though he couldn't fathom why. Because of this, he grudgingly stepped out of his comfort zone and offered Molly his hand.

"Would you like to dance with me?"

"I don't know how."

"Neither do I. We'll follow Johnny's lead."

"I think Johnny might be having a seizure," said Molly. Sherlock looked and saw the Doctor and Melody doing something that looked like a strange mix between the tango and the moonwalk.

"And just when I thought he'd run out of ways of flaunting his alienness." Sherlock offered Molly his hand again. "No one knows us here, just pretend we're all alone."

"All right." Molly smiled shyly as she took his hand.

Neither of them had any idea what they were doing. They tried to waltz like they'd seen it done in the movies, but it didn't help much.

"Ow!" gasped Molly when he stepped on her foot.

"Oh, sorry," he apologized.

"You know, next to us, Johnny and Melody's dance doesn't look so bad," commented Molly with a giggle. "At least they seem to have some idea as to what they're doing."

"I don't think I'll ever dance again after this," muttered Sherlock.

"I never liked it much either, but I really like this," said Molly softly.

The longer they danced, the more Sherlock was surprised to find himself enjoying it. He knew he would probably never see Molly again after this night, which would be a shame. He forgot all about Olivia, the girl he fancied in class. The tiny little room he'd made for her in his mind palace was deleted, and in its place he stored everything he knew about Molly, including the questions about her that still remained to be answered.

Molly seemed to be enjoying herself, as well. She was smiling contentedly, and no longer seemed nervous.

Just then, the Doctor ran over to Sherlock and tapped him on the shoulder.

"Hey, I've got something to do. It won't take long, and you two just stay here, okay?"

"My patience is wearing thin, Johnny," said Sherlock, his voice bordering on menace.

"You two are so adorable together," said the Doctor in a sing-song voice.

"Don't make me do something you'll regret, Johnny."

"All right, I'm off. Toodles!"

"Where are you going?" asked Melody as she followed him out of the party.

"Your end of the deal has been paid. Stay with my brother and I'll fulfill my part after I'm done running this errand."

"You dragged me to a party and now you're dumping me?"

"There's something I need to do. I thought you'd be happy to be rid of me."

"I will be, but I'm not staying a moment longer with those snobs. I will keep the dress, though. So where are we going?"

"It's too dangerous for you."

Melody grabbed him by the shoulder and spun him around to face her. "You don't know the hell I've been through. I've suffered things you will never understand. There is no such thing as "too dangerous" for me."

"I'm sorry," he said sheepishly. "I just wanted to make sure it was really you."

Melody looked at him quizzically. "What do you mean?"

"It's not important. But come along now, we don't have much time. Do you know of any pawn shops nearby?"

"What for?"

"I need a mirror. You'll see why soon."

Melody told him where they could find a pawn shop. The Doctor sent Melody around back so he could use the sonic screwdriver on the door, and when she came back around, they went inside.

"Are you looking for any mirror in particular?" she asked. "Family heirloom that accidentally got pawned?"

"No, just a mirror, anyone will do."

There were three mirrors in the back. The Doctor grabbed the first one he saw and they ran out of the store.

"We need to get to the Broadway theater," said the Doctor as they ran down the street. They hailed a cab and climbed in. The driver was an elderly man, and he was a very safe driver.

"Faster! Go faster!" said the Doctor impatiently. "You're old, you haven't got much time left, why are you wasting it going snail speed?"

That was when the cabbie threw them out.

"Nice work, genius," said Melody as they ran the rest of the way.

"Oh God, I'm turning into Sherlock."

They finally reached the Broadway theater. The Doctor grabbed Melody by the shoulders and looked her hard in the face.

"Listen carefully, Melody. As long as you're here, you're going to make yourself useful. There is a monster here that is going to kill some unfortunate unsuspecting person tonight, and it must be stopped."

"What kind of monster?" asked Melody seriously. "Can you remember what it looks like?"

"It's not that kind of monster. I need you to look at it while I deal with it. Don't look away, or turn your back on it, or blink, not even for a second. If you do, it will kill one of us, and it doesn't care which. Can you do that?"

He could tell Melody had many questions, but she didn't voice them. Even as a child she knew what she had to do, and she took it very seriously.

"Let's do it," she said.

Across from the theater there was a statue of an angel, its hands obscuring its face as though it was crying. Below it was a stone pedestal, with hundreds of names and initials carved into it.

"Keep your eyes on it Melody," said the Doctor as they jaywalked across the street. Melody obeyed without a sound. Once they were standing in front of it, she looked at it and kept her eyes wide open.

The Doctor took the mirror they had stolen and was about to set it on the pedestal, when a sudden scream made him drop it, shattering it into thousands of pieces.

"Melody!" he shouted as he turned, bracing himself for the worst, but Melody was still there.

"Oh thank God," he said as he breathed a sigh of relief.

Melody looked scared to death, and for good reason. The angel had moved towards her. Its hands were outstretched to grab her, and its face was frozen in a hideous scream.

"I didn't meant to blink," she said apologetically. "What is this thing?"

"A Weeping Angel. Now, you must keep your eyes open. I know it's not easy, but you were lucky this time. If it happens again, you won't get another chance."

"Okay, I won't blink again. Just do what you have to do," she said as she stared at the creature. "But I made you break the mirror. What'll we do now?"

"Don't worry, there might be a big enough piece to use. And if not, I'll glue them together. Aha! Here we are, this one should work," he said as he picked up a shard of glass about the size of his hand.

"The angel has moved, so I'm going to have to move the pedestal. Just sit tight, we're nearly done."

"How do you know about these things?" she asked. "I didn't think people were aware of the monsters hiding in their closets."

"Some do, not many," said the Doctor as he pushed on the pedestal, moving it inch by inch. "Before he died, my father trained my big brother and I to hunt monsters like these. He went on a hunting trip and didn't come back, and so when we're old enough, we'll take over the family business of hunting all things not-natural."

"Sounds like every kid's dream job."

"Someone's got to do it. There, the pedestal's in place. Now I can arrange the mirror."

The Doctor set the piece of glass on the pedestal and moved it around until it caught the angel's reflection. He then took out the sonic screwdriver and used it to permanently attach it to the stone.

"You can blink now," said the Doctor.

"It's about time," she said as she rubbed her eyes. "How did you know this thing was here? What was your whole plan, anyway?"

"It worked, and that's what matters." He pulled a silk cloth out of his pocket and offered it to Melody. "By the way, I spilled something on my handkerchief earlier. I think it smells like a river, but no one else will believe me. What do you think it smells like?"

Melody took a whiff and said, "I don't smell anything." But she'd barely finished her sentence before she passed out. She would have collapsed on the cold hard ground, if the Doctor hadn't caught her in his arms.

"Sorry about that, but I can't have you seeing my Tardis, not yet. It's time to take you home."

Sherlock and Molly danced slowly under the light of the stars after the Doctor left, until Ashley told her father and he came to kick them out. He grabbed her hand and they ran out of the party together, laughing the whole way.

"Who are you, really?" Molly asked after they'd put a lot of distance between themselves and the party. "You said you had an invitation, but they clearly did not want us there."

"Well, technically the Doctor was the one who said we were invited, not me. It was his insane idea, not mine."

"I guess I should go home now, before my parents get worried."

"All right, we'll go."

Neither of them said much the rest of the way back. Along the way, a car drove through a puddle and splashed Sherlock with water. Molly tried not to giggle at the sight of him soaking wet.

By the time they got back, Sherlock was shivering, and he had his arms wrapped around himself to keep warm. The night was cold, and being drenched only made it worse.

"W-Well, here y-you are," he said through chattering teeth. "I guess I'll be g-going now."

"Wait a second, don't leave just yet," said Molly. She took his hand and led him into the hotel. "You'll freeze to death out there, come inside to my room to dry off."

Sherlock allowed her to take him to her room. She had a key, and she unlocked the door and followed him inside. Just being inside made him feel much better.

Molly brought him a towel, and made them both cups of hot chocolate to warm up. Not wanting to hurt her feelings, he downed his entire mug. It was pretty good, actually.

"I need to go now," he said as he returned the towel to her.

"Will I ever see you again?" she asked.

He wanted to say yes. He wanted to spend more time with her, and to be her friend. But he didn't want to lie to her, or to himself.

"No. After tonight I'll be leaving to go somewhere else, and I won't be coming back. We won't ever see each other again."

"Oh," she said, trying to hide her disappointment. "Well, in that case, I want to give you something." She went into another room and came back carrying a blue woolen scarf.

"My Grandma knitted this for me before she died. I don't want you to get pneumonia, so use this to keep you warm."

She handed it to him, and he felt the warm, soft material between his fingers. "Molly I can't. If your grandmother made it for you, it wouldn't be right for you to give it away to a total stranger."

"It's to remember me by. Who knows, maybe we will see each other again someday. I've had friends before, but they all end up leaving, eventually. No one has ever taken me dancing before, this has been the best night of my life. I don't want you to forget about me, like everyone else does."

She smiled at him hopefully, and he wrapped the scarf around his neck. She then said, "I almost forgot, I need to give you back the dress."

"Keep it. I don't really have any use for dresses, and it suits you, anyway. It goes well with your eyes, I think."

She threw her arms around him, and he hugged her back.

When he let go, he said, "Am I supposed to give you something to remember me by? Because I don't really have anything, unless you want this silly top hat."

"That won't be a problem. I could never forget a person like you."

Sherlock was beginning to feel uncomfortable and he didn't know what he was supposed to say. He turned and opened the door and said, "Well, I need to get back, Johnny has probably returned by now. Goodbye, Molly."

"Wait! I never got your name!" she said, but he just closed the door in her face and got back in the lift.

When he left the hotel, he found the Tardis waiting for him on the curb. He opened the door and went inside.

"There you are! I was starting to think you were never coming back," said the Doctor. Sherlock noticed Melody's unconscious body resting in the chair by the console.

"Did Melody tire herself out, or what?"

"That's one way of putting it. I'm dropping her off back home with her parents. I got everything ready while I was waiting for you, it's all ready for her."

The Doctor was even more excited than usual. He flew the Tardis and took them to Leadworth, to an old house.

"This house was abandoned, some even say haunted," said the Doctor as he pushed open the door and carried out Melody. "I cleaned it up and furnished it with everything she'll need or want, her parents will do the rest."

"You work very fast," remarked Sherlock.

"You bet I do."

He laid her on a bed and kissed her forehead. They then snuck back out of the house. Before they got back in the Tardis, Sherlock noticed another little girl by the house next door. It was the dead of night, but she was sitting on a suitcase. By her side was a little boy with sandy blond hair, and they were both looking up at the sky expectantly. They heard them and turned to look at them.

The Doctor waved at them and said to Sherlock, "That's Melody's mum and dad."

"But they're so young, and they don't even have the same skin color," said Sherlock.

"It's a long story."

"I'm so sick and tired of that excuse," said Sherlock as he opened the door and stormed back inside. The Doctor followed him inside. The Tardis was hidden behind a tree, so the kids didn't see it vanish.

The next morning, Melody woke with a pounding headache. She was having trouble remembering what had happened the night before. It greatly confused her when she realized she was sleeping in a bed. She had never slept in a bed before.

"Come on Rory, don't be such a big chicken."

"This house is haunted, Amy! What if ghosts get us?"

"Those two boys were inside here last night and nothing got them. Besides, if something does come after us, the Doctor will come and make them go away."

"How would he know if ghosts were attacking us?"

"I don't know, he just would. Now come on, before someone realizes were not in our beds."

Melody's eyes shot open. Before she could move, the door opened and in came two children, who both cried out when they saw her there.

"We're sorry," said the boy as he tried to leave, but the girl stopped him. "We didn't know anyone lived here."

Melody recognized the two children as her parents, using the fuzzy memory from her birth, and the other from when she was in the spacesuit. They were so young, so innocent.

That was when her memories from the night before came crashing back.

Only one person could have gotten her home like this in one night, and given her this house. She'd known from the start there was something not right about that little ginger boy, and now she knew why. He was the Doctor, and he'd fooled her. Funny, she'd never heard the Doctor described as a child.

This could only be some kind of elaborate trap, part of a plan that she hadn't figured out yet. He was good, but she would get him sooner or later. He wouldn't trick her again. The next time she saw him, she'd be sure to get the job done right.

"I'm Melody," she introduced in a friendly tone. "This house isn't haunted, sorry to burst your bubble. Tell me Amy, about this Doctor."

I'll find you again Doctor, and when I do, I'll be sure to thank you.