Wow, that mid-season finale was completely mental...can't wait for it to start again in the autumn. Clearly my River is not the same as the River on the show...or is she? (No, she's not.)

I've realised how ridiculously long this story is getting, but as of right now I have no intentions of stopping (it might have something to do with the complete lack of ideas on how to end it). Might have to create a sequel or something exciting like that.

Reviews if you can :) I'd love you forever and ever and ever...

CHAPTER 37

"So was there a particular reason why you called me, from space, or did you just fancy a chat?" Rory asked, lowering himself into one of the faded blue armchairs in his sitting room. Amy was curled up on the other, a steaming mug of tea clutched in her hands.

She shrugged, unwilling to inform him of the primary reason that she made the call – an excuse to steal the TARDIS and get back at the Doctor.

"It's raining," she remarked, glancing outside of the window. In the space of about five minutes, the sky above Leadworth seemed to have burst open, releasing a torrent of water that fell in sheets onto the little town.

Rory glanced at the clock on the wall. "It's been raining here a lot recently," he replied. "Everyday, actually. Always in the afternoon." He paused, and took a sip of his own tea. "But don't change the subject. What are you doing here, Amy?"

Amy sighed, realising that there really was no escape. "We didn't exactly leave it on the best of terms," she said awkwardly. Rory looked down at his lap, unable to meet Amy's brown eyes. "I wanted to make sure things were, you know, cool."

Rory raised his head and looked at her incredulously. "Cool? When have things ever been cool?"

"Er, right now, stupid face," she grinned. "It's not exactly warm outside is it?" She chuckled at her poor joke, but Rory's sober expression made her stop laughing. The fleeting mention of Amy's old nickname for him had not gone unnoticed. He looked away again, and Amy herself focused on her mug.

"Did you love him?" Rory asked, breaking the heavy silence that was punctuated only by the patter of raindrops on the window.

"What?" Amy said, Rory's question having caught her off-guard.

"I said, did you love him?" he repeated.

Amy gripped the mug tighter. She knew whom Rory was referring to, of course, but how could she possibly reply truthfully when she didn't even know the answer herself?

"I don't know," she sighed. It was as truthful as she could possibly get. "It was a bit weird, you know? We were cooped up in that box with only each other for company…of course, I wasn't aware that you had ever existed."

"I did, though."

"I know that now," Amy rolled her eyes. "But at the time…I don't know, maybe a part of me did love him, even then. I wasn't supposed to, obviously. It was never meant to turn out the way it did."

"Do you regret it?"

Rory's question came out rather cold, and Amy was considering not answering. It was quite a personal question, and had it been seventeen years ago, Amy would not have let it slide. However, she knew that she owed him answers, and after all, she had turned up, basically unannounced, interrupting his life once again.

"No," she said fervently. "I wouldn't have had Ella. And she's my…she's my life."

Rory nodded as if he understood, but Amy knew he didn't. He couldn't possibly understand.

"Do you love him now?" Rory asked, after another pause.

The sudden creak of the door saved Amy from answering. Amy and Rory both turned around in shock as it flew open, revealing the presence of four, soaking wet people in Rory's hallway.

"Excellent question," the Doctor smirked, sauntering into the living room. He shook his floppy brown hair, causing a shower of water droplets to fly across the room. The Doctor's gaze slipped past Amy and found Rory. "Nice to see you again, Rory."

"How…how did you get in?" Rory stammered, staring up at the Doctor in complete disbelief.

The Doctor grinned, and held out a small brass key, which he dropped onto Rory's lap. "Ella suggested we try looking under the doormat. Smart kid. You – not so much."

Rory stared incredulously at the key for a few seconds, before looking back at the Doctor. "How did you find us here?"

The Doctor, however, had moved away from the chairs was staring curiously out of the window.

"How peculiar," he said, ignoring Rory's question. "If only I had my screwdriver…"

"Oh," Amy said quickly, rising from her chair. "I've got it. Here." She withdrew the sonic screwdriver from her jacket pocket, and held it out to the Doctor. She grinned sheepishly under his glare – she knew he couldn't stay angry at her for long.

The Doctor, having taken back his beloved screwdriver, proceeded to swipe it along the window frame.

"Doctor? What –"

"Shh."

Annoyed at having been ignored, Amy instead turned her attention to the three other, still rather damp, people in the hallway.

"I thought I told you two to stay out of trouble," she said reprovingly to Ella and Dorian.

"Did you?" Ella replied. She turned to Dorian. "Did she?"

"I don't believe she did."

"Well," Amy retorted, placing both hands on her hips. "Even if I didn't say it, I meant it. And breaking into someone's house definitely counts as trouble."

Ella shifted uneasily, catching Rory's eye as she did so. "Sorry," she mumbled quietly.

"How did they find you anyway?" Amy asked. It was obvious she meant the Doctor and Regina, the former who was still fiddling around with his screwdriver. Regina stepped forward into the living room, and Amy noticed – with hint of annoyance – that Rory's eyes widened slightly as they took in the beautiful woman.

"I can explain," Regina said, her silky voice resonating throughout the room. "Once the Doctor realised that his TARDIS had disappeared –"

"Had been stolen by a crazy woman bent on giving me hell for the rest of my life," the Doctor interrupted sourly, but his attention did not avert from the window.

"Well," Regina continued, as if the Doctor had never spoken. "He used my locator to track down the ship's whereabouts, and it brought us to here. To Leadworth."

"Dorian and I were just walking down the street when we saw them, and we told them you had gone with Rory," Ella concluded. "The Doctor used the same locating thingy to find you, and we ended up here."

Amy turned to the Doctor in disbelief. "You're having me bugged?"

"You ran off with my ship," he countered. "I think we need to talk about that –"

"Does anyone want tea?" Amy said quickly, holding up her half-empty mug. "I'll just go and get some…"

"Not so fast," the Doctor said darkly, turning away from the window and pointing his screwdriver at her. "You stay right here, Pond."

"Can somebody please tell me what's going on?" Rory begged. He was the only one sitting down now, and he looked rather vulnerable in comparison to the lively characters who had invaded his living room.

"Mum stole the TARDIS," Ella explained simply.

"It's very difficult to give a man with two hearts a heart-attack," the Doctor cut in. "But when I saw that my ship had been replaced by thin air, I came very close."

"Sorry," mumbled Amy, sounding very much like Ella had done just minutes before. "But what did you expect? You'd run off with her and you weren't telling me what was going on! You know how much I hate being left in the dark."

The Doctor had opened his mouth to reply, but Rory, sensing that a full-blown argument was just around the corner, stood up. "Okay! Look, it's still raining, and I'd feel a bit mean kicking you out –"

"Like you could, anyway," Amy muttered, still irritated.

" – so why don't I get some tea and everyone can just calm down?"

"I'll help," Ella offered quickly, eager to avoid a grilling from the Doctor about the part she played in stealing the TARDIS. She scurried into the kitchen after him.

"I think Dorian and I will head back to our ship. It's not our place here." Regina announced. "We'll wait for you, Doctor."

Amy looked at her imploringly, wishing she could send a message to her telepathically to stay put. She didn't want to be alone with the Doctor right now, especially in the home of her former fiancé. That was enough to make anyone feel uncomfortable.

Regina however, was clearly oblivious to any signals Amy had been trying to send her, and she wrapped a pale, slender arm around Dorian as they headed out the house into the rain.

"So…" Amy said awkwardly, as the Doctor – still frowning – came to sit in the chair that Rory had just vacated. "Everything okay with the screwdriver? And the window?"

The Doctor twisted the screwdriver in his hand, his head tilting to the side as he read all the information it was giving him. "The rain. It's very strange rain."

"It's just rain, Doctor. Not exactly unheard of in Leadworth."

"Hmm," he exhaled, not entirely convinced.

"Are you going to shout at me?" Amy asked, steeling herself for whatever reaction she would get from the Doctor. She knew she deserved to be shouted at, but she was hoping he wouldn't make a scene.

"No. Not right now at least." His voice was stern but his eyes twinkled as they rested on her anxious face. She relaxed slightly. "But really, what were you thinking? I know you Ponds aren't exactly famous for your rationality, but you really should be more responsible now. You're old."

Amy snorted. "You can talk! Mr Nine-Hundred-Years-And-Counting. I may not be twenty-one anymore, but I'm certainly not old."

"And still just as magnificent," the Doctor conceded.

"Why thank you," Amy grinned. "Although I'm not sure magnificence translates as 'stealing a Time Lord's spaceship because he's pissing you off'."

"Oh, is that what was going on?" the Doctor groaned. "And I daresay it worked. Not only did you scare me half to death by running off and taking my home, you ended up in the place where I least wanted you to go."

Amy's eyebrows knitted together as she looked at the Doctor incredulously. "What's wrong with Leadworth? It's only the most boring place on Earth. The most boring place in the whole Universe, probably."

The Doctor had said too much. Far, far too much. But Amy had realised it, and she wouldn't let it go until he told her the truth.

He shifted uneasily in his seat, his fingers playing with the sonic screwdriver again. "There's something not quite right about this place," he said slowly. There was a crash of thunder that seemed to shake the entire house. "I don't like it. I don't like it at all."