Amy was the last one to wake up after whatever happened, because right now she had no idea what happened. One moment, the Doctor said 'jump' and then the next she's out cold.
"Where are we?" She felt a little light headed once she was back on her feet and saw Gabby was feeling the same side effects.
"Exactly where we were," River said to her amazement.
"No we're not!" Amy searched for the Doctor and found him sonicking an indentation on the floor. "Doctor, what am I looking at? Explain."
"Amy, River already told you," Renata said with a light chuckle, never noticing the way River rolled her eyes at her, so disgusted.
Gabby did and she shot a glare in River's way. What was her problem? Renata was genuinely agreeing with her, saying she was right! What more did River want!? Gabby suspected Renata was doing these bits to try and change whatever River was so upset about with her and the worst part is that Renata was probably doing it to be nice. Because Renata was a kind woman. River was not.
"The ship crashed with the power still on, yeah? So what else is still on?" Renata watched Amy try to figure it out on her own but ultimately the Doctor gave her the answer.
"The artificial gravity. One good jump, and up we fell. Shot out the grav-globe to give us an updraft, and here we are!"
"She would've gotten it!" Renata playfully groaned at him. "Just gotta give her some time."
"I don't know about that," Amy admitted with a sheepish smile. It was nice that Renata had that type of faith in her brain but Amy thought it would be a while until she figured out more of this space stuff.
"Doctor. The statues, they look more like Angels now," Octavian noted the creatures still advancing on them.
"They're feeding on the radiation from the wreckage, draining all the power from the ship, restoring themselves. Within an hour, they'll be an army!" The Doctor stepped up when he finally got the indentation to open for them. It was also right at the time the lights started flickering again. "They're taking out the lights. Look at them, look at the Angels. Into the ship, now, quickly all of you!"
Renata grabbed Gabby and Amy, ushering them in first. They landed inside a more high tech corridor, now belonging to the actual ship.
"Don't take your eyes off the Angels," the Doctor instructed as sonicked the keypad. "Move, move, move!"
"The Angels, presumably they can jump up too?" Octavian wanted to know and the answer came in the form of the lights flickering out again.
"They're here," Renata once again ushered Gabby and Amy through the open door. Before she knew it, the Doctor had pushed her inside too.
"This whole place is a death trap!" Gabby shrieked after their only escape route (the door in which they'd come through) had shut.
"No, it's a time bomb," the Doctor corrected, completely missing her gaping look. "Well, it's a death trap and a time bomb. And now it's a dead end. Nobody panic."
"How is it that you're over 900 and you still don't know how to talk to people!?"
The Doctor genuinely shrugged without an answer. Renata laughed behind them, making him look back with offence (and a slight bemusement). As soon as she knew she was caught, Renata stopped and smiled apologetically.
"The secondary flight deck is over here," River rushed past them, 'accidentally' bumping Renata on the side. The Time Lady only blinked when her body stumbled to the left for a moment.
"OK. so we've basically run up the inside of a chimney, yeah?" A new thought had just crossed Amy's mind and she wasn't entirely happy that she'd been clever enough to think of it. " So what if the gravity fails?"
"I've thought about that," the Doctor mumbled as he hurried over to the controls. River was a bit too slow!
"And?"
"And we'll all plunge to our deaths. See. I've thought about it!" the Doctor hoped that was enough to make Amy stop asking those types of questions. "The security protocols are still live. There's no way to override them, it's impossible."
Renata walked up to him, resting her hand over his arm and giving him a specific look. "How impossible?" she asked him.
He just knew her too well. The word wasn't in his vocabulary. "Two minutes."
"There we are," she nodded, though her smile was cut short when they heard a hum from the engine's power going down, allowing them a way into a cavern.
"The hull is breached and the power's failing!" Octavian exclaimed asd the lights went out. The group yelped when they saw an Angel's hand sticking through the opening.
"Clerics, keep watching them," Octavian ordered the remaining soldiers as four Angels appeared after the lights went out again.
"Don't look at their eyes!" Renata quickly warned before they made the same mistake as Amy. "Anywhere else except the eyes!"
"I've isolated the lighting grid. They can't drain the power now," the Doctor informed them a moment later.
"Why do I sense a 'but' coming…?" Gabby asked, slowly looking at him.
"Well, there's only one way to open this door. I guess I'll need to route all the power in this section through the door control."
"Ah, there it is."
"Including the lights. All of them. I'll need to turn out the lights."
"How long for?" Octavian shot the Doctor a look.
"Fraction of a second, maybe longer. Maybe quite a bit longer."
"Maybe?"
The Doctor huffed. "I'm guessing. We're being attacked by statues in a crashed ship, there isn't a manual for this!"
"Doctor, calm down," Renata advised him before they wasted time on a senseless argument.
"Doctor, we lost the torches. We'll be in total darkness," Amy felt the need to remind them in hopes of motivating them to find a different solution.
"There's no other way," the Doctor apologized. He was already frantic trying to get them out of there in one piece. He literally had to be on 'fast forward' as Gabby liked to joke whenever she made remarks about his movements. "I'm sorry, I'm really sorry."
"Hey," Renata once again touched his arm. Her hand curled around it, gently squeezing it. "It's not on you. You're doing the best you can and if you need my help, just tell me what to do."
The Doctor smiled at her, relieved that she wasn't as frantic as he was. This was nowhere near what he intended on doing today. Five minutes was all they promised to Amy and then he would ship her and Gabby off somewhere nice and safe so that he could take Renata somewhere wonderful for a date. Their first date. He told her that's what they would do...and yet here they were inside a ship with pending deaths.
Renata got a glimpse of his thoughts and smiled warmly. She leaned over to give him a kiss on the lips. She meant to ease his concern over their date but he took it as motivation to get them out of there. A win, win, some would say. That date would hopefully involve lots of kisses.
River glared daggers at the two but Octavian yanked her away before she could accidentally ruin the moment.
"Dr Song, I've lost good Clerics today. You trust this man?"
River inwardly sighed. Yeah, she did despite what had happened. "I absolutely trust him."
"He's not some kind of madman then?"
River blinked, her eyes darting to the side, clearly trying to avoid the truthful answer. . It was the only time Gabby would ever give River a point.
"...I absolutely trust him."
Renata would also give her credit. She would've paused too. She let go of the Doctor's arm and smiled at him to go on.
Octavian pulled River just slightly closer to warn her in a much quieter voice, "I'm taking your word, because you're the only one who can manage these people. But that only works so long as they don't know who you are. I know that girl," he nodded over to Gabby who was watching the Doctor get back to work on the door. "I know what she nearly did to you. You cost me any more men, and I might just tell them. The Vortex Butterfly will not be so merciful again. Understood?"
River genuinely swallowed at that. No. She probably wouldn't. "Understood."
Octavian let her go and turned to his clerics. "Combat distance, ten feet. As soon as the lights go down, continuous fire. Full spread over the hostiles. Do not stop firing while the lights are out. Shot gun protocol, we don't have bullets to waste."
"Gabby, behind me," Renata reached over the girl, preferring to tuck her behind. "Amy?"
"Renée? I need you!" the Doctor exclaimed just as Renata had pulled Amy closer to them. "Spin the wheel clockwise four times!"
Renata nodded. "Amy, Gabby, stay close!"
"Ready!" the Doctor placed the sonic into the circuit.
"On my count then. God be with us all," Octavian took in a breath. "Three... two...one." The lights went out and the firing began.
"Turn!"
Renata turned the wheel as fast as she could. She could hear the mechanics squeaking as the door began to open up for them. "Gabby! Amy! Get in!"
The girls quickly slipped inside first.
"River-"
"I got it!" the woman said with a huff as she followed inside.
Slowly, the group trickled into the new, smaller corridor. Renata reached the next door first and with a whip of her sonic, she held it open for the rest.
"Go!" the Doctor arrived last but she shoved him inside first. "Renée!" He turned around only to crash into her. "Never mind!" He grinned after he caught her.
She shook her head at him and swatted his hands off her waist. "Go!" She turned him around so they could join the others in the flight deck.
Once they were through, Octavian put a device on the hatch lock to magnetize the door. As if the Angels could be trapped on the other side. "Nothing could turn that wheel now!"
"I'd try that again," Renata apologized as the wheel began to turn anyways.
He was horrified at the sight. "Dear God!"
"Ah, now you're getting it!" the Doctor called from the controls. They were all a mess, just his luck! "You've bought us time though, that's good. I am good with time."
Gabby felt compelled to make a comment about that but for the sake of the situation, she kept her mouth shut.
"Doctor!" Amy exclaimed when another door wheel spun to open."
"Seal that door. Seal it now!" Octavian ordered the clerics.
"We're surrounded!" River said just as the third door began to spin to open.
"Doctor, how long have we got?" Octavian hurried the man along with whatever plan he had in mind.
"Five minutes, max."
"Nine," Amy offhandedly said, making the Doctor glance at her. She didn't even realize she said it.
"Five," he repeated and she nodded.
"Five, right yeah."
"Why d'you say nine?"
"I didn't."
Renata studied the girl, curious as well but River got them moving again. "We need another way out of here!"
"There isn't one!" Octavian snapped.
"Yeah, there is, of course there is," the Doctor corrected. "This is a galaxy class ship, goes for years between planet-falls. So-" he snapped his fingers, "-what do they need?"
Renata smiled at him. "There we go." He snapped specifically at her. "I don't remember you being this clever back on Gallifrey."
The Doctor mocked offence with a little huff to go along with it. "I resent that!"
"What do they need…?" Gabby looked between the two with amusement. She really liked this new part of them now. Back then, or rather last year, they couldn't bring up their old memories together because the Doctor didn't know who Renata was. She was too scared to admit who she was. And now every now and then, if they were privy to the conversation, they got to catch little snippets of what the first incarnations of Renata and the Doctor were like. It sounded like Renata, who went by Zuriah before her Naming Ceremony, was a little bit more adventurous but still completely untrained in the department. And the Doctor sounded exactly the same. He was far too adventurous for his own good.
"Can we get in there?" Octavian asked, seeming to know what the Doctor meant, as did River.
"Well, it's a sealed unit, but they must have installed it somehow. This whole wall should slide up…" the Doctor moved towards a wall, taking out his sonic in the process. "There's clamps. Release the clamps!"
"What's through there?" asked Amy as she watched him use the sonic on those 'clamps' he mentioned. "What do they need?"
"They need to breathe," River stepped up beside her just as the door slid up to reveal a forest on the other side. At least, it gave off the impression of a forest with trees and grass.
"Wow!" Gabby gasped with a grin.
"It's an oxygen factory," Renata walked past her to take a closer look.
"It's a forest," Amy remarked.
"If you'd like," the Time Lady agreed. "But if we're really lucky it might just be our escape route."
"Eight."
River shot Amy a look, Renata was too far up ahead to have heard. "What did you say?"
"Nothing," Amy shrugged, once again missing the curious numbers she was saying.
"Is there another exit? Scan the architecture, we don't have time to get lost in there," the Doctor said to Octavian as the latter neared the forest.
"On it! Stay where you are until I've checked the Rad levels!"
"But there's actual trees in here...on a space ship," Gabby laughed. "Amy, come look!" The ginger didn't need to be told twice. She hurried along with Gabby to the ledge.
Renata had just stepped into the forest and chuckled. "If that's how you want to see it, but it's a lot more."
"Mhm," the Doctor agreed. "It's more than trees, way better than trees. You're going to love this. Treeborgs…" He moved to the closest tree and opened up a section of the peat moss to reveal circuitry underneath it. "Trees plus technology. Branches become cables, become sensors on the hull. A forest sucking in starlight, breathing out air. It even rains. There's a whole mini-climate. It is an eco-pod running through the heart of the ship. A forest in a bottle, on a spaceship, in a maze."
"Ha, it's like the Maze of the Salazais," Renata folded her arms over her chest. "Remember how you droned on and on about that place?"
The Doctor mocked a frown. "I did not drone. I explained to you what the maze was so that one day, when we went, you would know all about it."
"Sounds more like you were trying to impress me," she cocked her head to the side, smirking when his face went red.
That...may have been a possibility. It was during their early days together, like truly early for them. It was only just after they had confessed their feelings for each other. The Doctor had found out about several vegetation planets dedicated solely to farming. The Maze of Salazais promised fun in a connect-with-nature kind of way and while the Doctor loved the idea of going through a maze, Renata had not.
But she let him go on and on about the place. He seemed to know a lot about it, giving her details that no one would really bother to know. But of course he had. He always knew everything. She loved that about him. She would stare at him throughout his entire stories about the place, wondering how he was that smart and passionate about a place he hadn't even seen! Plus, she really did like it when he told her stories about places they would one day go to. He would smile in such a way, smirk at her...be all that smug that he was. She loved it. And him.
"Sounds to me, and looks like it to me, that I did," the Doctor now smirked. He caught that last train of thought. She rolled her eyes, refusing to say admit to it even though he already knew it.
"Can we move on please?" River impatiently called, only for Amy to agree with a curious number.
"Seven."
That made the Two Time Lords turn back to her. "Seven?" they repeated.
"Sorry, what?"
The Doctor zipped past Renata to come face to face with Amy. "You said seven."
"No. I didn't."
"Yes, you did," River nodded.
"Doctor! There's an exit, far end of the ship, into the Primary Flight Deck!" Octavian said as he got closer to them again.
"Good, that's where we need to go!"
"Plotting a safe path!"
The Doctor still studied Amy's face like there was something he couldn't quite see yet. He was sure that was the problem.
'Doctor? Excuse me. Hello, Doctor? Angel Bob here, sir.'
The Doctor reluctantly looked away from Amy and drifted to the command chair, plopping down to answer the call on the radio. 'Ah. there you are, Angel Bob. How's life? Sorry, bad subject.'
"Not like the Angel doesn't deserve it," Gabby muttered as Renata walked up beside her.
"Stay close," she murmured. Gabby nodded.
'The Angels are wondering what you hope to achieve.'
"Achieve? We're not achieving anything. We're just hanging," the Doctor said, thinking there was nothing truer than that right now. He didn't have a master plan, he was...winging it. "It's nice in here, consoles, comfy chairs, a forest. How's things with you?"
'The Angels are feasting, sir. Soon we will be able to absorb enough power to consume this vessel, this world, and all the stars and worlds beyond.'
"Well, we've got comfy chairs, did I mention?"
'We have no need of comfy chairs.'
The Doctor had a small laugh to himself. "I made him say comfy chairs!"
"Doctor," Renata lowered her gaze on him. "Joke when there's no one in danger please." She really wanted Gabby and Amy out of this place and far away from Weeping Angels.
Amy still laughed with something to say. "Six."
The Doctor stood up quickly, once again casting Amy a look. "Okay, well, enough chat. Here's what I want to know: what have you done to Amy?"
'There is something in her eye.'
"What's in her eye?"
'We are.'
It was Amy's turn to make faces. Why had the conversation steered towards her all of a sudden? "What's he talking about? Doctor, I'm five. I mean, five. Fine! I'm fine."
"You're counting," River said quietly.
"Counting?"
"For a while now," Renata agreed. "And you don't even seem to be aware of it."
"You did say ten earlier," Gabby chimed in, much to Amy's horror. "When we were running into the doors. Do you even remember that?"
Amy did not. Her terrified eyes landed on the Doctor. "Why is this happening?"
"I don't know…"
"Well, counting down to what?"
"...I don't know."
'We shall take her. We shall take all of you. We shall have dominion over all time and space.'
"Get a life, Bob!" the Doctor practically rolled his eyes as he sat down again, though he soon realized his choice of words had once again borderlined a joke. "Oops, sorry again. There's power on this ship, but nowhere near that much."
'With respect, sir, there is more power on this ship than you yet understand.'
Everyone jumped when a loud screeching noise filled the air.
"Dear God, what is it?" River shouted through it.
"They're back," Octavian returned from the forest with a heavy breath.
'It's hard to put in your terms, Dr Song, but as best I understand it, the Angels are laughing.'
"Laughing?" Renata frowned. "Angels don't laugh. What makes this occasion so special?"
"Because you haven't noticed yet. The Doctor and the Vortex Butterfly in the TARDIS haven't noticed."
Renata stiffened. "How do they know that name?"
The Doctor instantly rose from his chair as he wondered the same thing. But apart from that...he felt like the Angels were onto something, something he'd been neglecting to see for a while. "There's...there's something we've...been missing…" He slowly turned around to see a huge glowing white crack high up on the wall.
He dashed for it.
"What is that?" Gabby breathed in at the sight but Amy knew it very well. After all, she the same exact one…
"That's like the crack from my bedroom wall from when I was a little girl!"
"Wait, that's the crack you were talking about!?" Gabby looked at Renata, the Time Lady much awed like them.
"OK, enough, we're moving out!" Octavian ordered the group and this time River agreed.
"Doctor, we need to go!"
"Sure, fine," he said without actually moving towards them. His feet were still closing in on the crack and once he was close enough, he pulled out his sonic to get a reading.
"What are you doing?" River demanded, annoyed he was blatantly ignoring her. Not surprising but still annoying each time.
"Right with you!"
"We're not leaving without you!"
"Actually, you are," the Doctor glanced over his shoulder. "Bishop?"
"Gabby, Amy, go along with them," Renata moved the girls towards the clerics.
"No, wait, but that's the same crack from my bedroom!" Amy tried to stay with them but Renata moved her along again.
"We'll figure it out, I promise! Go! River, you too!"
"I—"
"Know, yes, sorry," Renata sighed at the woman. "Please just take them and keep them safe. Please."
River turned away from her and grabbed Amy's arm, bringing her towards the forest. Gabby looked back at the Time Lords. Renata nodded to her to go along with the others. With a sigh, she hurried to catch up.
"You should have gone with them, Renée," the Doctor said once they were on their own.
"Oh, no," Renata turned to the crack. "I want to know how the Angels know about this crack and…" she swallowed hard, "...about the Vortex Butterfly."
She didn't really like that name anymore, not since it was born out of blood-rage. Gabby had tried turning it into something more cheerful at her art unveilment but Renata didn't feel like it'd done much. According to Rose Tyler, there were many worlds where the Vortex Butterfly was known for being a dangerous creature, a volatile one and Renata wasn't interested in following in her doppelganger's footsteps. She wanted to forget about the name; leave it in dust after regenerating from the incarnation it was born in.
So, how did the Angels know about that?
"Oh, that's bad," the Doctor pulled her out of her thoughts. His sonic had picked up a reading that truly scared him. "Ah, that's extremely very not good." He pressed his ear to the wall but pulled back when he heard Renata's gasp. Turning around, he saw they were surrounded by Angels. "Do not blink!"
"Yeah, got that!" She stuck her hand out for him to take. He grabbed it and helped her climb over the console to pass the Angels. He climbed after her as fast as he could and just as they made a beeline for the forest, the Doctor felt something grab him by the collar of his jacket.
"Doctor!" Renata whirled around to see him in the predicament. Of course.
~ 0 ~
"Should we really get that far away from them?" Gabby bothered Octavian with the same question the more they walked through the forest. Despite the clerics forming a circle around her, Amy and River, Gabby had moved up to keep asking.
She only stopped when River called Amy. Looking back, she could see why. Amy had gone to an extreme shade of pale. She was slowing down too, looking very sick.
~ 0 ~
"It didn't snap my neck, hooray!" the Doctor said solely for Renata's sake. He couldn't decide if she was scared or if she was mad that he tried to make a joke right now.
"They're worshiping that stupid crack," Renata said. "It's like...you're number two on the list."
"Well, that's frankly offensive—"
Renata glowered at him. "Shut up!"
The Doctor decided to switch gears for the moment. He tilted his head up at the Angel holding him. "Is that the power that brought you here? That's pure time energy, you can't feed on that. That's the power, that's the fire at the end of the universe. I'll tell you something else…"
"Ah!" Renata rocked on her feet when the ground grumbled underneath.
"Ha! Never let me talk!" the Doctor slipped out of his jacket and ran from the place with Renata.
~ 0 ~
Amy had curled up over a moss-covered rock, no longer able to walk on her own. She felt like pudding, if that was a real description. One more step and she might discombobulate on the spot.
"Amy, what's wrong?" River truly tried finding the reason behind it but once Amy went with 'four' she knew she wouldn't be able to just see the problem.
"Med-scanner, now!"
"Dr Song, we can't stay here, we've got to keep moving," Octavian said.
"Have you taken a look at her?" Gabby gestured to their friend on the rock. "She can't even walk!"
"Our mission is to make this wreckage safe and neutralize the Angels," Octavian raised his voice seeing that River was so calmly using the scanner on Amy like time wasn't of the essence. "Until that is achieved…"
"Father Octavian, when the Doctor is in the room, your only mission is to keep him alive long enough to get everyone else home," River all but snapped at him.
"And Renata," Gabby added because it was true and to see River's reaction to that truth. Unsurprisingly, the woman's jaw tightened. She went on like nothing had interrupted her in the first place.
"And trust me. It's not easy. Now, if he's dead back there, I'll never forgive myself, and if he's alive, I'll never forgive him. And...Doctor, you're standing right behind me, aren't you?"
"Oh, yeah," the Doctor almost laughed at her. Renata might have subconsciously held his hand tighter.
On the one hand, she was happy to see that someone else knew how important the Doctor was and much more, that they would want to make sure he was safe. It's just something about the fact that this other person was River made her feel a little...uneasy.
River turned around to him, her eyes only locking onto the man. "I hate you!"
"You don't!" the Doctor helped Renata hop off the small ledge and together hurried to Amy. "Oh, Bishop, the Angels are in the forest."
"We need visual contact on every line of approach," Octavian ordered the other clerics.
"How did you get past them?" River asked the Doctor while he checked Amy over.
"Found a crack in the wall and told them it was the end of the universe."
"And what was it?" Gabby stepped closer to them. Hopefully they could figure out what was wrong with Amy and help her.
"The end of the universe. Let's have a look then!" the Doctor grabbed the med-scanner from River's hands.
"So. what's wrong with me?" Amy's voice was like a child's.
"Nothing. you're fine," River said just before the Doctor said the complete opposite.
"Everything, you're dying!"
"Doctor, please," River frowned.
"Yes, you're right, if we lie to her, she'll get all better!"
Renata grabbed the Doctor's arm and gently turned him to her. "I think what River means to say is that we shouldn't be blunt about it. Don't lie, but don't be harsh."
"Yeah, alright," the Doctor agreed. It did sound better how she said it. What River tried to do was completely gloss over the truth by putting a nice lie over it. He didn't like that one bit. It wouldn't help Amy!
River rolled her eyes at Renata. Of course the woman would make it so that the words sounded better in her mouth. It was ridiculous sometimes!
"So what's wrong with Amy?" Gabby got them back on track with her question.
"Something's in her eye…" the Doctor remembered Angel Bob's words. "What does that mean? Doesn't mean anything…"
"Doctor…" Amy called.
"Busy!"
"Scared!"
Renata knelt down beside Amy and passed a hand over her hair. "We'll do anything we can to help you, don't worry. You just relax, okay? We're here."
Amy nodded. She found comfort in Renata's touch. She stroked her hair like a Mum would. Funny, Amy didn't quite remember if her Mum used to do that to her.
The Doctor softly smiled at Renata. It seemed like no matter what incarnation of hers she was in, she would always have the trait of a Mother. He saw it plain as day with Gabby and Donna last year. She always made sure they had their breakfast and a lovely dinner to end the day. If they were hurt, she was right at their side trying to help them.
Now she did the same with Amy. The girl was so eager to see the world that she didn't quite have the handle on it yet. She treated things as a game and Renata wanted to make sure that she understood the real dangers of it. She didn't scold, she taught. And along the way, she started treating Amy like another child. She always made sure Amy was safe, whether she would tuck the girl behind her or push her into a room first because danger was lurking behind them.
And it was just in the way Renata spoke too. She always spoke to the girls in a motherly tone, ushering them away and teaching them what she knew. She encouraged them to try and be clever to figure things out on their own. She gave them the space to grow. It was a wonderful sight seeing as this was how the Doctor met her in the first place. Once upon a time, Zuriah ran a foundation on Gallifrey meant to teach and help anyone who needed it, whether young or old. Centuries later, Renata continued.
He loved it and her.
"Doctor?" River called to the man when she realized he was just staring at Renata. She wasn't doing much, why was he wasting time on her!? There's a double meaning for you. She briefly smirked, silently laughing at her own joke.
The Doctor shook his head and got back to the urgent matter. "Right, right, what happened? She stared at the Angel, she looked into the eyes of an angel for too long…" He started pacing back and forth, ignoring the warning calls of the clerics that Angels were nearing. He slapped his face for good measure, not wanting to lose track of his thoughts. "Come on, come on, wakey, wakey! She watched an Angel climb out of the screen. She stared at the Angel and…and…"
"The image of an Angel is an Angel," Gabby remembered the book. "That's what was in the book."
The Doctor pointed at her, nodding in agreement. "A living image in a human mind. We stare at them to stop them getting closer, we don't even blink and that's exactly what they want, cos as long as our eyes are open, they can climb inside. There's an Angel in her mind."
"Three," Amy struggled to speak. "Doctor, it's coming. I can feel it. I'm going to die!"
"No, no, you're not," Renata shushed her. "There has to be a solution."
"Now counting, what's that about?" the Doctor realized that was a bit dramatic even for the Angels. He used the radio again. "Bob, why are they making her count?"
'To make her afraid, sir.'
"OK. but why. what for?"
'For fun, sir.'
Renata gasped in outrage while the Doctor threw the radio to the side.
"Doctor, what's happening to me? Explain!" Amy would've flapped her hand if she could move her arm. She felt so tired.
The Doctor focused on her again and not on the stupid Angels for a moment. "Inside your head, in the vision centers of your brain, there's an Angel. It's like there's a screen, a virtual screen inside your mind, and the Angel is climbing out of it, and it's coming to shut you off."
"Then what do I do?"
"If it was a real screen, what would we do, we'd pull the plug. but we can't just knock her out, the Angel would take over!"
"Then what? Quickly!" River waved her scanner in the air. Time was running out!
"We've got to shut down the vision centers of her brain. We've got to pull the plug, starve the Angel."
"Doctor, she's got seconds."
"How would you starve your lungs?"
"Stop breathing of course," Renata said on instinct before it hit her. "Oh, the main function of lungs is to breathe. The main function of the eyes is to see so…"
The Doctor snapped his fingers at her. "Amy, close your eyes!"
Amy looked at them both like they were crazy. "No, no, I don't want to."
"Good, because that's not you, that's the Angel inside you, it's afraid! Do it! Close your eyes!"
Amy hesitated. Renata nodded encouragingly at her. "Trust us please."
Amy scrunched her face as she closed her eyes. Almost immediately River saw the progress Amy's body made in seconds.
"Ha! You did it! You did it!" she beamed at the Doctor.
"Sir? Two more incoming!" A cleric exclaimed, followed by another.
"Three more over here!"
"Still weak, dangerous to move her," River told the Doctor as she put away the scanner.
Amy found the energy to sit up. "So, can I open my eyes now?"
"Amy, listen to me. If you open your eyes now for more than a second, you will die," the Doctor followed what Renata suggested earlier. He wouldn't be brash, but he would be honest. "The Angel is still inside you. We haven't stopped it, we've just sort of...paused it. You've used up your countdown. You cannot open your eyes."
"Doctor, Renata, we're too exposed here. We have to move on," Octavian returned to the group.
"We're exposed everywhere, and Amy can't move, and anyway, that's not the plan!"
"We have a plan!" Gabby clapped cheerfully.
"I don't know yet, I haven't finished talking," the Doctor said, smiling at her when her hands dropped to her sides in disappointment.
Still, he did have a somewhat plan. He pointed at Octavian, letting him know he was up first on the plan. "Right! Father, you and your Clerics will stay here, look after Amy while the rest of us go to the Primary Deck."
"Doctor, I'm going to stay with Amy too," Renata said, truly cutting his train of thought off. He whirled to her, mouth open to argue why that couldn't happen when she beat him to it. "I can't let her stay by herself with all these soldiers. I trust that they can protect her but I'd rather have a hand in it myself too."
"Well, if Ren stays so will I," Gabby volunteered only for Renata to shake her head.
"No, you go with the Doctor. You'd be safer with him."
"Renée…" the Doctor did not like this plan one bit. His hearts literally hurt with it. He didn't know that was possible but Renata made him see it. "I can't leave you…" They hadn't been apart ever since she regenerated and found him on Earth while he dealt with the Master.
"Just for a bit," she smiled at him. "The quicker you go, the quicker we'll be done with it."
"Doctor, we have to go," River was all for the idea and because Gabby saw her so gleeful, she knew she had to go along too. It was clear that River would seize any chance to be alone with the Doctor and while Renata was passive aggressive, she was not. If River lived to make Renata's life miserable, then Gabby vowed to make River's life miserable as well. An eye for an eye.
"Go," Renata motioned the Doctor to follow River. "And look after Gabriella please."
The Doctor pointed at her. "Renata...I will be back for you. I swear."
"Of course you will be," Renata nodded. "Because if you're not, I'll be very crossed."
The Doctor could only half smile at her joke. He walked over to her and pulled her into a kiss, one that she truly hadn't seen coming but she would definitely welcome anytime. She followed his lips in a sweet kiss, smiling against his lips when she felt his fingers trace her cheek.
"I'll be back for you as fast as possible," the Doctor promised her. Every part of his body was screaming at him not to leave her behind. What was he thinking!? She could get hurt out here and he would be too far away to just run back for her. It wasn't a good idea, it wasn't a good idea at all…
"Go," Renata urged him, though a good part of her felt like pulling him back to keep kissing. The idea brought a tinge of red over her face.
The Doctor backtracked away from her, his finger pointing at her, assuring that he would be back for her.
"We'll run there," Gabby said to ease the Doctor's worries. He turned around, half-smiling at her, thanking her for trying.
River glared at the girl but not like she was doing to Renata. Her eyes blazed with raw anger. Once again making things about her!
"Alright!" the Doctor clapped his hands together, gaining everyone's attention. "If anything happens to these two women, I'll hold each of you personally responsible, twice. And I am much less kind than my dear Renée."
"Do you even know where the Primary Flight Deck is?" River asked, flashing a smirk at Renata when she thought to add, "It could take a while of searching...just us…"
Renata preferred to turn back to Amy.
"Yeah, with me," Gabby then added. "I promise to hold onto your hand so you won't get lost."
River scowled at her. "You touch me—"
"It's this way!" the Doctor said after licking his finger to hold it up in the air. "About a quarter mile straight ahead."
"Please wash your hands when you can," Renata sighed. It truly was a part of him that would never leave no matter what incarnation he was in.
"Doctor, I'm coming with you. My Clerics can look after Miss Renata and Miss Pond," Octavian said as he joined them. "These are my best men, they'd lay down their lives in her protection."
The Doctor all but scoffed, wincing when he heard Renata in his mind telling him to be polite. Octavian was trying to help them. Eventually, they started on their trip and like Gabby had said, they almost ran.
"It's alright Amy," Renata grabbed one of her hands once they were alone. "I won't let you out of my sight."
"Well, I wouldn't mind it if you kept an eye on the Angels," Amy half-joked.
"Right, but my other eye will always be on you...you and Gabby."
Amy paused fidgeting for a moment as she worked through her thoughts. "Renata, did you have children before?" She felt Renata's hand over her suddenly squeeze. Tricky question, Amy assumed.
"Why-why would you ask?"
"Because you always act like one. I'm twenty-one. Gabby's twenty. We're not kids anymore."
"Oh Amy, I'm 757. To me, every human is a child." Renata smiled nostalgically as she recalled making the same statement to Gabby and Donna at one point.
"Well, the Doctor doesn't really act like that."
"That's cos the Doctor's still technically a child himself."
'I heard that,' the Doctor suddenly snapped, making Renata wince.
"The point is Amy, yes, I did almost have a baby at one point in my life but that's not the reason I act all...motherly. I've always liked taking care of people. I'm sorry if that's annoying."
"No, I mean...sometimes it is but I never really had a Mum or anything...it's kind of nice," Amy smiled. She wondered what type of Mother her own would've been like if she was still around.
"Well, right now I'm going to be super motherly," Renata squeezed Amy's hand. "None of these Angels are going to be touching you. Not under my watch." She heard a crunching noise and looked to the side as someone emerged.
It was the Doctor. And Renata swore she saw something else behind him, though. She carefully pulled her hand off Amy's and rose to her feet. He offered her a smile, a kind one. But it was also a bit sad.
He was wearing his jacket and Renata knew this was impossible. The Angels had kept that.
"What are you…?"
"Trust me," he whispered, pressing a kiss to her cheek as he walked over to Amy. He took her hands, startling Amy until he spoke up, "Amy. you need to start trusting me, it's never been more important."
"But you don't always tell me the truth." Amy wondered if he truly came back just to tell her this nonsense. He was wasting time!
"If I always told you the truth, I wouldn't need you to trust me."
"Doctor, the crack in my wall, how can it be here?"
"I don't know yet, but I'm working it out. Now, listen. Remember what I told you when you were seven?"
"What did you tell me?"
The Doctor rested his forehead against Amy's, barely managing to conceal his urgency from her and that was even with her eyes closed. "No, no... That's not the point. You have to remember."
Renata watched him gingerly leave a kiss on the girl's forehead. "What are you up to?" she demanded as he straightened up.
He only offered her a small smile before rushing off again.
~ 0 ~
Octavian led the group down the forest but was gaining a bit with the Doctor being mor distracted on the handheld scanner than walking.
"What are you doing?" Gabby came up beside him, trying to peer over to see what the scanner was 'scanning' now.
"Readings from a crack in a wall."
"The one here?"
He nodded. He kept working it until River came on his other side with more questions.
"How can a crack in the wall be the end of the universe?"
"Here's what I think. One day there'll be a very big bang, so big every moment in history - past and future - will crack."
"Is that possible?" Gabby made a face.
"Everything's possible," River sighed as she kept the 'around the Doctor' part to herself.
Gabby shot her a look. "You know something about that, then? Seeing as you're the from the future."
River rolled her eyes at the girl. "Contrary to your beliefs, not everything is my fault Gabby."
"And how would we know that? Where are you from, River? Who are you? How do we know you're not dangerous to us?"
River scowled, getting that familiar urge to smack Gabby for always being so...annoying. Renata was just...a whole level of pain and misery to her life but Gabby Gonzalez was plain annoying. She was a right danger when she wanted to be but she was mostly annoying, always trying to prop Renata up to make her look bad. Gabby had this endless belief that Renata was the kindest person alive. She was so blinded by Renata and all that energy around them that it was impossible for Gabby to ever see the truth. On some level, River could find it in her to pity Gabby...but that was on rare moments. Every other moment was filled with annoyance and hatred.
"Miss Gonzalez, I can guarantee your safety around Dr. Song" Octavian said as he purposely walked slower so the group could catch up. River shot a glare to his back. "Dr Song is in my personal custody. I released her from the Stormcage Containment Facility four days ago and I am legally responsible for her until she has accomplished her mission and earned her pardon. The pardon means she won't hurt anyone."
River saw him look over his shoulder at her, warning her not to try anything. She seethed with anger.
"You were in Stormcage?" the Doctor now eyed her with even more hesitance about her.
"Prison, that's a prison," Gabby pointed. "Ren told me about that place. It's one of the Shadow Proclamation's prisons. You were in prison?"
River pursed her lips. Oh, now Gabby would have a field day comparing her to Mother Hen Renata.
She caught a break when the scanner in the Doctor's hand beeped. "What? What is that?"
The Doctor forgot all about prison talks now that he had the readings. "The date! The date of the explosion where the crack begins!"
"And for those of us who can't read the base code of the universe?"
June 26, 2010 flashed across the screen, the very night he had picked Amy up.
The group soon reached the outside of the primary flight deck. Octavian fervently worked to try to get it open for them.
"Hurry up and open it, time's running out!" River impatiently called from behind, unknowingly sparking an idea in the Doctor's head.
"What? What did you say? Time's running out, is that what you said?"
"I just meant—"
"I know what you meant. hush! But what if it could?"
"Doctor, you're not making sense!" Gabby sighed. If Renata was around, she would've already made him go back to talking English.
"Time. What if time could run out?"
'Got it!" Octavian had found a way into the deck.
~ 0 ~
Renata was no longer sitting with Amy. She was more interested in the soldiers facing the incoming Angels. They were messing with the lights of the forest, making them flicker to advance.
"Weapons primed," the lead cleric, Marco, had the others spread out closer to the trees. "Combat distance five feet. Wait for it!"
"What is it!?" Amy jumped from the rock, landing a bit wobbly on her feet. "What's happening, just tell me!"
"Amy, you keep those eyes closed," Renata hurried to the girl and stood in front of her. "And the rest of you, please be wise. The Angels are coming full force."
A bright light flashed through the trees, confusing everyone.
"The ship's not on fire. Is it?" Marco asked the others.
"It can't be. The compressors would have taken care of it," one of the clerics responded. "Marco, the Angels have gone. Where'd they go?"
Renata made a face. That...was not how it worked.
"This side's clear too, sir!" another cleric exclaimed from the other side.
"The Angels have gone?" Amy asked, rightfully puzzled.
Marco took a look at his own scanner to see what had happened. "There's still movement out there, but away from us now. It's like they're running."
"Running from what?" Amy swallowed hard. What could the Angels be afraid of to make them want to run?
Renata suspected it had to do with the crack they found earlier.
"Phillip, Crispin, need to get a closer look at that," Marco gave the order and watched the two clerics head towards the light.
"No, wait," Renata tried going after them but Marco grabbed her arm. "Look, something's not right here. That light is dangerous."
But Marco still wouldn't let her go. They waited for the two clerics to report back but minutes passed in silence.
"Okay, call them back," Renata ordered Marco as she finally yanked her arm out of his hand. "It's been five minutes and they haven't said anything."
Marco raised his radio but the light suddenly shined brighter than before. He, Renata and the remaining clerics had to shield their eyes.
"What's going on?" Amy could see that something had brightened up through her closed her lids.
"Amy, eyes shut!" Renata snapped. She didn't know if the same crack was coming for them but either way, it was devouring the forest.
Marco took another look at his scanner. "It's like, I don't know...a curtain of energy, sort of shifting. Makes you feel weird, sick."
"And you think it scared the Angels?" Amy wondered.
"What could scare those things?" asked one of the clerics.
Renata knew, or at least she had barely discovered one. "The crack…" she whispered. The light blinded them for another few seconds, fading away to reveal the same crack shining in the air again. "How does it keep following us?"
"What? What is?" Amy reached out a hand until she felt Renata's dress. She latched onto the Time Lady's arm. "Renata!"
"Don't worry Amy, it's fine. I'm here!" Renata held the girl's hand but Amy shook her head.
"Please don't lie! You're not the Doctor, you don't do the same things. You want to be like a Mum, then don't lie. What is it?"
Renata whipped out her sonic to hopefully catch a reading from the crack without having to get close to it. Sure enough, the sonic whirred with the familiar crack in its presence. Even as Renata took a look at the readings, she knew it didn't make sense. Time was all screwed up on it. Why would Time be messed up?
"Renata, please!" Amy continued to insist.
Renata sighed. No, she didn't want to lie again. She had lied for so many years, so many centuries, that she never wanted to say another lie again. The crack was the same as the one in Amy's bedroom, she had a right to know about it. Especially if it had been messing with her life.
Her Mum.
"Okay Amy," Renata turned to her, cradling her head. "Listen to me, it's the same crack that we saw earlier."
"The one that looked like the one in my bedroom?"
"Yes. I don't know how but it is."
"...I want to see it." If it was truly the same crack, Amy felt like she needed to see it. It didn't make sense how it was following them but she needed to see it to believe it.
"Amy…" Renata let go of Amy's head. "You can't."
"The Doctor said I couldn't open my eyes for more than a second. That means I still got a bit of a countdown left."
"Amy, what would be the point? Do you not trust me?"
"Of course I do but...Renata, I need to see it," Amy found her hand again and squeezed it. "Please?"
Renata sighed and looked at the crack. "Half a second, you got that?" Amy nodded quickly. "No more than that!"
"I know, I know," Amy felt Renata turn her in the direction of the crack.
"Ma'am, I don't think it's a good idea," Marco said but Renata waved him off.
"She has a right to." Renata steadied Amy and hoped to God that she wouldn't regret this. "Alright Amy, ready?"
"Aha," Amy nervously licked her lips. "Ready."
"Okay. One...two...three!"
Amy opened her eyes to see the crack in the air. Her mouth fell open. It was the same crack as the one in her bedroom.
A/N:
I had to cut these chapters one more time because they were just too dang long! Promise there's just one more chapter and then we move onto the next episode xD.
P.S As always, I have a tumblr account dedicated to my fanfic works! It's a place where anyone can comment about a story or even just talk to me! I often drop aesthetic work belonging to my stories too! Feel free to check it out, my URL is "saiilorstars"
My tardiness in updating is terrible and will probably continue to be terrible. I posted on the fics that I last updated with the news that I was taking an indefinite hiatus from updating because of my course load and work. Tonight I have miraculously gotten ahead of some work but next week I'll be back on my drowning schedule so updating will no doubt be spotty again. So sorry about it but I literally barely have time to do my own things, it's sad really. You guys have no idea how nice it was to actually open this site again and see my drafts waiting for me. Really miss that.
For the Reviews:
The Time Lord Oracle: I'm gonna be honest with you, I did not like River at all in the show. I think you're completely right with the flirty and domineering thing; I just always thought her "origins" were so unnecessary and, I don't know, weird to have paired her up with the Doctor. But I've tried making her different in each of my DW fics to expand her character more. Her story's definitely different in this one! ;)
smilin steph: I know, they're hilarious to write. One is such a child and the other's just so uptight. It's ground zero for chaos xD
I love reneta and doctors inner conversations so much it alwjays makes me laugh the little side comment to eachother
the . apple .seed: Thanks!