Chapter Twenty Four:
Scarlett shifted uncomfortably from her seat on the TARDIS stairs as she kept a tight grip on her poncho. It was freezing in the sentient machine, and there were already several icicles scattered in her hair, casting a sharp contrast against her dark locks. Amy was sat next to her, staring at her two favourite boys lying unconscious on the TARDIS floor.
They had spoken for a little while at first in an attempt to calm each other down but now they had nothing left to say. They both knew that if one of them spoke it would just be to voice their fears. And neither of them was ready to do that just yet.
"Poor ladies," the Dream Lord sang as he appeared to their right. Neither girl flinched. "He always leaves you, doesn't he? Alone in the dark. Never apologises."
Scarlett chose to ignore him. Maybe if he got bored, he would leave. Amy disagreed.
"He doesn't have to," she said fiercely as she stood.
"That's good, because he never will. And now he's left you with me. Spooky old, not-to-be-trusted me," He disappeared, only to show up again in the TARDIS jumpseat, dressed in a robe that showed far too much skin for Scarlett's liking. "Anything could happen."
"God, I might vomit," Scarlett muttered underneath her breath.
"Ah, I can see why he keeps you around," the Dream Lord said sarcastically, "So attractive. So classy."
"Says the man in the bathrobe," she retorted.
"Who are you?" Amy spoke up, placing a hand on Scarlett's arm briefly to both placate her and reassure her. "And what do you want? The Doctor knows you, but he's not telling me who you are. And he always does. Takes him a while sometimes, but he tells me," Scarlett frowned slightly as she realised she wasn't included in her friend's spiel, "So you're something different."
"Oh, is that who you think you are?" The Dream Lord countered, "The one he trusts?"
"Actually, yes."
"The one girl in the universe to whom the Doctor tells everything?" He tried again.
Amy stood and took what could only be described as a threatening step forward.
"Yes."
Scarlett's frown deepened. She was there, right? They could see her? Or was she just background noise to them? To Amy?
"His main girl?" The Dream Lord continued. He knew her answer, of course. He just wanted to hear her say it. "The one he'd choose over all the rest? His best friend?"
Amy's tone was sharp. "Exactly."
The Dream Lord nodded, feigning interest before he jerked his head in Scarlett's direction. "Oh, I see. So what's she then? Scotch Mist?"
Amy turned then, her eyes widening in both surprise and fear. It was almost as if she had forgotten that her real best friend had been standing beside her the entire time. Maybe she had.
"Scar, I –"
"Don't," the brunette said quietly with a shake of her head. "It doesn't matter."
Amy opened her mouth to speak but she didn't get the chance. Scarlett had already left the console room in an attempt to clear her head. Or maybe it was to just get away from Amy. She wasn't sure. Either way, she knew she needed some time to herself.
Her eyes stung as she padded down the hallways that never seemed to really end. Not only had Amy basically implied that the Doctor preferred the ginger to herself, but she had also said she was his best friend. So what did that make her? The Doctor was her best friend, Rory was her soon-to-be husband and she was what? An acquaintance? An inconvenience? Someone Amy just felt sorry for?
She knew that the boys would be okay. They were unconscious, sure, but she knew that Rory's fiancé and the Doctor's "best friend" would ensure that they were warm enough and comfortable enough to get through their version of reality.
In the other room, the Dream Lord was just finishing up with Amy. "They'll listen to you," he said. "It's you they're waiting for. Amy's men. Amy's choice."
Scarlett never did make it to her bedroom.
Amy gasped as she lay in her future child's bedroom in Upper Leadworth. Her hand covered her mouth in shock as her husband discarded of his recently cut hair and pair of scissors. He had done that for her.
"I was starting to like it," she whispered in shock.
Rory's next words – which were presumably going to be full of "Are you absolutely kidding me?" – were cut off by a loud squeaking noise, followed by a soft thump. The pair looked up, startled, to find the Doctor climbing in from outside through their window, a slowly waking up Scarlett lying on the floor just in front of them.
"Oh, did you really have to just chuck me down like a sack of potatoes?" Scarlett snapped, rubbing her back as she stumbled to her feet.
"Well, I'm sorry but in case you haven't noticed, we were being chased by a horde of angry pensioners!" the Doctor retorted as he stumbled up from his not-so-smooth landing.
Scarlett rolled her eyes. Survive now, bicker later, she decided.
Amy's sad gaze then turned to Scarlett, who expertly avoided her eyes. Luckily, Rory jumped in then to save an awkward encounter that he never knew was brewing.
"What are we going to do?" he asked.
"I don't know," the Doctor answered honestly. "I thought the freezing TARDIS was real but now I'm not so sure."
Nobody had time to voice their own opinions as their thoughts were cut off by a loud gasp. Turning, they saw Amy clutching her stomach in fear. "I think the baby's starting."
"Honestly?" Rory asked, his eyes widening. All Scarlett could think of was the terrible, terrible timing.
"Would I make it up at a time like this?!" the ginger snapped through the pain.
"Well, you do have a history of…" Rory paused as his wife glared at him before smartly choosing to change his words. "…being very lovely."
If Scarlett was in a good mood, she would have laughed. Instead, she chose to change the subject back to the matter at hand.
"Why are they so desperate to kill us?" Scarlett asked as Amy let out another painful cry.
"They're scared," the Doctor answered simply. "Fear generates savagery."
"Well, I'm scared and you don't see me harbouring eyes in my mouth!" the brunette yelled back, just as a garden ornament was thrown through the window, narrowly missing her body. She rolled her eyes, turning to look out the window at their pursuers. Rory had the same idea.
Unfortunately, though, it was a bad one.
It all seemed to happen so fast; one minute she was yelling, then she was standing beside one of her best friends just looking out of a bloody window, and the next she was in pain. It was a horrible pain that seemed to radiate straight from her head to her toes. She stumbled back at the sharp jolt in her stomach and fell to the ground, the Leadworth boy just beside her.
The Doctor reacted as quickly as he could, choosing to throw a lamp at Mrs Poggit before turning to survey the scene.
"Rory!" Amy cried out. "Scarlett!"
The Doctor remained frozen in his place, his eyes wide but never wandering.
Scarlett reached out as both she and her pseudo-brother began to dissolve, holding on to his hand as they reached their ends together. Scarlett had been so sure that the Leadworth dream was the fake one. But the pain. The pain. It made her think otherwise.
"I'm not ready," Rory cried.
"Stay," Amy said, her eyes unblinking as she gazed at her husband and best friend who were slowly dying in front of her; their heartbeats slowing, their bodies dissolving.
"Look after our baby," said Rory as the grip on Scarlett's hand loosened.
"No," Amy whispered in disbelief, the fear crushing her heart. Her baby was no longer coming.
"T-Tell my family –" Scarlett whimpered desperately.
She never did get to finish her sentence.
"No!" Amy repeated as she clawed at the dust in front of her. "Come back!"
The Doctor opened his mouth before closing it again. There really was nothing he could say to make things any better.
"Save him," Amy said as she looked up at the Time Lord, the tears still flowing from her eyes. "Save her. You save everyone. You always do. It's what you do."
"Not always," he replied, his own eyes beginning to swim with tears.
"Then what is the point of you?" the ginger snapped harshly. With one last look at the remains of her family, she stood up – with the aid of a cabinet – having already made up her mind for sure. The Doctor made to help her but retracted his hands quickly. He couldn't bring himself to touch her.
"This is the dream," Amy nodded to herself. "Definitely, this one. Now, if we die here, we wake up, yeah?"
The Doctor nodded slowly. He had started to believe that, too. "Unless we just die."
Amy shrugged, the tears still gathering in her eyes, but no longer falling. "Either way, this is my only chance of seeing them again. This is the dream."
"How do you know?" the Doctor asked softly.
Amy shook her head, letting out a bitter laugh. "Because if this is real life, I don't want it." She shoved past the Doctor then, making her way to the door. Her hand gripped the handle before she turned back to look at the only friend she had left.
"I don't want it."
A/N: I know this is shorter than usual, but I really just wanted to get a chapter uploaded this week. Long story short, I've been busy. This is my first GCSE year and while I'm certain that I failed my maths, I'll try not to think about it. I apologise for the long wait but I'm extremely grateful to all of you who keep following, favouriting, or reviewing.
I'd also like to say a big, big thank you to PaleMoonlitAngel061 for adding me to their community. I'm sorry it took me so long to notice!
Hail HYDRA/Stay fabulous. Xx