Gwyn's POV
I'm relieved and nervous to see that the Tardis is still there in the alley. I tug on the edge of my jacket and bite my lip, forcing myself up to the door. I give a quick glance at Uncle Jack, dressed in his usual World War II outfit, his hands in his coat pockets, his face stern and encouraging. It's the face he makes when he wants me to choose something by myself; he would set in a stern but impassive expression, and it's comforting because it reminds me no matter what my decision is mine alone and he will support me either way. I turn my gaze to Tom and his face is one of calm comfort, a small grin of encouragement and excitement. I turn back to face the Tardis and shakily reach out and knock on the door. I fiddle with the ends of my ponytail as the door swings opens. The Doctor is standing there, his mouth open and eyes wide.
"I was hoping we could talk. I want to…" I stutter as I pull my arms around myself and clutch my jacket. "I want to apologize for some of my earlier words."
It takes the Doctor a moment before shaking out of his shock and ushering us into the Tardis. The warm trill of its presence in my head comforts me. I notice the Doctor's two companions staring at me coldly from the control landing. Fixing my posture, I stand tall as we stare each other off. Tom and Uncle Jack quietly enter the Tardis behind me.
"Let's go somewhere private maybe?" The Doctor rushes me deeper into the Tardis. I can't think over the pounding of my hearts. We finally stop at a white door with a rose carefully painted on it. I look around the hallway and notice that Tom and Uncle Jack must have stayed in the control room.
"This…was Rose's room. The Tardis recently redecorated, well - not so recently but it was more recent than let's say since Rose travelling but that's beside the point. I couldn't bring myself to get rid of it, well, not like the Tardis would let me anyway," the Doctor rambles. I slowly turn the knob and open the door to my mother's old room. It's decorated like a teenager's: pink everywhere and clothes strewn about. It is so different from my mother's room back when I was growing up. I trudge my way to sit on the edge of the bed. I pick up a picture of my mother; she looked so different. It was her, Uncle Jack and who I can guess was Mum's first Doctor. She described him well in her tales.
"That's from when your Mum first started travelling with me…I was a very different man then," the Doctor explains, still standing in the doorway. He closes the door behind him and we just wait there in silence for awhile, neither one of us knowing how to start the awkward conversation.
"I'm sorry," I finally mumble. The Doctor fidgets in his spot.
"For what? You were right, I did abandon you. It's my fault your mother was taken."
I look up from the photo.
"No, I'm sorry for telling you to die. That wasn't the right thing to say and I was wrong for saying it," I confess, looking back down to the picture in my hand. I feel the bed dip with the Doctor's weight as he sits next to me.
"It's alright. You have every right to be upset. I don't hold it against you. You can hate me all you want. But that won't stop me from loving you or your mother. There's nothing I can do to change the past, well nothing that won't completely screw with the balance of time, but if you'll let me, I want to get to know you," the Doctor pleads. I shyly look up and stare him in the eyes. I look at the remorseful and hopeful eyes of the Doctor. I swallow the lump in my throat.
"I think... Mum would have liked that."
"But would you like that, Gwyn?" the Doctor asks.
"I honestly don't know. There's only one thing I know for certain and that is that I need to save Mum. She's out there, Doctor. She isn't dead." The Doctor inhales sharply. "She was taken by a lady with a metal eye patch. She was dressed all in black. I don't know her name. I wish I had more to go on…"
The Doctor jumps up and starts pacing back and forth, gripping his hair in his hands.
"Do you know her?" I inquire shakily. The Doctor freezes and turns to me, his eyes cold and dark.
"Her name is Madame Kovarian and this isn't the first time our paths have crossed. She's affiliated with an organization called the Silence. Well, it's more of a religious movement run by aliens known as the Silents. They think I'm going to end the universe," the Doctor explains.
"They took Amy's baby…. The Silence did," I whisper. "After they failed to get me." The Doctor grasps my hand and kneels down in front of me. His eyes narrow and his brow is furrowed.
"How do you know that?" he asks, his voice hoarse. I look down at our intwined hands.
"I see people's lives; it's a rush of images. I used to get them a lot when I was younger. I saw people's timelines unravel in front of me. It….overwhelmed me. When you came over for dinner a couple of nights back…I saw Amy's," I confess. I avoid all eye contact with him and just focus on my hands.
"So that's why you collapsed…" the Doctor mutters for confirmation.
"It hasn't happened in awhile, I can usually control it and not see the timelines unless I want to. The Silence took away Amy's baby…. left a false one in its place…" ...and made her barren. I keep to myself. "Is that how you met her? The lady with the eye patch?" I inquire. My eyes dart to the Doctor's face and I see him take a shallow breath.
"Yes. It was at a base called Demon's Run. That's where they were keeping Amy's real body while a Ganger in her place…her mind was with us but her actual body was not." The Doctor stands up again. I feel my heart race. He knows where they kept Amy.
"We have to go there! Mom could be there!" I exclaim as I rushed out the bedroom, back towards the control room. The Doctor hurries after me and grabs my shoulder; I stumble back and face him. His eyes are panicked.
"Absolutely not! That place was abandoned. If Rose was there, she's long gone now! They evacuated the place during the fight. Rose won't be there," the Doctor says, his hands dug into my shoulders. I shove his arms away from me.
"We won't know if we don't look!" I argue with him as he tries to restrain me from running to the control room.
"SHE ISN'T THERE! Believe me, I know!" The Doctor bellows. I freeze in my movement at the conviction in his voice. "Rose isn't there. After the fight at Demon's Run, the Ponds took a little break from travelling. I went back to Demon's Run alone. I searched the whole place for more people like Amy. There wasn't anybody there. There wasn't even a file left in that place," the Doctor insists. I hear the rushing of footsteps towards us and the Doctor finally releases my shoulders as the Ponds, Tom and Uncle Jack come racing around the corner.
"We heard shouting. What's going on?" Uncle Jack demands while he and Tom stop at my side.
"You were one person, if you went back to the base later then right after the battle they would have had time to come back and clean out their files. If we go back to the moment after you left to drop off the Ponds, their files could still be there!" I plead with him. His expression turns dark and conflicted.
"Doctor, go back where? What is she talking about?" Amy asks, glancing between us. I just stare at the Doctor.
"Demon's Run. Gwyn wants to go back to Demon's Run where they kept you. It might have a lead as to where Rose is…" The Doctor somehow managed to keep his face stoic.
"Go back to Demon's Run? No! Absolutely not!" It's not often that Rory gets angry, but all of a sudden he is, veins standing out on his neck. Amy grabs her husband's hand and rests her head on his shoulder in comfort, and he falls silent.
"Well, then you don't have to! Just drop me and Uncle Jack off and we'll do the digging ourselves." My voice is loud, almost a shout. I'm pumping adrenaline: after years of not knowing where to start our search for Mum, we finally have a lead. And the Doctor just wants to dismiss it?
"I SAID NO!" The Doctor shouts back at me. Suddenly a sharp whistle quiets the room. I turn towards Uncle Jack, my chest heaving; I crossed my arms and try to calm my breathing.
"Okay, let's all take a deep breath. Now Doctor, Gwyn has a point, it wouldn't hurt to have more than one pair of eyes. Besides, if you searched the place after you had already left, it's more than possible that the place was cleaned out. It doesn't hurt to check especially since it's the only lead we have about Gwyn's mom. Gwyn, you need to calm down. We'll find her. We'll find her and make sure she is standing there on our wedding day," Tom reasons.
"All right. One look." The Doctor relents. "But no more."
Normal POV
The grinding of Tardis gears swarm the Silence's base called Demon's Run. The Doctor steps out first, assessing the risk of ambush, before Gwyn shoves him out of the doorway and enters the base herself. The rest of the group follow behind. Amy gives a sharp intake of breath and clenches her fists. Rory stands behind her and clasps his wife's hand to comfort her. They move closer as the still-fresh memories of the battle and Amy's captivity run through their heads.
"This place is in complete disrepair," Tom comments, already off examining the open pipes and broken metal support beams keeping the abandoned base upright. Gwyn walks past him and moves towards the center of the room.
"Well, were do we start first? This place looks massive and this is just the welcoming room!" Jack snarks. Gwyn gives him withering frown before a tightening in her chest overwhelms her senses. The room starts to blur and Gwyn collapses to her knees, panting heavily as a golden light surrounds her entire body.
"Gwyn!" Tom shouts, and runs to his fiancée's side. Jack jumps forward and throws his body in front of Gwyn to prevent Tom from touching her. Tom skidded to a stop and gave a questioning look to his future in-law.
"Jack!" the Doctor shouts as the captain makes sure Gwyn has a lot of space and nobody is near her. Rory protectively stands in front of Amy, putting a great distance between himself and the glowing woman.
"Jack, what's going on?" The Doctor tries to get around Jack but can't, as the captain moves to block him, too. His double hearts beat painfully hard at seeing his daughter struggle to breath.
"Don't touch her!" Jack insists and the Doctor backs off slowly.
"Why?" he asks sharply, but before Jack has a chance to begin an explanation, a shaky voice turns the time travellers' attention to their fallen comrade.
"Uncle Jack? Tom? Where are you? I can't see you!" Gwyn squeaks. Jack carefully approaches his niece, both hands held in front of him as he crouches down to her level.
"Gwyn? I'm right here. Can you hear me?" Jack soothes. Gwyn takes a deep breath and nods in response.
"Good. If you can't see us, what do you see?" Jack asks next. Gwyn shakily stands upright and look around the room. The Ponds, the Doctor and Tom all have a chance to see her gold-misted eyes examine the room.
"Soldiers with large guns, and faceless monks. Their whole head is just taken away," Gwyn whimpers, but her breathing starts to calm down. The Doctor slowly approaches Gwyn and takes a stand next to Jack.
"Jack, I want an explanation now," the Doctor hisses, his jaw clenched and his eyes squinted into a hard glare toward his former companion. Jack glances reluctantly in the Doctor's direction before sneaking a glance at Tom. Tom understands the silent cue to take over keeping Gwyn under control and calm in her reactive state. Jack takes slow steps back while Tom inches closer to Gwyn.
"Jack?" Gwyn quivers. Tom instinctively reaches to physically comfort her with a reassuring brush of skin before realising the state his love is in.
"He's talking to the Doctor, Gwyn, but I'm here. What else do you see? Talk to me." Tom instructs softly. Gwyn begins to panic and the glow increases in light.
"Gwyn, focus on me on my voice. I'm here. We're all here. Analyze what's going on from an anthropologist perspective. Tell me about the culture you are seeing," Tom suggests. Once Gwyn begins to analyze what only she was seeing, the light finally dims and only emanates a faint but still noticeable glow.
"Doctor, what's going on? Why is she glowing?" Rory hisses as he and Amy watch from the sidelines.
"She looks like the Tardis when she was returning to the console…" Amy muses, remembering when the Tardis core was forced into another being's body.
"Well, Jack?" The Doctor urges. Jack takes a deep breath.
"Well, Gwyn is part Tardis so she has some of the genetic traits of the Tardis. She can see timelines unravel and mostly that's all that comes out of it, harmless because her Gallifreyan genetics also have that trait, so it's not damaging to her body. But there is another part of her Tardis genes which can allow her to travel through time, but it's dangerous," Jack explains. Amy and Rory share a look; this is news to them. Gwyn is part Tardis?
"I thought a human couldn't contain a Tardis core? Isn't it dangerous? The body overheats because of the energy the Tardis creates?" Rory questions.
"Time Lords have a lower body temperature than humans, you said so yourself, Doctor! So shouldn't Gwyn be at double the risk?" Amy further asks, continuing her husband's trail of logic. Jack shifts uncomfortably, trying to figure out the best way to explain how Gwyn's body works.
"Is she at risk of burning up?" The Doctor panics. He doesn't know Gwyn. He knows nothing of his daughter's genetics, he didn't raise her or be around long enough to understand how such a combination of her genetics was assembled from essentially three different parents.
"Yes, there is a risk but it has never happened. Her body usually shuts down, which allows her to focus on keeping her core stable. Awake, her body has too much to do and her cells start to freak out at the overload of information," Jack continues. Rory and Amy share a look of understanding. The Doctor's face blanches at Jack's words. So Gwyn was never awake during these episodes before? What happens now, when she is awake?
"You can't touch her. There is no container for her energy. Her molecules can't distinguish what is happening with her corporeal self, or where her neuron cells are. You could scatter across the time vortex. You, Amy and Rory must not touch her!" Jack threatens, his voice agitated and nervous.
"Why us? What's so different about us?" Amy snaps, insulted that there is something wrong with her and Rory.
"You guys are way out of your time zip code!" Jack says, turning to shoot another glance at Gwyn and Tom.
"The Tardis particles would think that they need to return to their own time and try to send them there without a container or guide. It would kill them," the Doctor mutters, understanding dawning. He begins to wring his hands and pace.
"We should separate into two groups. One should look for files and one should follow Gwyn. Just like your Tardis, Doctor, they don't guide her without a purpose. I'll follow Gwyn with Tom. Doctor, you can stay with Amy and Rory and look for any information on Rose," Jack instructs. The Doctor tenses at being thrown to the side and away from his daughter.
"Hold on a minute, Jack!" he starts to protest. Amy puts her hands on her hips and stands next to the Doctor in support. Rory stays off to the side. It isn't his business and as far as he is concerned, he will just follow Amy no matter where she goes. It doesn't matter to him who the teams are.
"Doctor, you weren't there for Gwyn growing up!" Jack barks. The Doctor widens his stance and clenches his fists.
"I didn't have a chance to be!" The Doctor argues.
"Rose hid Gwyn away from the Doctor! It isn't his fault! If anyone's to blame, it's Rose for keeping her away from him!" Amy defends the Doctor. Jack bares his teeth at the threaded insult to Rose's name.
"Don't you DARE blame Rose!" Jack thunders at Amy, then he takes a sharp inhale and shuts his eyes. He can't let his emotions get the best of him. They are wasting time with this petty argument.
"That isn't the issue here. The point is, Doctor, you have no experience with Gwyn's genetics and behaviours. Tom and I do. We need to cover more ground, gather as much information as possible and then leave. This needs to be efficient. We are wasting time arguing like this," Jack replies, voice steady again.
"He's got a point, Doctor," Rory comments. All heads turn to him. Jack looks grateful, Amy looks furious at Rory taking what she considers the enemy's side, and the Doctor just looks sad and confused.
"We don't have any time to waste. You can talk and get to know what's going on afterwards, but for right now we need to be as quick as possible," Rory continues. The Doctor doesn't agree with him and is about to retort when Tom's voice cuts through the argument.
"I'm sorry to interrupt your important discussion, but Gwyn is going somewhere!" Tom shouts. He's already on his feet, following Gwyn as she makes her way out into one of the corridors, intent on following something or someone.
"Look, I'm here for Gwyn only. Do whatever you want, but you should start thinking ahead. This is only the beginning!" Jack states before rushing after Tom to follow Gwyn.
"Doctor?" Amy murmurs turning to the Doctor for the next steps. The Doctor sighs and runs a hand through his hair. He forces a grin on his face and spins to face the Ponds.
"Well, let's go find a record room, shall we? There has to be one somewhere!" the Doctor says as he sets off down a different hallway than the other had taken, the Ponds following loyally behind him.