Chapter Thirteen: Venice, Italy

Emma pursed her lips as Rory and Amy stood ridged in the Tardis. The Doctor had crashed Rory's stag party and now the groom-to-be wouldn't even look Amy in the eye. Not that Emma blamed him. She hadn't appreciated hearing that Amy had tried and managed to kiss the Doctor. The Doctor, per usual, didn't notice the tension and was rambling as he did some welding underneath the console.
"Oh, the life out there, it dazzles. I mean, it blinds you to the things that are important. I've seen it devour relationships and plans. It's meant to do that. Because for one person to have seen all that, to taste the glory and then go back, it will tear you apart. So, I'm sending you somewhere, together!"

He bounded onto the platform, flipping a switch as Amy stared at him.
"Whoa… what? Like a date?"
"Anywhere you want," the Doctor said. "Any time you want. One condition. It has to be amazing. The Moulin Rouge in 1890. The first Olympic Games. Think of it as a wedding present because it's either this or tokens."

Sighing, Emma looked to Rory. He had a curious expression on his face.
"It's a lot to take in, isn't it?" she said. "Tiny box, huge room inside, let me explain—"
"It's another dimension." Emma smiled as the Doctor spun around at Rory's words.
"What?" the Doctor asked.
"After what happened with Prisoner Zero, I've been reading up on all the latest scientistic theories. FTL travel, parallel universes."

The Doctor sulked, rolling his eyes.
"I like the bit when someone says it's bigger on the inside. I always look forward to that." Emma kissed his cheek.
"It's okay, Doctor."
"So, this date," Amy said. "I'm kind of done with running down corridors. What do you think, Rory?" When Rory refused to answer, the Doctor offered a suggestion.
"How about somewhere romantic?"

A few minutes later, they were walking out of the Tardis into a very busy area of Venice.
"Venice!" the Doctor grinned. "Venezia. La Serenissima. Impossible city. Preposterous city. Founded by refugees running from Attila the Hun. It was just a collection of little wooden hunts in the middle of the marsh but became one of the most powerful cities in the world. Constantly being invaded, constantly flooding—"
"Constantly just beautiful," Emma cut in. "Gotta love Venice." The Doctor winked at her.
"So many people did. Bryon, Napoleon, Casanova. Ooooo, that reminds me!" He looked around and dated their surroundings. "1580. That's all right. Casanova doesn't get born for a hundred and forty-five years. Don't want to ruin into him. I owe him a chicken."
Rory blinked, "You owe Casanova a chicken?"
"Long story. We had a bet."

They continued forward and were stopped by a man in a fancy blue coat.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" the man exclaimed. "Papers, if you please. Proof of residency, current bill of medical inspection." The Doctor nodded, pulling out his psychic paper. He held it up, smiling at his companions.
"There you go, fellow. All to your satisfaction, I think you'll fine." The man blanched and quickly nodded to the Doctor.
"I am so sorry, Your Holiness. I didn't realize." The Doctor blessed the man with a small bow of his head.
"No worries. You were just doing your job… Sorry, what exactly is your job?"
"Checking for aliens."

The Doctor frowned as the man continued.
"Visitors from foreign lands that might bring the plague with them."
"Oh, that's nice," Amy deadpanned. "See where you bring me? The plague." The man shook his head.
"Don't worry, Viscountess. No, we're under quarantine here. No one comes in, no one goes out, and all because of the grace and wisdom of our patron, Signora Rosanna Calvierri."
"How interesting," the Doctor said. "I heard the plague died out years ago."
"Not out there. No, Signora Calvierri has seen it with her own eyes. Streets are piled high with bodies, she said."
"Did she now?"

As the man started walking away, Rory snatched the psychic paper to read it himself. He looked to Amy in confusion.
"Er, according to this, I'm your eunuch." Amy gave him a sheepish look.
"Oh, yeah, I'll explain later."
"What am I?" Emma asked.
"Ummm…" Rory scanned the paper again, then looked back at her.
"The Doctor's carer."
Emma smiled, "Always." The Doctor smiled back at her and then was distracted by the sound of a man screaming.
"Where is my Isabella?" a man was yelling. He was running through a group of young women, dressed in white dresses with white veils. "Isabella? Isabella, it's me!"

The man was knocked down by one of the women and stared up in fear as they hurried past. A man, who was dressed in a long black cape, murmured something to the man, then continued on his way.
"Isabella!" the man desperately cried. "It's me!" The Doctor grabbed Emma's hand and tugged her away from Amy and Rory.
"We're going to leave them?" Emma asked.
"They'll be fine."

He led her over to where the man was standing. He was wiping tears off his face.
"Who are those girls?" the Doctor bluntly asked. The man gave him a confused look.
"I thought everyone knew about the Calvierri school."
"My first day here," the Doctor said. "It's okay. Parents do all sort of things to get their children into good schools. They move house, they change religion. So why are you trying to get her out?"
"Something happens in there," came the reply. "Something magical, something evil. My own daughter didn't recognize me. And the girl who pushed me away, her face, like an animal." The Doctor looked to Emma.
"I think it's time we meet this, Signora Calvierri."
"How?"

Less than five minutes later, the man, who introduced himself as Guido, was standing outside the entrance, trying to force himself in while the Doctor and Emma snuck past and used the sonic to lift the water gate.

Together, they walked down a stone staircase to an area with a vaulted roof. The Doctor grinned when he saw a mirror.
"Hello, handsome." Emma rolled her eyes as he approached the mirror, straightening his bow tie. He frowned at her through the mirror.
"Yes?" she questioned.
"I've never asked… do you like this new face?" A soft smile broke out on her face.
"I like all your faces. Although, you are all chin now."
"Oi!"
"You started—Doctor!" The Doctor spun around at her startled cry and blinked at the five girls in white dresses that had surrounded them.
"Who are you?" the girls asked in tandem.
"How are you doing that?" the Doctor asked. "I'm loving it! You're like Houdini, only five slightly scary girls, and he was shorter. Will be shorter—"
"Doctor." "I'm rambling, sorry."
"I'll ask you again, signor," the girls hissed. "Who are you?"
"Why don't you check this out?"

Pulling out an ID card, he showed it to them. The girls stared blankly at it and he spun it around to look at it himself.
He sighed, "Library card. Emma, where's the…"
"Rory has it."
"Oh yes, I need a spare." He pulled out the sonic and quickly scanned the girls. "Pale, creepy girls who don't like sunlight and can't be seen. Ha! Am I thinking what I'm thinking? But the city. Why shut down the city? Unless—"
"Leave now, signor, or we shall call for the Steward, if you are lucky."
"If?" Emma repeated.

The mouths of the girls opened, and Emma backed away at the sight of their teeth morphing into sharp needle points. They began to advance as the Doctor grabbed Emma's hand.
"Tell me the whole plan," he tried. He shrugged when it didn't work. "One day that'll work. Listen, I would love to stay here. This whole thing, I'm thrilled! Oh, this is Christmas!" Emma laughed at his enthusiasm as they darted back up the stairs.

They found Amy running from something in the city. She excitedly ran to them, and she and the Doctor began speaking over each other.
"I just met some vampires—"
"We just saw a vampire—"
"And creepy girls and everything—"
"Vampires!" Emma shook her head at them and turned to Rory
. "We think we just saw a vampire," he told her.
"Yes, I heard. Was it nice?" Rory shook his head quickly.
"Mean. Handsome, but mean." Emma's ear perked up.
"Oh? Handsome?" The Doctor's entire body swivelled to look at her.
"Who is handsome?"
"Mmmmmm, Mickey Smith?" He glowered at her, and she saunter over to his side to take hold of his hand.
"I'm only teasing." He squeezed her hand lightly as he turned his attention back to Amy.
"We need to get back in there somehow."
"What?" Rory asked.
"How do we do that?" Amy questioned.
"Back in where?" asked Rory.
"Come and meet our new friend!"

Guido graciously allowed them into his house, and they settled at his kitchen table as he spread out a map of Venice.
"As you saw," he began, "there's no clear way in. The House of Calvierri is like a fortress. But there's a tunnel underneath it, with a ladder and shaft that leads up into the house. I tried to get in once myself, but I hit a trapdoor."
"You need someone on the inside," Amy said.
"No," the Doctor said. Amy frowned at him.
"You don't even know what I was going to say!"
Emma tilted her head, "Amy, we all know what you were going to say."
"Which is?"
"That we pretend you're an applicant for the school to get you inside, and tonight, you come down and open the trapdoor to let us in." Amy's expression turned sheepish.
"Oh, I guess you do know what I was going to say."

It was then that Emma realized how overwhelmed Rory had become. He nearly shouted at Amy.
"Are you insane?"
"We don't have another option," Amy argued.
"He said no, Amy, listen to him."
"There is another option," Guido spoke up.

Their host pointed to a collection of barrels behind Rory.
"I work at the Arsenal. We build warships for the navy." The Doctor moved to one of the barrels, sniffing at the contents.
"Gunpower. Most people just nick stationery from where they work." He pursed his lips, looking at Guido. "Look, I have a thing about guns and huge quantities of explosives."
"What do you suggest, then?" Guido desperately asked. "We wait until they turn her into an animal?"
"I'll be there three, four hours, tops," Amy tried.
"No."
"Fine, we send Emma in."

Horror dawned on Emma's face at the thought of being sent inside. She could do it, yes, but she dated the idea of being inside alone. After all, Amy could definitely fight someone off, but Emma wouldn't be able too.
"No!" the Doctor snapped. "No, no, no, no, no." He looked to Emma. "It can't keep happening like this," he told her. 'This is how they go… but I have to know." He looked back to Amy. "We go together, say you're my daughter."
"What?" Rory cried. "Don't listen to him."
"You're daughter?" Amy scoffed. "You look about nine."
"Brother, then."
"Too weird. Fiancé."
"I'm not having him run around telling people he's your fiancé," Rory snapped.
"I agree with Rory," said Emma. The Doctor grabbed her hand, squeezing it tightly.
"No, no, you two are right."
"Thank you."
"I mean, they've already seen the Doctor," said Amy. "Rory, you should do it."

The nurse blinked in confusion.
"Me?"
"Yeah, you can be my brother."
Rory sighed, "Why is him being your brother weird, but with me, it's okay?" Equally confused, Guido spoke up.
"Actually, I thought you were her fiancé."
"Yeah, that's not helping," the Doctor said. Rory shook his head.
"This whole thing is mental. They're vampires for God's sake."
"We hope," murmured the Doctor.
"So, if they're not vampires," Amy said slowly.
"Makes you wonder what could be so bad it doesn't actually mind us thinking it's a vampire."

As Rory took Amy to The House of Calvierri, the Doctor and Emma went back to the Tardis to grab some things. She darted into her bedroom to grab a warm jacket for that evening. She met the Doctor back by the doors, and he offered his arm to her. She wrapped her arm around his and they leisurely strolled through Venice back to Guido's house. One thing was off, though. The Doctor was being unusually quiet. This face wasn't known to be quiet.
"What are you thinking?" Emma asked.
"Just worried about Amy." Emma tried to hold back her jealousy. Of course, he was worried about Amy.
"She's a feisty Scottish girl, she'll be fine." "Emma, I'm sorry—"

He was interrupted by Rory stomping over to them.
"Does anyone else feel a strange sense of foreboding?"
"You'll get used to it," Emma said gently. Rory stared at her.
"Get used to it? You get used to this?"
"Not entirely. But pretty close." Emma left the Doctor's side to pat Rory's shoulder."Amy will be okay, Rory."
"You promise?" Emma's hesitation made him pale.
"Emma Grace Williams! Is my wife going to be all-right nor not?"

The Doctor spun around, eyes meeting Rory's.
"How'd you know her full name?" Rory's brows furled.
"I-I don't know. Strange." Emma shrugged playfully.
"I don't mind, Rory Williams! Ah, look, we match!" The Doctor laughed at her teasing tone, then looked over at the water.

Guido was standing in a gondola, ready to row them through Venice to the entrance the Doctor and Emma had used before to enter The House of Calvierri.
"Come along," he called to them. "We need to start before dawn." He held out his hand to Emma, who took it as she gingerly stepped into the gondola. She sat down, hands folding into her lap as Rory and the Doctor climbed in. Rory looked to the Doctor as Guido began paddling them along.
"She'll be fine."
"Can you promise me that?" The Doctor didn't answer, and Rory crossed his arms in frustration.

When they finally reached the entrance, light had already started to fill the sky.
"Thank you, Guido," Emma said once they had climbed out of the gondola.
"You're welcome, Signora Emma… Now, if you see my daughter, save her, please?"
"I'll try my best."

At the entrance of the tunnel, the Doctor pushed his way to the front.
"Right. Okay, I'll go first." He looked to Emma and Rory. "If anything happens to me, go back." They started walking, Emma in the middle of the two men.
"What happened, between you and Amy?" Rory asked. "You said she kissed you." The Doctor frowned, looking over his shoulder.
"Now? You want to do this now?"
"I have a right to know!" Rory snapped. "I'm getting married in four-hundred and thirty years!"
"Nothing happened."
"Doctor!" Emma said.

Shaking his head, the Doctor grabbed a torch and lit it, illuminating the tunnel in front of them. He kept walking.
"She was frightened," he said. "I was frightened. But we survived, you know, and the relief of it, and so she kissed me."
"And you kissed her back," Rory accused.
"No. I kissed her mouth."

Emma's head dropped, staring at the stone-floor.
"Funny," Rory mumbled.
"Rory. Rory, she kissed me because I was there. It would have been you. It should have been you."
"Yeah, it should have been me."
"Exactly. That's why I brought you here." A sudden gust of wind blew out the Doctor's torch and he stamped his foot childishly. "Can we go and see the vampires now, please?"

Everyone was silent as they walked until they stood under the trapdoor.
"Come here, Emma," the Doctor said. She looked up as he held out his hand. "I'll hoist you up first."
"Is that safe?" Rory anxiously asked.
"I'll be fine, Rory," Emma said. The Doctor grabbed her by the waist, lifting her just enough for her to open the trapdoor and pull herself through. He was next and then Rory.

Almost immediately after Rory was through the trapdoor, the Doctor started calling for Amy. She wasn't where they had agreed to meet.
"I can't see a thing," Rory complained. He pulled out a tiny penlight just as the Doctor pulled out a small light stick.
"Ultraviolet," the Doctor said. "Portable sunlight."
"Yours is bigger than mine," Rory said.
"Let's not go there."
"Tell me about the wedding, Rory," Emma said quickly. "I'm guessing you've done most of the work."

Rory started telling her all about the wedding planning, but as they entered a dark courtyard, he suddenly paled.
"If we cancel now, we lose the deposit on the village hall. The salsa band, and… oh—" Emma squeaked, and Rory stuttered to a stop when the Doctor opened a chest, seeing the desiccated remains of vampires. Emma spun around, refusing to look as the Doctor used his sonic to scan the remains. "What happened to them?" Rory asked. The Doctor read his readings.
"They've had all the moisture taken out of them."

At the Doctor's confused tone, Rory looked at him.
"That's what vampires do, right? They drink your blood and replace it with their own."
"Yeah, except these people haven't just had their blood taken, but all the water in their entire bodies."
"Why did they die?" Rory asked. "Why aren't they like the other girls in the school?"
"Maybe not everyone survives the process," the Doctor supposed.

With a glare, Rory started rambling.
"You know what's dangerous about you? It's not that you make people take risks, it's that you make them want to impress you. You make it so they don't want to let you down. You have no idea how dangerous you make people to themselves when you're around." Emma went to interject, but six of the girls appeared.
"Who are you?" The Doctor jumped in front of Emma, waving his UV light. They backed off with a hiss.
"We should run," the Doctor said. "Run!"

The trio dashed down a corridor that was suddenly blocked by three others. Emma met the gaze of one of them, a tall man with dark brown hair. He looked strangely familiar. He kept her gaze, smiling smugly at her. The Doctor glared at him in return.
"Cab for Amy Pond?" the Doctor asked.
"This rescue plan," a woman said. "Not exactly watertight, is it?" The Doctor brandished the UV light just as Amy and Isabella ran into the room.
"Rory!" Amy cried.
"Amy!" She practically threw herself into his arms as Isabella led them through a different passage away from the vampires that had blocked their path.
"This way!"

They ran through the tunnels and Amy filled them in with what she knew.
"They're not vampires."
"What?" the Doctor asked.
"I saw them. I saw her. They're not vampires, they're aliens." They dropped through the trapdoor and the Doctor soniced it behind him.
"Classic."
"That's good news?" Rory asked. "What is wrong with you people!"
"Nothing," Emma answered defensively.

Reaching the entrance, Emma grabbed Isabella's hand. She tried to tug the girl along with him, but Isabella kept back.
"I can't," she said. "The sunlight…"
"But—"
"Go!" Emma was shoved through the door just before it slammed shut.
"No!" the Doctor shouted. He went to grab the metal and was electrocuted back. He collapsed on the ground and Rory dropped immediately at his side.
"Is he dead?" Amy hesitantly asked.
"No, he's breathing." Emma fumbled with the sonic screwdriver, scanning the metal bars.
"We're not getting back in that way," she said. The Doctor sat up in a rush.
"Right, I've got to talk to them."
"To whom?" Emma asked.
"The two that cornered us, Senora Calvierri and… I believe he's her son."
"Yes," Amy nodded quickly."And their steward."
"Now?" Emma asked.
"What better time?"
"I'm going with you."

Getting to his feet, the Doctor shook his head at Emma.
"Absolutely not. You are going to go with Guido and the Ponds and get some rest."
"But—" The Doctor wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her close.
"Look at me, Emmy. I am perfectly fine, but you need rest."
"You just want to explore on your own," she accused.
"You know me so well." He pressed a kiss to her forehead then took off. Amy began to follow, but Emma shook her head.
"He said to go back to the house." Amy shivered, rubbing her arms. She was dressed in a light cotton night-gown. Emma pulled off her jacket, holding it out to Amy. Rory took hold of his fiancé's hand, helping her into the boat. Guido looked eagerly at Emma.
"Is she safe? Is my Isabella all right?" Emma pursed her lips and his expression sobered. She touched his hand.
"I'm sure the Doctor will look for her."

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