A/N: Alex's outfit for this chapter can be viewed on my Tumblr, under the name 'darksideofparis'.

~The Pros and Cons of Silence~

Colonel Manton stood on a small stage before a large crowd of soldiers. Three of the Headless Monks stood behind him; the rest stood at the sides of the room. Kovarian stood to the side of the stage, two soldiers on either side of her, and began to smirk as Manton started rallying the troops.

"He is not the devil. He is not a god. He is not a goblin, or a phantom, or a trickster. The Doctor is a living, breathing man, and as I look around this room, I know one thing. We're sure as hell gonna fix that!"

The soldiers cheered wildly, several of them even clapping. Their mouths were stretched into grins as they imagined the upcoming battle. It would be glorious. A battle against an enemy of this magnitude had to be.

Above them, Amy stood at the window in the nursery where she had been confined to after Kovarian took Melody away. She couldn't understand. How the hell could these people want to kill the Doctor? What had he done to them? It didn't make any sense!

Behind her, Lorna slowly entered the room. She watched Amy carefully. She hadn't heard any stories about her harming the guards or Kovarian like Alex had, but Amy was an angry, grieving mother whose child had just been taken away from her. It wouldn't be unexpected for her to suddenly snap.

"Sorry," Lorna called, causing Amy to turn around. "I shouldn't be here. I'm meant to be at the thing." She nodded at the window to the rally below. "I brought you something." She pulled out a small green cloth, the very piece she'd been working on before. It was two stars sewn to one another, creating a leaf-like pattern. In the center on both sides was intricate gold stitching. "Your child's name in the language of my people. It's a prayer leaf and we believe, if you keep it with you, your child will always come home to you."

"Can I borrow your gun?" Amy asked.

"Why?"

"Because I've got a feeling you're going to keep talking." She turned back to the window. "They're talking like he's famous," she murmured, shaking her head at the soldiers. "The Doctor isn't famous."

"He meets a lot of people. Some of them . . . remember." Lorna smiled. "Both him and his Ally."

"Alex," Amy corrected.

"Right. They're sort of like a. . . I dunno. A dark legend."

"Dark?" Amy scoffed. The Doctor could be dark, she acknowledged that, but Alex? No way, not happening, not ever. "Have you met them?"

"Yeah," Lorna said. Amy whirled around to stare at her. "But I was just a little girl."

Amy smiled slightly and turned back to the window. "So was I."

"You've been with him for a long time, then?"

"No. He came back for me."

"You must be very special." Lorna started to head out of the room but was stopped when Amy spun back around and called, "Hey."

Amy waited until Lorna was fully looking at her before continuing. "You can wait a long time for the Doctor, but he's worth it, okay? The thing is, he's coming. No question about it. Just you make sure you're on the right side when he gets here. Not for my sake, for yours." She held out her hand and Lorna gave her the prayer leaf. "Thank you," she smiled. She held it to her chest as Lorna quietly left the room.

~The Pros and Cons of Silence~

"On this day, in this place," Manton continued, "the Doctor will fall!" The soldiers cheered enthusiastically. "The man who talks, the man who reasons, the man who lies, will meet the perfect answer." There was another round of cheering as Lorna quietly snuck into the crowd and into her position.

Manton waited until the soldiers' cheers died down before going to walk behind the Headless Monks. "Some of you have wondered why we have allied ourselves with the Headless Monks. Perhaps you have wondered why we call them headless. It's time you knew what these guys have sacrificed for faith. As you all know, it is a Level One Heresy, punishable by death, to lower the hood of a Headless Monk. But by the divine grant of the Papal Mainframe herself, on this one and only occasion, I can show you the truth. Because these guys can never be. . ." He lowered the hood of the first Monk, revealing a knotted stump where the head and neck would normally be.

A gasp went up through the crowd. Soldiers gaped at the sight and somewhere amongst the horrified onlookers, the Thin One developed a sickening feeling in his stomach.

Manton waited until the gasps and small screams died down before finishing his sentence. ". . .persuaded. They never can be. . ." He lowered the hood of the second Monk, revealing the same knotted stump. ". . .afraid." He approached the third. "And they can never, ever be. . ."

The third Monk suddenly threw back his hood. "Surprised!" the Doctor cried. The soldiers goggled at him while above, Amy grinned and pressed herself up against the window.

The Doctor barely noticed the mixed reactions, instead calmly walking to the front of the stage. "Hello everyone! Guess who? Please, point a gun at me if it helps you relax." All the soldiers, except Lorna, did just that while the Monks readied their energized swords.

The Doctor simply smirked. He felt so invigorated and powerful right now as the adrenaline that signified Alex's presence thrummed in his veins. It was faint, but the fact that it was there was more than enough to make him determined to get her back and shut this base down. "You're only human."

~The Pros and Cons of Silence~

In the security booth, the two guards from earlier gulped in terror at the two long, extremely sharp swords pressed against their necks.

"Go on," Vastra hissed. "Resist." She flicked her long tongue out. "I am ever so hungry."

"Now, dear," Jenny smirked at the guard she had her sword aimed at. "Which button controls the lights?"

~The Pros and Cons of Silence~

Manton stepped forward, his pistol aimed at the Doctor. "Doctor, you will come with me, right now!" he ordered.

The Doctor just checked his watch. "Three minutes, forty seconds. Amelia Pond! Alexandria Locke! Get your coats!" He pulled his hood back up as overhead, all the lights went out. They came back on just a few seconds later, but by then, the Doctor was gone.

"I'm not a phantom," he said over the speakers.

"Doctor?" Manton called.

"I'm not a trickster."

"Doctor?"

"I'm a monk."

"Doctor, show yourself!"

"It's him!" a soldier shouted. He pointed his gun at one of the Monks along the walls. The other soldiers quickly followed suit. "He's here!"

"It's him!" another soldier agreed. A second later, he fired.

"Weapons down!" Manton shouted as the Monk collapsed. "Do not fire!"

Instead of listening, one of the Monks retaliated. A bolt of energy shot out at the soldier and knocked him to the ground. By the time he hit the floor, he was dead.

"NOOO!" Manton yelled. "Doctor! Doctor!"

~The Pros and Cons of Silence~

Back in the security booth, the two guards sat, tied up, in a corner. Vastra and Jenny watched the goings-on in the main hanger on one of the screens.

"Clever, isn't he?" Jenny marveled. The Doctor had managed to create total chaos with his presence alone. He hadn't even been armed!

Vastra nodded. "And rather attractive."

Jenny frowned. "You do realize he's a man, don't you, ma'am?"

"Mammals," Vastra shrugged. "They all look alike."

Jenny rolled her eyes. "Oh, thank you!"

~The Pros and Cons of Silence~

Manton ran to the end of the stage. "Nobody discharge their weapon in this room. Nobody!"

In the middle of the crowd, Lorna looked towards the door to see a Monk opening the lock with a small whirring device.

"Do not fire!"

~The Pros and Cons of Silence~

"Was I being insensitive again, dear?" Vastra asked. She shook her head, giving Jenny a fond look. "I don't know why you put up with me."

Then, before Jenny could reply, Vastra spun around and used her extendible tongue to knock out one of the guards, who'd been inching towards the door locking override button on the wall.

His partner gaped at his unconscious mate, then at Vastra, before making the wise decision to stay still and not move a muscle.

~The Pros and Cons of Silence~

"Stop, wait! Listen to me!" Manton commanded. An uneasy silence settled upon the room as Manton held up his gun and Lorna slipped away to follow the Monk. "I'm disarming my weapon pack. Monks, I do this in good faith! I am now unarmed." He placed it down on the floor. "All of you, discharge your weapon packs. The Doctor is trying to make fools of us. We are soldiers of God. We are not fools! We are not fools!"

A few of the soldiers began to discharge their weapons. "We are not fools!" they echoed.

"We are not fools!"

~The Pros and Cons of Silence~

Back in the security booth, Vastra eyed the screens worriedly. "Manton's gaining control."

Jenny grimaced and immediately voiced the thought Vastra herself had. "Where's the Doctor gone?"

~The Pros and Cons of Silence~

Like a wave, more and more soldiers began removing their packs. "We are not fools! We are not fools! We are not fools!"

"Yes," came the Doctor's dry voice. "Because fools would never, ever discharge their weapons as an army approached. Or fail to notice the approaching army."

Manton and the soldiers froze. They slowly looked around and several nearly had heart attacks. Thanks to their chanting, they had completely missed the sounds of teleports ringing out around them. They were now completely surrounded by Silurians and Judoon. The soldiers looked around, baffled and a little bit frightened, while up on stage, Strax teleported in next to Colonel Manton.

He aimed his gun at the man. "This base is now under our command!"

"I have a fleet out there!" Manton warned. "If Demons Run goes down, there's an automatic distress call."

"Not if we knock out your communications array," the Doctor pointed out. Everyone turned to see him standing on a raised platform, sans Monk robe, a comm in hand. He smirked down at them. "And you've got incoming!"

"Danny Boy to the Doctor," a pilot's voice called over the comm. "Danny Boy to the Doctor."

The Doctor glared darkly at Manton. "Give 'em hell, Danny Boy," he ordered.

~The Pros and Cons of Silence~

In another part of the base, Madame Kovarian hurried through the corridors, her ever-present guards at her side and awaiting command.

"I need to get off this station now. Bring me the child!"

~The Pros and Cons of Silence~

Back in the main hanger, it only took a minute for the Doctor to get Danny Boy's report. "Target destroyed!" the pilot cheered.

Onstage, Manton hung his head. With that final action, he knew now that he was truly defeated.

"Don't slump!" Strax scolded. "It's bad for your spine!"

The Doctor grinned. This had gone . . . perfectly. It wasn't often he had days like these. Just one more thing to do though, he thought. He stayed still for a moment, feeling the faint adrenaline rush run through him and relishing in it. Now that he thought about it, it hadn't really been present when he was with Ganger Alex. Whenever it was there, it was very slight, just teasing him. It didn't make him feel like it did now: powerful, victorious, like he could conquer the universe.

He could also feel the desperate impulse to run off and find Alex, but as tempting as that was, he knew he had to wait just a little longer. First, he had to deal with Colonel Manton and the Eyepatch Woman, aka Madame Kovarian.

Then, and only then, could he find his Ally and pull her into his arms where she belonged.

~The Pros and Cons of Silence~

Kovarian rushed through the halls towards her ship. Behind her, two soldiers carried a white bassinet between them, little Melody cooing inside. They were forced to come to a stop when Kovarian unexpectedly paused outside the door to her ship.

"Get back in there with the rest of them," she commanded. "Remember, the Doctor must think he's winning, right until the trap closes. I'll take my ship from here." She began keying in a code at the door while the soldiers obeyed her order and went off.

"Airlock engaged," the computer announced as Kovarian looked down at Melody. "Shuttle ready for boarding."

"Love the eyepatch," a voice suddenly commented.

Kovarian whirled around. There was no one there.

"Reminds me of an ex of mine," the voice continued. "Lost his eye in a duel. My fault, I was aiming for his ear. Of course, I bought him an apology drink afterwards." A figure stepped out of the shadows and into the light. "But," Jack Harkness wryly smirked, "I don't think I'll be doing that with you."

Kovarian started to turn, only to stop when she felt the cool blade of a sword press against the back of her neck. "Sorry," Rory said unapologetically, "but there's been a change in plans."

She turned around to glare at him. "I have a crew of twenty. How do you expect to take control of my ship?"

"Very simple," Jack said. Kovarian turned back to see that he now had a gun aimed at her head. "Me and my team are all one hell of a shot."

Team? Kovarian swiveled round again. Standing in front of her, blocking the other escape route, were Gwen, Tosh, and Ianto, all aiming guns right at her.

"Go ahead," Gwen challenged. "Try and run. Make our day."

"You're surrounded on all sides," Tosh informed her. "Try and run, and you'll get either shot to death or slashed through the neck."

"Your choice," Ianto beamed falsely.

"And we do have a few more allies," Jack admitted.

Kovarian spun around at the sound of the ship's airlock opening. One of her soldiers stumbled out the doorway, completely tied up. Behind him were none other than Captain Avery and Toby.

Avery pulled out his ever-present gun and aimed it at her. "This ship is ours, m'lady!"

"Pirates," Jack said admirably and maybe a bit flirtatiously. "You gotta love 'em."

~The Pros and Cons of Silence~

A few minutes later, the Doctor sat in the security booth. Along with him, Vastra, Jenny, and Dorium stood to the side and watched Strax lead Colonel Manton in at gunpoint.

"All airlocks sealed, resistance neutralized!" the Sontaran reported.

"Sorry, Colonel Manton," the Doctor smiled darkly. He could feel his body gently vibrate in anger and his hearts beat furiously as he looked upon one of the leaders who had been responsible for taking his Ally away from him, along with Amy and her child. Though he desperately wanted to, he restrained himself from inflicting bodily harm on the man. "I lied. Three minutes, forty-two seconds."

"Colonel Manton, you will give the order for your men to withdraw," Strax ordered.

The Doctor shook his head. "No. Colonel Manton. . . I want you to tell your men to run away."

Manton frowned in confusion. "You what?"

"Those words," the Doctor nodded. "Run away. I want you to be famous for those exact words. I want people to call you Colonel Run-Away. I want children laughing outside your door, 'cause they've found the house of Colonel Run-Away."

He stood and pointed a finger at Manton, his eyes narrowing like he had seen Alex do so many times to unnerve and frighten people. He was pleased to note that it worked like a charm on Manton. The man's face turned pale, and he looked like he would love nothing more than to vacate the asteroid ASAP.

The Doctor resumed his speech. The longer he spoke, the lower his voice dropped. "And, when people come to you and ask if trying to get to me through the people I love, through my Ally, is in any way a good idea. . ." By this point, he was speaking in a near hiss. Hearing a warning sound from Vastra, he shook his head and switched to a normal volume. ". . .I want you to tell them your name."

His speech finished, the Doctor took a deep breath. He was shaking slightly, and he could feel his darker instincts, the ones Time Lords used to listen to without thought, flare up. They were demanding blood, daring him to reach out and snap Manton's windpipe into tiny pieces. "Oh, look!" he cried, his jubilance contrasting immensely with his black eyes and trembling hands. "I'm angry. That's new." He let out a short, almost deranged laugh. "I'm really not sure what's going to happen now."

"The anger of a good man is not a problem," another voice said. It was Madame Kovarian, being led in by two Silurian's. She came to a stop before the Doctor and smirked. "Good men have too many rules."

There came the sound of a low growl, and it took a few moments for everyone to realize it was coming from the Doctor. Vastra hissed again, but the Doctor didn't hear her. He whirled around, the bottom of his jacket whipping through the air. He glowered fiercely at Kovarian, the mastermind behind Alex and Amy's kidnapping. His fingers flexed, wanting nothing more than to wrap themselves around her scrawny throat and squeeze.

He fought against that tempting idea and settled for staring her down. "Good men don't need rules," he retorted. He clenched his hands into fists. "Today is not the day to find out why I have so many."

Kovarian eyed the clenched fists, as well as the Doctor's whole demeanor. Her smugness faded and was replaced by just a hint of fear as she finally seemed to realize just what kind of mighty beast's wrath she had invoked. "Give the order," she said to Manton quietly. "Give the order, Colonel Run-Away."

"Lovely," the Doctor nodded. "Good job. Excellent choice. Now, just one more thing." He stepped closer to her. His scowl was now right in her face. "Where. Are. Amy. And. Alex."

Kovarian swallowed nervously. She nodded her head at the controls. "Schematics are right there."

Dorium took the cue and settled down in front of the controls. Within just a few keystrokes, he had a map of the entire base pulled up on one of the screens. A red star marked the security booth. Only two corridors away from it was a room labeled 'NURSERY'.

"Amy, I presume?" the Doctor said.

Kovarian nodded.

"And the child?"

Strax took this one. "In custody of Torchwood and Mr. Williams." He sneered at Kovarian. "This male was trying to escape with it!"

Kovarian's only reaction to this was a slight furrowing of her brow, which presumably referred more to Strax's calling her a man than anything else.

By this point, the Doctor's whole body was shaking in impatience. "And my Ally?" he demanded with a possessive growl.

"I would think," said Dorium, "back here." Everyone turned to see him pointing at a specific spot on the map. The room in question was at the opposite end of the base. When Dorium clicked on the room, a window popped up to detail all the extra security on the door leading to it.

The Doctor raised his eyebrows. "Three feet thick and deadlock sealed? Bit overboard, don't you think?"

Kovarian's features darkened into a scowl. "Your Ally," she said, hissing out the name, "proved to be a violent young woman. It was more for our protection than hers."

Only now did the Doctor notice the marks around her throat. There were thin red scratches that could have only been made by fingernails. Surrounding them were several dozen bruises. They had faded into an almost lavender color, but they were still visible enough for the Doctor to make out their shape.

Finger marks. Which suggested strangulation. Or, in this case, attempted strangulation.

"My girl did that?" the Doctor asked. His voice was quiet as his eyes studied the marks, committing them to memory. He sighed and shook his head. "What a pity."

Kovarian's lips curved into a smug smirk. "A pity, Doctor?" Her one visible eye glittered in amusement. "A pity that your precious Ally resorted to an act of violence?" She then had the audacity to outright grin. Finally! After several minutes of the Doctor threatening and tearing her down, she could do the same to him through his precious girl. She waited for him to sigh again, this time sadly, or to avert his eyes and walk away.

But the Doctor didn't do any of that. He didn't do anything she might have expected him to do. Instead, he laughed.

Laughed.

The sound of it made everyone jump. It was a dark, vicious laugh with an underlying amusement. As he laughed, the Doctor's eyes, which had started to lighten back into green, turned black.

When he stopped laughing, he smiled. It was a cruel smile, the lips curved into something that was almost a snarl.

The Doctor aimed that smile directly at Kovarian. His narrowed, black eyes shined with a sinister pleasure that no one else in the room shared. "No," he answered in a whisper. The sound made chills run down Kovarian's back, but nowhere near as bad as the chills she got at his next few words.

"It is a pity that she didn't succeed."

~The Pros and Cons of Silence~

Horrible florescent lights. Shelves and shelves stocked full of different types of Easter candy, stuffed rabbits, and toy baskets. The Black Eyed Peas singing over the loudspeakers. An aisle cluttered with pink and blue boxes.

"Which one? They all look so different."

"Don't forget. You can't tell Rory. Not yet."

A sudden thump. A tuxedo-clad figure with a gray bulb-shaped head. Then more. Screaming. Fighting. Kicking. Swearing.

"DOCTOR!" two voices scream, one Scottish, one American.

Alex's eyes fluttered as the screams in her dream died away. What was that? It had been so scattered and jumbled, but somehow made sense too. Was it real? Was it something she forgot? But how could she forget? Her mind was supposed to be amazingly powerful!

Her head lobbed to the side as she struggled to open her eyes. It felt like ten-pound weights were pressing down on them. Alex whimpered. She hated feeling like this, all useless and like a rag doll.

Doc. . . she thought. Where are you?

Her eyes slid shut again. Alex's head tilted to the other side as she reluctantly began to sink into darkness. But then . . . she felt something strong begin to run through her. Something cool and rather intoxicating. Her eyes opened all the way and she managed to raise herself up a little.

Adrenaline, she thought. Which could mean only one thing.

Her eyes shot to the steel door as it slid open. ". . .said she was in here," a male American voice reported. The skidding of footsteps sounded, cutting the voice off, and a tweed-clad figure barreled into the room. It stopped a few steps in and turned to look at Alex.

The adrenaline in Alex was running full-throttle. It was so powerful she almost felt like she could get drunk on it. Her heart was pounding so hard and fast, it sounded like a second one was in there. Her ears rang and her vision started to blur, though Alex couldn't tell if that was from the overwhelming adrenaline or tears.

It felt wonderful.

"Doctor?" she gasped out.

The Doctor's hearts pounded madly, the adrenaline running through his system like a wildfire. The closer he'd gotten to this room, the mightier the rush became. It even threatened to knock him to his knees at one point. His limbs shook, no longer in anger, but out of haste to pull someone into his arms and never let go.

"Alex," he breathed.

He shot across the room and to the bedside, clambering on it and pulling the girl he loved so much into his arms. His ears rang at her touch, and he was sure the same thing was happening vice-versa.

"Ally," he murmured into her neck. He clutched her to him, his arms firmly wrapped around her back as if to keep anyone from getting to her. People had gotten to her. Tears bubbled up in his eyes despite his best efforts.

"You're here," Alex shuddered, feeling sobs steadily making their way through her. She kept her arms tight around his neck and clutched him to her.

They stayed like that for several minutes. They didn't talk, only relished in the feeling of finally, actually, properly touching each other after so many months. Their skin crackled and popped at the contact. Both noticed that it felt a lot harsher and just better than what they'd experienced while one of them was a Ganger.

Alex shuddered. Her adrenaline spike showed no sign of slowing down and her whole body was vibrating at the Doctor's touch. Yet it wasn't enough. Her body wanted more. She wanted more.

The rest of her untouched skin cried out for contact. Alex didn't just want a hug; she wanted to feel every part of the Doctor's body. The urge to press him down on the bed and just start tearing clothes off almost crushed her. She wanted to shake off her hospital gown and press her skin to his. She wanted to kiss, lick, and suck various areas of his body and she wanted him to do the same to her. But even that wasn't enough. She still wanted more. She wanted him inside her.

The sensations, desires, and impulses were getting out of control. Alex forced herself to pull back a little, not enough to separate from him, but enough to look him in the eye. She started to smile, only to let out a sigh when she saw the tears threatening to fall. "Oh, Doctor. Are those happy tears or sad ones?"

"Sad."

She huffed and gave him a little eye-roll. "Gee, thanks."

"Not like that." The Doctor gave her a smile that failed to reach his eyes. "Alex, I failed to protect you. You were taken from me." A tremble ran through him. "Anything could've happened to you. They could've tortured you, they could've k—" He cut himself off, not willing to say the word.

"But they didn't." Alex gripped his face and pulled it closer to her. "I'm okay, Doc, I promise." Well, not really, but she'd only show him the scars on her abdomen when he calmed down . . . and when they were far, far away from Demons Run. "See?" She took his hands and pulled them up to her face. She leaned into his touch as his calloused fingertips ran over her cheekbones, her chin, and the small white scar on the right side of her nose.

"It's not your fault," she whispered. And it really wasn't. She and Amy had to have been taken before his future self summoned them to Lake Silencio. "You couldn't have predicted this or stopped it. It just happened."

The Doctor dropped his hands and planted them on her hips. His fingers dug into her with bruising force as he pulled her up into his lap. Her legs wrapped and tightened around him almost instantly. "You're too good to me," he muttered.

Alex's face inched closer to his. She could feel his hot breath on her lips and chin, and she was sure he could feel the same coming from her. Her nerve endings heightened as she realized that right now, she would properly kiss the Doctor. It wouldn't be like the time she kissed him during the Dream Lord debacle or when he surprised her with that steamy make-out aboard the Byzantium, or any of the times her Ganger self kissed him. This was real and would truly mark the start of their relationship.

Their lips moved closer and closer together, their breath getting more and more ragged. The Doctor's eyes closed, and Alex's lips parted, fully ready and willing to touch that fiery mouth again. . .

"Reunited, and it feels so good! Reunited, 'cause we understood!"

The Doctor and Alex sprang apart at the very off-key singing. "Harkness!" the Doctor growled.

Jack poked his head out from behind the doorframe, grinning impishly. "What?" he asked innocently. "Thought a little mood music would liven things up."

"You call that mood music? You sound like a drowning dog."

"I thought it was more like him torturing an owl," Gwen distantly remarked.

Jack stuck his bottom lip out. "You wound me," he pouted, placing a hand over his heart.

The Doctor sighed. "Alright, come in," he called, waving his hand. "Since you're all so keen on interrupting us."

Jack, Gwen, and Rory rushed into the room and over to the bedside. "Hey, kid," Jack greeted. "Glad to see you're alive and well."

"Glad to be alive and well," Alex countered. She glanced over the group until her eyes landed on a lavishly dressed, but familiar figure. "Rory!" she squealed. "Get over here!"

Rory grinned and rushed around the bed over to her. "Hey," he said as he threw his arms around her, something Alex quickly reciprocated. "Good to see you."

"You too. Only. . ." Alex pulled back to examine Rory's attire. She raised an eyebrow at him. "Why are you dressed like that?"

"Your boyfriend's idea."

"Oh. That makes sense."

"Oi!" the Doctor cried.

Jack snickered. "Hey, Alex? Word of advice. You might wanna stop hugging the Roman. The Doc looks like he's about to breathe fire or something."

"Don't call me Doc," the Doctor said sourly.

Alex laughed and pressed a kiss to his cheek. "Better?"

The Doctor pretended to think for a moment before lighting up into a grin. "Perfect."

Rory watched them, waiting for a time to interrupt that wouldn't cause the couple to glare at him. "Um, Doctor?" he said hesitantly after the Doctor and Alex remained quiet for five seconds. "We still need to find Amy."

"No problem." Without taking his eyes off Alex, the Doctor reached into his pocket, pulled out the sonic screwdriver, and tossed it to Rory. "I found the room she's being kept in on the base's computer. Jack will show you."

Jack clapped Rory on the back. "Come on, Beaky. Better hurry."

Gwen nodded in agreement. "He's right. Tosh and Ianto can only handle a baby for so long."

Alex stared at the Doctor in amazement as Rory and Jack headed out. "You found the baby? Amy had her baby?"

"Yep. I haven't seen it yet though. Tosh and Ianto have been watching it since they rescued it from Patchy."

Alex giggled. "You mean Madame Kovarian. I heard it through brief moments of consciousness in my sedation."

The Doctor frowned at hearing her so casually say that. "Sedation?" he repeated. His eyes narrowed and his jaw became a little tighter.

Alex put a hand on his shoulder, knowing that his thoughts were heading down a dark path. "You'll be happy to know I fought back though." She smiled wryly. "I broke a couple of noses and gave one guy a black eye."

The Doctor chuckled. It wasn't overly obvious, but Alex could hear its dark undertone. "Yes, I saw what you did to Kovarian."

Alex grimaced at the memory. "If those damn guards hadn't grabbed me, she'd be six feet under right now." She had no regrets about trying to kill Kovarian. The woman had kidnapped her and Amy, experimented on her, and almost took Amy's baby away. She deserved death or, at the very least, life in prison. Still, she would have expected the Doctor to chastise her for trying to kill someone.

But no. He chuckled.

Yet another reason to wait to show him the scars, she thought.

The Doctor chuckled again. "I should've figured you wouldn't go down without a fight." He pressed a kiss to her forehead, conscious of the fact that Gwen was still right behind them. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see her smiling.

At that moment, Tosh came into the room. "I found the clothes you were wearing when Kovarian took you, Alex," she announced. She held a folded black bundle in one hand and a pair of combat boots in the other. Looped through the laces on one of the boots was Alex's ring. It shined brightly despite the many months of disuse.

Alex sighed in relief, mostly from seeing her parents' wedding bands. "Great. I was hoping to wear something other than this hospital gown." She made to get out of bed, only to drop back down, panting for breath.

Gwen hurried to her. "Here." She wrapped an arm around Alex's shoulders and helped her stand up. Alex stumbled as her legs re-accustomed themselves to a movement she hadn't made in months, but she didn't fall down again.

"Tosh and I will help you," Gwen offered. As Tosh came over with the clothes and started separating each article on the bed, Gwen looked down at the Doctor. He was still sitting on the edge of the bed. "Oi! Girls only! Out with ya!"

The Doctor blushed and jumped up. "Oh, um, right," he stuttered. He wrung his hands together. "I'll just . . . uh. . ." Giving up on finishing the sentence, he ran out of the room.

Tosh rolled her eyes. "He's cute, I'll give him that, but he's mighty odd."

"He is an alien," Alex pointed out.

Tosh considered this. "Yeah, you're right. Now," she picked up a black tank-top, "let's get you dressed."

It took them over ten minutes to get Alex dressed. Her legs continued to shake and occasionally fly out from under her as her nerves struggled to get themselves back in working order. It was immensely frustrating for Alex. She was so used to being independent and not relying on others for help. Now she had to have Gwen hold her while Tosh carefully maneuvered each item of clothing onto her.

Gwen and Tosh had also been more than a little horrified at the sight of Alex's scars. Tosh even wished aloud that Owen had been allowed to come so he could examine her. Unfortunately, Jack had considered Owen's current undead status to be too much of a risk when going into battle, so Torchwood's physician had been forced to stay behind in Cardiff. Alex had managed to get the women to promise not to tell the Doctor, but she could tell they were very worried about what Kovarian and her cronies had been doing to her and why. She couldn't blame them. So was she.

"Okay, I think I'm good now," Alex said as she slid her ring back on her finger.

Gwen continued to keep an arm around her shoulders. "Are you sure?"

Alex gave her a look. "Positive." Though the Welsh-woman still looked reluctant, she pulled her arm back, allowing Alex to stand on her own.

Alex held her arms out for balance and took a few small steps. Her feet felt weird in her combat boots after not wearing shoes for so long, but Alex was determined to move past it and get out of the room she'd been stuck in for at least nine months.

The Doctor stood just outside the door. He was staring off down the corridor, wondering how things were going for Vastra, Jenny, Strax, and the others, when he heard a small clomping coming from behind him. He turned around and his face lit up.

Alex was walking towards him, slowly but surely. His eyes roamed over her. She was now wearing a black tank-top, black jeans, and combat boots. Her parents' wedding bands were back in their place on the ring finger of her left hand.

Of course, he could also see the toll her time at Demons Run had taken on her body. Her hair was completely brown, not a strand of blonde in sight. It looked good, but he couldn't help but miss the blonde highlights. He also noticed for the first time how pale her skin was, paler than usual with a slight gray pallor, and how thin she looked. She was at least fifteen pounds underweight, her cheeks slightly sunken in and her top baggy when it should have clung to her frame.

Rassilon, Ally, what did they do to you? he thought, his jaw clenching in anger. His hands curled into fists as he thought about how he could make whoever did this to her pay.

Calm down, a voice in his head chided. It sounded suspiciously like his first incarnation. Getting angry right now won't help anything. You need to focus on Alex.

His first incarnation's voice was right. He decided to obey. He forced his jaw loose and shoved his fists in his pockets before Alex could see them.

"Hey," she greeted. She approached him carefully and placed a hand on his shoulder to steady herself. "How do I look?"

He took another look at her. Despite all the changes the past several months had forced on her, she was still the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen. "Gorgeous," he murmured as he brushed aside her too-long bangs to get a better look at her copper-colored eyes.

Alex smiled brightly. She knew how different and awful she looked, but she was glad he didn't see her any differently. "Good answer."

"But . . . there is something missing." His eyes looked meaningly at her neck.

Alex followed his gaze down to her collarbone. "I know!" she groaned. "Kovarian must've taken it so she could try and use it for her own—"

"Not quite." The Doctor reached into his jacket pocket, the one that rested right over one of his hearts, and pulled something out. Alex's eyes widened as he dangled her sonic necklace in front of her.

"My necklace," she breathed. She reached out and gently ran a fingertip over the intricately cut jewels. She let out a little laugh of relief. Her sonic necklace was one of her most treasured possessions. Thank God Kovarian hadn't gotten her grubby little hands on it. "Where. . ."

"I suspect not even the Flesh can replicate a sonic device properly. Kovarian put it on your Ganger to keep me from getting suspicious. I found it in. . ." He trailed off and coughed. "I cleaned it up and . . . here it is."

"Well, I'm glad she put it on my Ganger instead of using it for her own malevolent purposes." Alex moved to grab the necklace, but the Doctor yanked it up, holding it high above her head. "Hey! Give me that!"

"Wouldn't you rather I put it on you?"

Alex gazed at him. "Oh," she breathed. She recalled the first time the Doctor put the necklace on her, how thrilled she was to be getting such a beautiful and extravagant gift from him, and how she was forced to realize she loved him just moments after the charm rested against her skin. It had been one of the best moments of her life, and she certainly wouldn't mind reliving a little of it again. "Yes, please."

Without being asked, she turned around and lifted her hair. The Doctor undid the clasp and wrapped his arms around Alex's neck. He chuckled when she jerked slightly at the feeling of the cool metal hitting her skin. Like the very first time, Alex reached up to touch the charm as the Doctor did the clasp.

She turned back around, her fingers still running over and caressing the hundreds of tiny jewels that made up the charm. "I'm so glad this is back," she murmured. "I really missed it."

The Doctor pouted. "Just the necklace?" he whined.

Alex giggled. "Haven't I already made that clear?"

"Well, we've been interrupted so many times, it's hard to tell."

"Guess I'll have to fix that." She placed her hands on his shoulders and carefully stood on tiptoe to better reach his face. "I'm very, very, very happy to see you again. I know I was technically with you through my Ganger but . . . I wasn't. Not really. Not like now." She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him closer to her. Their bodies thrummed at the closeness and a fresh stream of adrenaline ran through them both. "And I promise, I have every intention of proving it to you. . ."

She leaned closer. Their lips were just a few centimeters away from each-other. Alex moved to place her mouth on his and murmured, ". . .once we get back to the TARDIS."

The Doctor groaned as she pulled back. "Tease," he growled.

Alex smirked. "You know you love it."

"That I do." He grasped her hand. "Onwards then?"

She squeezed his hand and nodded. "Onwards."

The two headed off down the hall, both grinning like idiots. From their place in the doorway, Gwen and Tosh stared after them.

"Wow," Tosh said, shaking her head. "You think they're always like that?"

"Dunno," Gwen shrugged. "But if that's them reuniting, imagine what it must be like when they haven't been separated for so long."

~The Pros and Cons of Silence~

A/N: YAAAYYYY, DALEX REUNION! I hope it lived up to everyone's expectations! And, don't worry, we'll be getting a nice reunion kiss between them soon. :)

Also, what did you think of the Doctor in this chapter? I hope he came across as pretty dark in response to his Ally(!) being taken, not to mention realistic. I had such chills writing his final line to Kovarian. :}

Notes on reviews. . .

ShadowTeir - I'm glad you enjoyed the chapters! Haha, I loved writing Alex's reaction to the switch, as well as the Doctor's nervous reaction to how she would take it. The jealousy he got when watching her and the Ganger kiss was just the icing on the cake. :) No separate chapter unfortunately, but we will get two original chapters after this episode which deal with how the Doctor, Alex and the Ponds react to everything that happened in this episode. I just love writing reactions and exploring how people deal with different events and traumas. No two people's reactions are alike and it's fun to explore that. :) I can promise that in one of those chapters, we will find out from Rory just how bad the Doctor was during those three weeks. }:} I loved showing Alex's strength too. She's such a strong person and I love showing her fighting back against the people who threaten her. Dorium's lines about Time Lords were also fun to write and to me, didn't seem such a stretch from show canon. They were pretty selfish and possessive, especially of time travel. Hope you enjoyed the chapter! :)

bored411 - Haha, I hope the 'good stuff' in this chapter didn't disappoint! The Doctor didn't exactly tear into everyone like a wild animal, but I hope I conveyed that he was definitely tempted to. :) Hope you liked the reunion! It was both fun and difficult to write, lol. Hope you enjoyed the chapter! :)

TheBlueRiver - Lol, not blind, but she probably pissed her pants a little at the Doctor's closing remark to her. :} Haha, you're not alone in finding scary Doctor attractive. He IS pretty sexy when he's angry. :}

NicoleR85 - Thank you! I enjoyed showing Alex's fighting side. She's such a strong person and it's fun to show that. Hope you enjoyed the chapter! :)

WSSHolmes92 - Thank you! I'm SO glad you're enjoying the story and Alex! :D Haha, I chuckled a little too when I wrote about Alex injuring Kovarian. SOMEONE had to! :) 'Daffy' isn't a pairing name, but the nickname of the Doctor and Alex's future daughter, 'Daphne'. Sorry for the confusion! :)

Blue - Here's the update! Sorry that it's a bit late. Hope you enjoyed it! :)

Thank you to everyone that reviewed, followed and/or favorited this story! Please review and see you tomorrow! :)