Thea leaned against the TARDIS as they stood in a corn field, Amy and Rory quickly slamming on the brakes of their car as they sped through the field towards them.
"Seriously?" She scoffed, holding up the newspaper with the head line 'Leadworth Crop Circle' with the word Doctor spelt out to get to attention.
"Well, you weren't answering the phone." Rory defended as he and Amy scrambled out of the car.
"Maybe there was a reason for that." She grumbled.
Both of the Ponds knew she always tried to answer the phone, or at least call back if she knew someone had tried to get in contact (or would try to contact them) but they had been searching high and low for Melody. They'd started in America 1969, but clearly Kovarian had realised they were on to her and hidden her somewhere else.
She hadn't picked up the phone or kept Amy or Rory updated because doing so meant establishing the timelines. They were hoping to find Melody and drop her off barely 5 minutes after they'd gone home and neither of them would be none the wiser of how many centuries it took them.
"Okay," Amy shook her head, "you've had all summer. Have you found her? Have you found Melody?"
"Do you see your daughter with us?" Thea countered, arms wide, "I think the answers pretty clear don't you?"
The Doctor winced at her words. Thea had been focused on trying to find Melody far more than himself. He knew she turned out fine as River but Thea really wanted to find her as a little girl and return her so the Ponds could be the ones to raise her.
The longer their search took the less hope she had in believing River was ever raised by her parents.
The Doctor sighed, planting a kiss on her head, knowing she was frustrated. He wasn't sure if she was more irritated that they couldnt find Melody or for the Ponds contacting them or because Kovarian clearly thought Melody would be a better weapon than herself.
He had been besides himself when she had told him that, that she had been so willing through throw her life away for a baby she had not even known for an hour. He wasn't mad she said she would kill him.
The Doctor glanced at Rory, "Permission?"
"Granted." Rory nodded moving to Theas side to look at the newspaper as the Doctor hugged Amy.
"You know who she grows up to be," he murmured to her, "so you know we will find her."
Amy pulled away, "But you haven't yet."
"We're close." Thea remarked.
"How close." Amy asked but Thea only shrugged and shook her head.
A blunt and utterly useless feeling.
"Hang on." Rory frowned, seeing a line through the word ending in the second 'O', "What's this bit?"
"That wasn't us." Amy agreed.
Thea snatched the paper back, trying to see where exactly the line ended.
"Thea!" The Doctor shouted as a red corvette drove towards them at speed.
She lowered the paper, watching the car, taking a single step back as the car came to an abrupt stop right before her.
The Doctor rushed to her side, checking her over, double checking she hadn't been hit. She had been so close to the car, if she hadn't stepped back she would have been ran over.
Not how he wanted to see her regenerate. Not that he really wanted to ever see that.
A young black woman, similar to Amy's and Rory's age, stepped out the car in a short dress and black vest, "Amy was right," the woman looked the Doctor up and down, "you do look funny."
"Mels!" Rory gasped.
Thea tilted her head at the woman, there was something...off with her. Mels, a common nickname for Melissa or Melody. This woman didn't seem like a Melissa to her.
This was going to be one chaotic day. She could already feel a headache coming on.
"What are you doing here?" Amy demanded.
"Following you." The woman, Mels, said simply, "What do you think?"
"Er, where did you get the car?" Rory frowned at it.
"It's mine." They heard sirens in the distance, "Ish."
"Oh, Mels, not again." Amy groaned.
"You can't keep doing this." Rory chastised, "You're going to end up in prison."
"I'll break you out." Thea offered, "or end up in a cell with you."
"Thea," Amy turned to chastise her, not only for encourage Mels to cause trouble but end up in trouble with her.
Mels looked her up and down, "you must be sweet little Thea." She spotted the TARDIS and rushing over to it, "Is that the phone box? The bigger on the inside phone box?" She ran a hand over the corner, "oh, time travel. That's just brilliant. Yeah, I've heard a lot about you. I'm their best mate."
"Then why don't I know you?" The Doctor eyed her, "I danced with everyone at the wedding. The women were all brilliant. The men were a bit shy."
"I don't do weddings."
"I bet." Thea muttered, sending the Doctor a silent look, really hoping that he could figure out exactly who Mels was.
Because really it was pretty damn obvious not because she was psychic and randomly connect more dots than the average person or because she was a detective for the same reason, but come on! If a child escaped the people who took them and used them as a weapon where else would one go?
Mels sighed hearing the sirens get louder, "And that's me out of time." She pulled out a gun aiming it at the Doctor.
"Mels!" Amy yelled.
"For God's sake!" Rory cried.
"What are you doing?"
"I need out of here, now." Mels cocked the gun.
"Anywhere in particular?" The Doctor asked.
"Well, let's see. You've got a time machine, I've got a gun. What the hell. Let's kill Hitler."
"Yeah, alright." Thea shrugged and unlocked the doors, "come on then Melody, you can shoot Hitler."
~.~
The Doctor and Thea frantically tried to pilot the TARDIS as a shot rang out. Stream abruptness from the new hole in the console, the lights turning red in warning as gas invaded the room.
"You've shot it!" The Doctor cried, "you shot my TARDIS! You shot the console!"
"It's your fault!" Mels yelled.
"Argh! How's it my fault?"
"You are the one you said guns wouldn't work because we're in a state of temporal grace." Thea had to agree with the woman. "Who isn't going to test that out?"
The Doctor rolled his eyes at that, the two focusing on landing the box. The TARDIS would fix it self but not with people inside and being in flight.
Thea pulled down a lever, the sound of glass smashing from outside as the box came to a sudden standstill.
The Doctor ran to the doors, holding them open, ushering everyone out, "Out, out, out! Everybody out. Don't breathe the smoke, just get out!"
"Where are we?" Amy coughed, looking around the room they'd landed in.
"A room." The Doctor said.
"What room?" Rory asked.
"Berlin, 1938." Thea answered, nodding to the swastikas around the room. "Don't go in there!"
Mels paused as she tried to get back inside the TARDIS, only to see that Thea hadn't even been looking in her direction.
The Doctor pulled Mels away from the box, taking her gun "Bad smoke. Don't breathe the bad, bad, smoke. Bad, deadly smoke because somebody shot my TARDIS!"
Rory gasped, rushing over to a man lying on his back in the middle of the room, "Doctor. This guy, I think he's hurt." The man started to come round, "No hang on. He's fine."
The Doctor fiddled with the gun in his hands, not knowing what to do with it before putting it in the fruit bowl on the desk, noticing a man slowly picking himself up, "Oh, hello. Sorry, is this your office? Had a sort of collision with my vehicle. Faults on both sides, let's say no more about..." He trailed realising who the man was, "It."
"Is that?" Amy gaped, making her way over with Rory as Theas gaze lingered on Mels, "No, it can't be, Doctor?"
"Thank you," Hitler spoke, "whoever you are. I think you have just saved my life."
"Believe me," the Doctor swallowed, "it was an accident."
"What is this thing?" Hitler moved passed them, around to the TARDIS, examining it.
"What did he mean, we saved his life?" Amy hissed, "We could not have just saved Hitler."
"You see?" the Doctor rounded on Mels, "you see? Time travel, it never goes to plan."
"It's 1938." Thea pointed out, hopping up to sit on the desk, "Hitler doesn't die until 1945. It's a fixed point in time."
"This box." Hitler pointed to the TARDIS, "What is it?"
"It's a police telephone box from London, England." The Doctor told him, "That's right, Adolf. The British are coming."
Hitlers eyes widened seeing the fallen man starting to get to his feet, "No, stop him!"
Thea pulled the Doctor aside as Hitler pulled out his gun, firing at the man.
Rory ran over punching Hitler in the face and taking his gun, "Sit still," he cocked it, "shut up." Hitler held up his hands.
"Are you okay?" Amy hurried to the mans side.
"Yes, yes." the man replied, "Yes, I'm fine. I think he missed."
"He was going to kill me!" Hitler cried.
"Shut up, Hitler!" Rory snapped.
"Rory, take Hitler and put him in that cupboard over there." The Doctor ordered him, frowning at Thea, seeing she was staring at the man, rather intently for him not to notice, which meant there was something wrong, "Now do it."
"Right." Rory hauled Hitler up, and pushed him across the room, "Putting Hitler in the cupboard. Cupboard, Hitler. Hitler, cupboard. Come on."
"But I am the Fuhrer!" Hitler argued.
"Right, in you go!" He shoved the man in the cupboard.
"Who are you?"
Rory just slammed the door in his face.
The Doctor eyed the man, "Are you alright?"
The man suddenly fell back in a faint, Thea hardly blinked at the action.
"I think he just fainted." Rory remarked.
"Yes, that was a faint." The Doctor nodded, "A perfect faint."
Thea turned, suddenly unbothered by the perfectly fainting man only to see Mels clutching her side in pain, "you're hurt."
"Hitlers a lousy shot." She gave the girl a small smirk before collapsing on the ground as Amy and Rory rushed to her side.
"Mels!" Amy cried, "Mels!"
The Doctor glanced at Thea seeing her standing, solemn, as she watched Mels, not bothering to get close to help, like she knew nothing could be done, or because they didn't need to help...which meant...
"No, no, no, no!" Rory scrambled to try and help, wanting to see the wound, "I've got to stop the bleeding."
"How bad is it?" Amy looked at Rory, "Rory, what can we do?"
"Just keep her conscious. Stay with us, Mels."
"Hey, look at me." The Doctor smiled at Mels as he and Thea headed over, "It'll be alright."
"I used to dream about you." Mels looked up at him, "All those stories Amy used to tell me." Her gaze flickered to Thea, "shame she barely mentioned you Thea."
"Yeah, well," she shrugged, "bet you weren't expecting me."
"Not at all." River laughed only to wince in pain at the movement.
"Well, people do underestimate the sweet little girl."
"Let me guess; that's not you."
"I can tell you stories that both are parents will be disappointed to hear."
Mels snorted, "probably shouldn't have said that," She looked at Amy and Rory, "seeing as their both right here." She laughed at their expressions, "and you already knew."
The Time Lords didn't have a chance to react as Mels began to glow with regeneration energy.
"What the hell's going on?" Rory gaped at the sight.
They quickly pulled the humans back, the Doctor calling, "Back! Back! Back! Get back!"
Mels pushed herself to her feet, "Last time I did this, I ended up a toddler in the middle of New York."
"Explain what is happening, please." Amy demanded as they backed up against the desk.
"Mels." Thea sighed, "Short for..."
"Melody." Mels nodded.
"Yeah. I named my daughter after her." Amy shook her head, loads of people did that.
"You named your daughter after your daughter." The Doctor pointed out as the realisation dawned.
"That's a pretty cool paradox." Thea had to admit.
"It took me years to find you two." Mels remarked, "I'm so glad I did. And you see? It all worked out in the end, didn't it. You got to raise me after all."
"You're Melody?" Amy shook her head.
Rory, though, was caught on another fact, "But if she's Melody, that means that she's also..."
"Shut up, Dad," Mels rolled her eyes, "I'm focusing on a dress size."
With that she threw her head back screaming as the regeneration energy took over. Seeing her chance, Thea ran over to the chair where Rory had tossed Hitlers gun.
The energy faded as River Song stood before them, "Oh!" She gasped, not noticing Thea run back to the Doctors side, "Oh! Oh! Whoa! Right, let's see, then." she examined her new body, "Oh, it's all going on down there, isn't it?" she ran her hands through her hair feeling it fluffier than she was used to, "The hair!" She ran to a mirror, "Oh, the hair. It just doesn't stop, does it? Look at that. Everything changes. Oh, but I love it. I love it! I'm all sort of mature." She smirked, raising a leg in some furniture, psing slightly, "Hello, Benjamin."
The Doctor covered his eyes with his hand, "Who's Benjamin?" He whispered.
Melody clicked her teeth, "The teeth." She touched them, "The teeth, the teeth! Oh, look at them." She pushed the Doctor back against the desk, "Watch out that bow tie. Excuse me, you lot. I need to weigh myself." She ran off out the room.
"That's Melody." Amy blinked.
"That's River Song." Rory sighed, because, well, that was who she was.
He couldn't see River as Melody, his Melody.
They hadn't known Amy was pregnant and therefore never got those 9 months to bond with the child before it was born. Even if she had come to be 'raised' by them, they had been her friends and saw her as just that. Just their friend Mels not their future child Melody.
He didn't want to think of River Song as his Melody just to keep remembering all those lost years.
"Who's River Song?" River called as she stood in the doorway, having heard Amy say her name.
"Spoilers." Thea offered.
"Spoilers? What's spoilers?" She put a hand on her hips, her eyes widening as she felt something, "Hang on, just something I have to check."
"Is anybody else finding today just a bit difficult?" Rory asked, "I'm getting a sort of banging in my head."
"Probably Hitler in the cupboard." Thea mumbled.
"That's not helping."
"Well, at least no one's dead yet."
"This isn't the River Song we know yet." The Doctor explained as he walled to the middle of the room "This is her right at the start. Doesn't even know her own name."
"Oh, that's magnificent!" They heard River's to see her standing in the room again, "I'm going to wear lots of jumpers. Well, now, enough of all that." She aimed Hitlers gun at the Doctor, "Down to business."
"Oh, hello." The Doctor looked over at her unconcerned by the gun at him.
Thea rolled her eyes at how River thought a simple gun would kill the Doctor. Kovarian should know better than that. They did take down Demon Run with all those weapons and that didn't even work.
"Doctor, what's she doing?" Rory hissed.
"She was raised by the Silence." Thea explained, "they want him dead. So she's trying to kill him and failing miserably."
"Where'd she get the gun?"
"It's the one Hitler dropped. She picked it up thinking we were distracted."
"You noticed." River eyed her.
She shrugged modestly, "I was quite the detective as a kid. Didn't like many people knowing I was psychic."
River rolled her eyes and fired at the Doctor only for a clicking noise, no bullets.
"I took the bullets out while you were distracted yourself."
"You mean regenerating." River deadpanned before pulling something out of her vest.
The Doctor smirked, seeing her holding a banana. He had spun the fruit bowl around when she had gotten close to him, feeling her reaching past him for the gun behind him.
"Goodness, is killing you going to take all day?" River huffed.
"We Time Lords are notoriously hard to kill." Thea commented.
"Oh, I'm not complaining." River swiped the letter opener from the desk but the Doctor quickly held up his sonic, causing her to drop it.
"If you were in a hurry, you could've killed me in the cornfield." The Doctor remarked.
"We'd only just met. I'm a psychopath. I'm not rude."
"And that's your mistake." Thea smiled, "if you want to kill him do it straight away, because now you're going to fail. Think your missing something." She added to River as she snatched the actual gun on the table and she held up the clip.
"You are not a psychopath." Amy cried, "Why would she be a psychopath?"
"Oh, Mummy, Mummy, pay attention." River sighed as she started to circle the Doctor, him doing the same, "I was trained and conditioned for one purpose. I was born to kill the Doctor."
"Demons Run, remember?" The Doctor glanced at them, "This is what they were building. My bespoke psychopath."
"I'm all yours, sweetie." River smirked, leaning to try and kiss him only for Thea to pull him out the way, "spoilsport."
"If you're desperate for a kiss I'm right here." She teased, "but then again, you're not trying to kill me."
"And I don't like kissing annoying little girls." River countered neither denying nor confirming her lipstick was poisonous.
"Only River Song gets to call me that." The Doctor watched River.
"And who's River Song?"
"An old friend."
"Stupid name." She scoffed, moving to the window, "Oh, look at that. Berlin on the eve of war. A whole world about to tear itself apart. Now that's my kind of town."
Thea frowned, cautiously moving to the woman's side, seeing her seeming to give up like that.
"Mum, Dad," River turned to them, "don't follow me. And, yes, that is a warning."
"So am I allowed to follow you?" Thea asked her.
River smirked, "if you like." she shrugged, "but I don't think you'll be leaving dear old daddy's side." In one swift movement she pulled out a dart gun and fired at the Doctor, hitting him in the neck. "You didn't see that coming?"
Oh, there was very little information of sweet little Thea, but there was some good stuff. The girl was a surviving Time Lord, his daughter, almost as troublesome as him and with psychic abilities. Very little was known about that, just whispers in the dark. Seems like they weren't that good.
River smiled, "The deed is done and so his he."
A moment later the Doctor staggered as Amy and Rory ran to his side. Thea frowned, removing the dart from his neck, inspecting it.
"Doctor, what's wrong?" Amy gasped.
"Poison." Thea murmured, glancing back at River, "Judas Tree?"
"Oh, you're quite clever." River laughed, "It was never going to be a gun for him. The man of peace who understands every kind of warfare. Kiss kiss." She blew a kiss and jumped out the window.
"What's wrong with you?" Rory asked, "What's she done to you?"
"Poisoned him." Thea stated.
Oh, how could she have not seen that coming? Of course Kovarian knew better than to train Melody with a gun, but the kiss had been obvious and so easy to deal with and she knew that the Doctor wasn't going to die in 1938 Berlin.
"But I'm fine." The Doctor tried to wave off, "Well, no, I'm dying..."
"No." Thea cut him off.
"But I've got a plan."
"What plan?" Amy shook her head.
"Not dying. See? Fine."
"I'm going after her." Thea determined, "You don't mind you do? I can stay, if you want..."
"No, no, it's fine." He nodded, "i'll be fine."
"Awesome." She kissed his cheek and ran to the window, "No dying without me." She joked before jumped out with a salute.
"Is she seriously leaving you right now?" Amy gaped, staring at where Thea disappeared.
"Shell be fine." The Doctor assured her.
"What do we do?" Rory was more focused on the Doctor than Thea or River right now, "How do we help you?"
He knew Amy was surprised Thea had just got up and left him when he was dying, but being a nurse he had seen how people reacted to close family dying. Some refused to leave their side wanting to be there for their final moments and some didn't want to be there so they didn't see them die.
Thea was probably in denial or feeling guilty.
"Take this." The Doctor handed Amy his sonic screwdriver, "the TARDIS can home in on it. Now, go. Get after her." He tried to usher them away but they wouldn't move.
"You said the smoke was deadly." Amy frowned, seeing the Doctor stumbling over to the TARDIS.
"No, no, the smoke's fine." He groaned, "The poison will kill me first. Now, get after River!"
"I don't understand, okay?" Amy shook her head, "One minute she's going to marry you and then she's going to kill you."
"Ah, well, she's been brainwashed. It all makes sense to her." He struggled to get the key in the lock, "plus, she is a woman. Oh, shut up. I'm dying."
'No your not!' Theas voice rang through his mind.
The Doctor slipped through the door, quickly shutting it behind him so the Ponds couldnt follow, "Extractor fans on!" he called, the gas being sucked into the fans, "Oh, that works."
Maybe Thea was right, he did need to read the manual.
~.~
"What are you doing here?" One of the soldiers River had come across, demanded.
"Well," she began, "I was on my way to this gay Gypsy Bar-Mitzvah for the disabled, when I thought gosh, the Third Reich's a bit rubbish. I think I'll kill the Fuhrer. Who's with me?"
"Shoot her." The man ordered, the soldiers behind him beginning to fire as River ducked slightly, hugging herself for protection.
"Bit of a waste of bullets." Thea remarked as she walk over, unbothered by the soldiers and their guns, "shooting a girl while she's regenerating? Boring!"
River smirked, straightening and throwing her arms out and using her remaining regeneration energy to throw back the soldiers and healing herself from the damage the bullets might have caused.
"Ah!" she laughed, "Now, that hit the spot." She grabbed two machine guns from the fallen soldiers, turning to Thea, "I don't have the antidote if that's why you're here."
"There is no antidote to Judas Tree." Thea responded, "but that dress, not really this regenerations style is it." She smirked, seeing River look down at her dress, seeming to agree with that, "you've got the weapons," She hoped on a motorbike, "I've got the ride." She looked over at River, "Shall we go shopping?"
River eyed her. Kovarian hadn't really warned her about Thea, there was very little information about the girl. She had seen the footage of the girl, she had done very little but had made a deal with Kovarian herself.
She had always been shown that video every time she showed any weakness, reminding her that if she wasn't good enough at her training they could easily find someone willing, stronger, to kill the Doctor instead. That had pushed her harder. She didn't want to even think about what the Silence would do if she wouldn't succeed and they got the little Time Lord to do it instead.
River shrugged and got on behind her. The Doctor was already dying, the deed was done and if little Thea tried any tricks on her, well, she didn't think Kovarian would be too disappointed if she died as well.
They took off down the road, moments later Amy and Rory following.
~.~
The Doctor panted, trying to reach the console but it legs were beginning to cramp, sending him to the floor, "i'm shutting down." He turned, moving to the railing to help prop himself up, "I need an interface. Voice interface. Come on, emergency."
Instantly a holographic image of himself appeared, "Voice interface enabled."
"Oh no, no, no, no, no." He groaned, "Give me someone I like." The image changed to Rose Tyler, "Oh, thanks. Give me guilt." Then Martha Jones, "Also guilt." And then Donna Noble, "More guilt. Argh." He groaned again, "Come on, there must be someone left in the universe I haven't screwed up yet." and then an image of Amelia Pond appeared, "someone else!"
Because technically he had screwed up her life. She had spent her childhood dreaming of her imaginary Doctor and now her daughter was trying to kill him. How could he not feel guilty.
"Voice interface enabled."
The Doctor blinked, seeing the image of Thea, standing there in her current body, "Thea." He breathed.
"I am not Thea. I am a voice interface."
"Hey, let's run away and have adventures. Come along, kiddo."
"I am not Thea. I am a voice interface."
"Yes, I know that," The Doctor rolled his eyes. If Thea was really here she would be searching the TARDIS database for any cure, "How am I doing?"
"Your system has been contaminated by the poison of the Judas tree. You will be dead in 32 minutes."
"Okay. So, basically better regenerate, that's what you're saying."
"Regeneration disabled. You will be dead in 32 minutes.
"Unless I'm cured, yeah?"
"There is no cure. You will be dead in 32 minutes."
"Why do you keep saying that?"
"Because you will be dead in 32 minutes."
"You see? There you go again. Basically skipping 31 whole minutes when I'm absolutely fine."
"You will be fine for 31 minutes. You will be dead in 32 minutes."
"River needs us." He groaned, "She's only just beginning. You two can't try to kill each other just yet. See I can't die now."
"You will not die now. You will die in 32 minutes."
"I'm going out in the first round! Ringing any bells?" He let out a shout of pain, falling to the floor, "Argh! Okay, need something for the pain now. Come on, Thea. It's me. Please. I'm your dad."
"I am not Thea. I am a voice interface."
"I can be brave for you," the Doctor murmured, "but you have got to tell me how."
He could be brave for her, just like she always was. Such a brave girl and he was so proud of her and barely told her.
He couldnt die now.
He had seen the way she looked at him before going after River. The faith and hope that everything would be alright in the end.
If she could have that hope, then so could he.
He smiled, using the console to pull himself up, if she believed he wouldn't die. Then he wouldn't die.
He reached for a lever, pulling it down, knowing the TARDIS could easily trace her princess.
~.~
The doors to a restaurant burst open. The diners all looked over from their food and wine to see River at the doorway, firing her guns at the ceiling.
"Ladies and gentleman," she began, "I don't have a thing to wear." She lowered the guns to point at the dinner, "Take off your clothes."
"You didn't want to just raid a clothing store?" Theaa huffed, jumping to the side as the dinners quickly stripped, leaving their clothes as they ran out the restaurant in their underwear.
"This way is much for fun." River smirked, setting down the guns on a nearby table as she starting to make her way through the clothes left behind.
Thea pulled a face as she held up an officers cap, debating to wear it for funzies but decided against it. This regeneration really didn't suit hats.
"What do you think?" River asked, posing in front of a mirror, holding up some clothes, ensuring she kept Thea in her sight, just in case the girl tried anything. Not that she couldnt handle the girl.
"Absolutely not." Thea shook her head.
River rolled her eyes, tossing the clothes aside, smiling slightly. At least she would get an honest opinion from her.
~.~
"Now, look at that." River turned in front of the mirror, wearing a mix and match outfit from the clothes with an officers jacket over the top, "Now that's fun from every angle."
"And here's the hat." Thea grinned, setting the cap on River's head, her smile faltering as she saw Amy's reflection through the mirror.
There was something off about 'Amy'. She was far too stiff and stoic to be the typical angry Scottish woman, and where was Rory? She was certain that wasn't really Amy.
She had money on a robot, like the man from the office with a perfect faint. Most likely the same robot.
"I might take the age down a little," River remarked offhandedly, not remotely concerned that 'Amy' had followed, "just gradually, to freak people out."
"You killed the Doctor." Not Amy stated.
"Oh yes, I know, dear." River rolled her eyes, "I hope you're not going to keep on about it." She readjusted the officers cap, checking it out, "Oh, regeneration. It's a whole new colouring to work with."
Not Amy stepped closer to River as Thea moved over to a table, ready to grab a chair to hit the robot with, "You killed the Doctor on the orders of the movement known as the Silence and Academy of the Question. You accept and know this to be true?"
Thea frowned, she knew the Silence was with Kovarian and wanted to kill the Doctor (for reasons still unknown) But now their was an Academy in Question too. Intriguing.
"Quite honestly, I don't really remember." River shrugged, "It was all a bit of jumble."
Not Amy moved the mirror out of the way, opening it's mouth as a beam of energy shot out its mouth, trapping River.
"No!" River cried out, "No! Get off me!"
A loud thud sounded, the robot shutting its mouth, as River fell to the ground. The robot turned its head to see Thea holding a chair leg from where she had whacked the robots shoulder.
"Do that again," She threatened, glaring at the robot, "I dare you."
"You are interfering in an investigation." The robot stated.
"What investigation?" She countered, "you claim she killed the Doctor. What else is there to investigate? Unless, of course, he isn't supposed to die here..."
"Sorry," a voice cut in and they looked over to see the Doctor leaning against the TARDIS, having landed on silent, dressed in formal wear complete with top hat and cane, "did you say she killed the Doctor? The Doctor? Doctor who?"
River pushed herself back to her feet, gaping at him, "You're dying and you stopped to change?"
"Oh, you should always waste time when you don't have any." The Doctor recited, "Time is not the boss of you. Rule number?" He pointed the end of the cane at Thea.
"408." She rolled her eyes at him as he joined her before the robot. "Alright there?"
"Could be better." He shrugged.
"Least you're not miniaturised in a robot." She joked, nodding to the robot.
He gave a small chuckle, "Amelia Pond, judgment death machine. Why am I not surprised?" He held up his cane, getting a reading from the robot, "Sonic cane!"
"Are you serious?" River stared.
"Never knowingly. Never knowingly be serious."
"Rule 27." Thea sighed.
"You might want to write these down."
"He will test you to make sure you are listening and remembering these rules," She leaned closer to River, "if you know them he thinks you follow them."
"Oh, it's a robot!" The Doctor looked at the reading from his cane, "With 423 life signs inside. A robot worked by tiny people. Love it."
"Didn't see that coming." Thea remarked, "but it's basic miniaturisation by a compression field, right?"
"Lucky guess?"
"If only."
"Watch what you eat, it'll get you every time. Amy, if you and Rory are okay, signal me." The Doctor glanced at the cane as it received the signal from inside the robot, "Thanking you."
Thea quickly moved an arm around the Doctor as he let out a cry of pain one of his legs giving out as she helped him over to the steps, to sit down before the other one followed, "Honestly, you never remember when you schedule a leg nap." Thea shook her head at him.
Seeing them distracted River tried to make a break for the doors only to get caught in the robots beam again.
"Hey, let her go before I melt you down into a radio!" Thea advanced on the robot.
"Don't you touch her!" The Doctor agreed, "Do not harm her in any way!"
The robot snapped its mouth closed, turning to them, though still keeping River trapped, "Why would you care? She's the women who kills you."
"Does he look dead to you?" Thea asked, gesturing to the Doctor, taking off his top hat, seeing him starting to sweat, setting the hat on her own head.
"He is dying."
"Well, at least I'm not a time travelling shape shifting robot operated by miniaturised cross people," the Doctor called, "which, I have got to admit, I didn't see coming."
"It's funnier when I say it." Thea remarked as she sat down besides the Doctor, leaning forwards as she spoke to the robot, "What do you want with her exactly?"
"She's Melody Pond." The robot stated. "According to records, the woman who kills the Doctor."
"You do know were Time Lords right?"
"Yes."
"Then you know we regenerate? Have you gone after the others that have kill him?"
"She's Melody Pond, the woman who kills him permanently."
Thea scoffed, "Oh, please, the Master didn't succeed in that. The Daleks haven't, neither have I, nor Rassilon himself. What makes you think she could succeed where more dangerous and powerful beings have failed?"
"And even if she does," The Doctor added, "I'm the Doctor, so what's it to you?"
"Throughout history, many criminals have gone unpunished in their lifetimes." The robot began to explain, "time travel has responsibilities."
"What? You got yourselves time travel, so you decided to punish dead people?"
"We don't kill them. We extract them near the end of their established timelines."
"And then what?"
"Give them hell."
"I'll give you hell in a minute." Thea muttered.
"I'd ask you who you think you are but I think the answer is pretty obvious. So, who do you think I am, huh? The woman who killed the Doctor. It sounds like you've got my biography in there. I'd love a peek."
"Our records office is sealed to the public." The robot replied, "Foreknowledge is dangerous."
"I'm psychic." Thea deadpanned, "I have that foreknowledge. You think I don't cheat and skip ahead to see when people die?" She glanced to the Doctor, "I don't, but they don't know that."
"I'll be dead in three minutes." The Doctor remarked, "There isn't much foreknowledge left."
"Sorry, can't do that." The robot said.
"Again psychic," Thea rolled her eyes, "foreknowledge means nothing to me and not to mention, River killed the Doctor here and now then he wouldn't be around in the future for us to meet her, therefore, she doesn't kill him, he doesn't die and you can't give her hell!"
"Records available." The robot suddenly spoke as both Time Lords looked over in surprise.
The Doctor nodded as Thea helped him back to his feet as he made his way over to the robot, Thea clinging to his arm, making it seem she was hugging him while also offering support, "Question. I'm dying. Who wants me dead?"
"The Silence." The robot answered.
"What is the Silence? Why is it called that? What does it mean?"
"The Silence is not a species. It is a religious order, or movement. Their core belief is that silence will fall when the question is asked."
"What question?"
"The first question. The oldest question in the universe, hidden in plain sight."
"Yes, but what is the question?"
"Unknown."
"Well, that's helpful." Thea deadpanned, "it better not be something stupid like 'doctor who?' I might just scream."
The Doctor gave a small chuckle only to double over in pain, "Argh! Kidneys are always the first to quit. I've had better, you know."
"Least these are a good colour." Thea offered as the Doctor grimaced in pain, unable to laugh as she tried to distract him. "Hey! No!" Thea rushed over as the robots light around River turned red as she scream in agony. She shoved River aside out of the field as the robot turned to her, "Let me guess, its my turn for aiding and abetting right?" The robot sent the red beam around her as she let out a yelp, biting her lip to hold back her yells. At least it was focusing on her and not River.
"No!" The Doctor cried, seeing Thea trying to hide the pain, and he was in no position to help her. "Amy. Rory. Can you hear me?"
"What do we do?" The robot asked, "This is me. This is me actually talking. What do we do?"
"Just stop them." He begged, "please just stop them. Just stop them."
"How? How? How?"
"Just do it!" He snapped when a moment later the energy field disappear and Thea fell to the floor, panting.
"You're welcome." Thea glanced over at River, wincing as she made her way back to the Doctors side, knowing that as much as she knew he wouldn't die today, he needed her by his side right now.
"Please." The Doctor called, drawing Rivers attention from Thea to him, "Now we have to save your parents. Don't run. Now, I know you're scared, but never run when you're scared. Rule 7. Please."
"Doctor, can you help us?" The robot spoke again, "Thea? Doctor, help us! Doctor, help us! Thea, please! Doctor! Help!"
"Look at you." River looked over, seeing the Doctor trying to make his way to the TARDIS, despite only having minutes left to live, "you still care."
"They're you're parents." Thea shook her head at River.
"What exactly can I do to help them?" River scoffed, glancing over to the TARDIS, "I can't drive that thing."
"Of course you can." Thea smiled, "you're the child of the TARDIS, she'll help you."
River looked at them and to the TARDIS before nodding and getting up moving to the box.
Thea snapped her fingers, opening the door to let River in. She could easily go and get Amy and Rory herself, even gone with River. The woman had said she helped her teach her to pilot, she assumed that meant step by step by maybe it was jsut letting her go and figure it out herself either help from the TARDIS.
She didn't want to leave the Doctors side right now. She knew he wouldn't die despite what everyone else said, they was a way to burn out the poison, it was more of a last resort than anything.
He couldnt die here.
He died in Utah, 2012.
"Doctor!" Amy shouted as she and Rory came running over, River hanging back, "You can't die now." She shook her head, "I know you don't die now."
"Oh, Pond," the Doctor smiled, "you've got a schedule for everything."
"But it doesn't make any sense..." Amy looked at Thea, knowing she knew he didn't die.
That was why the girl was so unconcerned of him dying, as far as she was concerned he wasn't going to die here.
"Doctor, what do we do?" Rory asked him, "Come on. How do we help you?"
"No. Sorry, Rory, you can't." he sighed, "Nobody can."
"Except..." Thea cut in.
"No."
"But..."
"No," he waved his hand in her direction, like he was trying to cover her mouth when she took it, and held it between her own. "Ponds, listen to me. I need to talk to your daughter."
Both Amy and Rory moved away as River slowly came closer.
"Find her." The Doctor told her softly, "Find River Song and tell her something from me."
"Tell her what?" River frowned.
"That I forgive her. For everything."
"Well, I'm sure she knows..." River tried to say but trailed off seeing the Doctor loose conscious. She swallowed hard and looked at Thea, "Who's River Song?"
"You are." She told her bluntly.
"No, I'm not. I'm Melody. Melody Pond."
"Melody Pond," she shrugged, "River Song. A name is just what you choose for yourself."
Amy made her way to the robot, "Are you still working? Because I'm still a relative. Access files on River Song."
"Records available." The robot spoke.
"Show me her. Show me River Song."
River stared as the robot transformed into herself just wearing very different clothing. She turned to Thea, tears in her eyes. The girl clearly knew a way to save him. Making comments of being psychic, she must know a way to save him and that was why she wasn't upset. He had been minutes from death and all he wanted to do was save her parents. "How do I save him?"
"Ten regenerations is enough to burn out the poison." Thea told her, "what do you say?" Her hands faintly glowed with her own regeneration energy, "want to split? Five each?"
River nodded, letting her own remaining regeneration energy drift to her hands as she knelt down besides the Doctor, placing her hands on his chest, letting the energy flow through into him and deciding she would willing us the rest of her own to save him.
It was her fault he was dead, it was only fair she was the one to save him.
~.~
River opened her eyes, not even realising she had passed out, finding herself lying in bed in a stark white hospital room, her parents, the Doctor and Thea around her bedside.
"Hey." Amy smiled at her.
"Hey." River blinked trying to wake herself up more, "Where am I?"
"You're safe now. Apparently, you used all your remaining regenerations in one go. You shouldn't have done that."
"Mother, I had to try."
"I know."
"He said no-one could save him, but they must have known I could."
"Rule 1." Thea sighed.
"The Doctor lies." He added.
"She just needs to rest." One of the nurses walked off as River's drifted back to sleep, "She'll be absolutely fine."
"No, she won't." The Doctor shook his head, pulling out a TARDIS themed diary from his pocket and putting it down on the table, "She will be amazing."
"So that's it, we leave her there?" Amy asked as they headed back to the TARDIS.
"Sisters of the Infinite Schism." The Doctor remarked, "Greatest hospital in the universe."
"Yeah, but she's our daughter. Doctor, she's River and she's our daughter."
"Amy, I know. But we have to let her make her own way now. We have too much foreknowledge. Dangerous thing, foreknowledge." The Doctor glanced at the monitor where he had hacked into the robot to get more information on why the Silence want him dead.
"What's that?" Amy moved around to peak.
"Whose murder?" Amy asked, "Will we see her again?"
"Oh, she'll come looking for us." Thea smirked.
"Yeah, but how? How do people even look for you?"
"Oh Pond." the Doctor smiled at her, "Haven't you figured that one out yet?"