A LETTER FROM THE PAST
Chapter Two (Manhattan, present day…) For a moment, the Doctor was stunned into silence while he stared at the spot where Amy had been moments before. He looked at the Weeping Angel, now frozen with its arm still extended and finger still pointed. Then rage gripped the Doctor's mind and he let out a howl of rage and flung himself at the statue. River ran to him while he beat at the stone with his fists. "YOU BASTARD!" the Doctor yelled. "I'LL RIP YOU INTO CHUNKS OF STONE WITH MY BARE HANDS, I SWEAR I WILL!" "Doctor, stop!" River said, fearful that he would keep on hitting the stone until he bloodied his fists. "Stop! You can't bring Amy and Rory back! You're going to hurt yourself!" "You bastard!" the Doctor yelled as River pulled him backwards away from the statue. He let out an enraged yell when the angel, satiated from consuming the time energy of two people, surrounded itself with light and teleported away to safety. "COWARD!" the Doctor screamed while River held him. He was about to break free of River's arms when a familiar sound stopped him cold. Both he and River stared in a disbelieving silence as a TARDIS materialized in front of them. River looked over her shoulder but their TARDIS was still there. She sensed the Doctor calming down and she let go and walked up beside him. "What's going on?" River said. "I believe I'm about to receive a visit from myself," the Doctor said. They watched while the TARDIS door opened and Ten stuck his head out. He looked at them for a few seconds. "Doctor?" he said. Eleven nodded and the Tenth Doctor stepped outside. Martha followed him and Eleven beamed and ran to her. Martha gasped when Eleven seized her in his arms, lifted her up and spun her around. "Martha! It's been ages!" he said happily as he sat her down. "Yeah, I'm glad we met…again," Martha said. "What is this? Why are you here?" Eleven said, turning to his younger self. "I met a woman called Amy Pond. She claimed to be your companion," Ten said. Eleven's eyes widened when he suddenly realized what must have happened. "You and Martha, you were battling the Daleks in 1930," he said. Ten nodded. "I was walking towards Central Park with Martha, Lazlo and Tallulah when Amy found us. She asked me to deliver a letter to you," he said, reaching into his jacket pocket and pulling out the envelope. Eleven's hearts leapt into his throat. He swallowed hard as he took the envelope from his younger self and stared at his name, written on the front in Amy's handwriting. "She asked me to bring her and her husband back but I didn't. Didn't want to endanger the timelines," Ten said while he studied the envelope. "She said you can't go and get her so I'm assuming there's a good reason for it." "Um…yeah, yeah there is," Eleven said, looking at Ten. "How did they look? Are they alright?" "You mean her and her husband?" Ten said. "I didn't see the husband but Amy looked fine. I asked if she needed help and she said no. I assume the letter will say more. Didn't read it for obvious reasons…" He trailed off when he saw the tombstone beside Eleven. He pointed to it. "Is that…" he said. "Yes, that's them," Eleven said, turning to look at it. He watched while Ten walked up to the tombstone with Martha following behind him. Ten laid his hand on the top of the gravestone before kneeling down and touching the ground in front of it. "Wonder how many times I've walked by graveyards and didn't realize that the graves of my friends were inside," he mused while he stared at the names on the grave. "I s'pose I could go find most of my friends if I went to certain points in time." He looked at Eleven. "Amy and Rory, were they brilliant?" he asked his older self. "They were more than brilliant, they were stellar," Eleven said while River shook her head. "You'll have loads of fun traveling with them." "Good," Ten said, standing up. "And you, I'm sorry, I don't know you," he said to River. "Professor River Song, pleasure," River said, extending her hand. The Doctor shook it and Martha shook her hand after him. "Martha Jones, my friend and current traveling companion," Ten said to River. "Pleasure," River said to her. "Likewise," Martha said. "Well…we need to go," Ten said to Eleven. "I did what I said I'd do and delivered the letter." "You don't want to hear what she has to say?" Eleven said to Ten. "I mean, you are erasing your memories of this, right?" "I am…actually, I am a bit curious and I know Martha is as well," he said while Martha nodded. "If you want to read it, go ahead." Eleven nodded. Everyone gathered around him while he opened the envelope and pulled out a single sheet of white paper. He unfolded it and read it aloud to everyone… Dear Raggedy Man, Well, here we are, stuck in the past and trying to make the best of it. It turns out that Rory and I were zapped back to the year 1928 so we had just enough time to find a flat and find a job for Rory before the Great Depression hit. We've been lucky. Some of our neighbors were hit hard and we've tried to help them out as best we can. Sometimes, I wish we had access to that TARDIS of yours and get out of here but we don't, so no use whinging about it. I have to admit it's odd writing a letter to you since you'll probably never read this but I felt the need to do this, probably for my own sanity actually since I'm still trying to recover from the shock of losing you permanently. I know that there were times when you left us behind in Leadworth but there was always that hope that you would return one day and whisk us away on more adventures. Now that hope is gone which is why Rory and I are trying to pick up the pieces and move on. At the moment, Rory is asleep in the bedroom while I'm sitting at our kitchen table. It's nearly two in the morning now and the flat is quiet except for Rory's snoring. It's odd not hearing the wheezing of the TARDIS. It's a sound I took for granted and I dearly miss it now. I miss that old timeship and I miss her driver. I wish you were here with us now so I can see your handsome face and your beautiful smile but I'm eternally grateful to you and the universe for bringing the TARDIS into my garden that night. You changed my life and Rory's life and we're better people because we knew you. Because we traveled with you and fought alongside you and endured hardships, we're able to adjust to being here and being in the depression. We know that whatever happens, we'll be able to cope with it because you made us see that we're stronger than we ever imagined and you gave us the confidence to stand up to anything. That is why I will never regret being sent back in time because it was worth it. And now, I probably should go to bed. I hope that wherever you are, you're happy, Raggedy Man. I want you to be happy. Don't worry about us or grieve for us, just go find someone else who will love a tour of time and space. Look after Melody for us and keep her safe and love her just as deeply as we love her. Tell her that we are always thinking of her and we will love her forever and that the same applies to you. Goodbye, my sweet, brave Doctor. Take care and continue to protect the universe. Truly yours, Your Amelia. River touched Eleven's arm when she saw tears coming to his eyes. Ten smiled tenderly when Eleven wiped the tears away. "She sounds wonderful," Ten said. "I'm looking forward to having adventures with her. But for now…we better go. Doctor, River, it's been a pleasure." Martha hugged Eleven and River. Ten hugged River and shook his older self's hand. "You'll recover from this," Ten said to Eleven. "I know. I'm just glad that they're alive and making a life for themselves. Take care of yourself and Martha." "You do the same and take care of River," Ten said. Eleven put his arm around River while they watched Ten and Martha walk back to the TARDIS. "OH!" Ten said, turning back to Eleven. "Also, Amy said to go find the page you ripped out of the Melody Malone book. There's another note for you there." Ten waved at them and let Martha go inside before he followed after her. They stood together and watched the TARDIS vanish into thin air. "Do you still have the last page then?" River said to the Doctor. "Yeah, I think I know where it is. Come on, let's go and get it," he said. He kissed River's cheek. She took his hand and squeezed it before the two of them turned and walked back towards the TARDIS. THE END.
Back Home Doctor Who Main Page