SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST

Chapter Twenty Two

Eleven was overjoyed when the door opened and River smiled at him.

"Ah! Knew I could count on you!" Eleven said before she ran to embrace him. "And Pond! There you are," he said, looking over River's shoulder when Amy appeared at the door.

Amy started to step out and froze when she noticed the raptors. The Doctor looked at Rory who was gazing at his wife but not daring to go to her and he looked at Rose who was watching River with what he thought was a sad expression on his face. The Doctor didn't relish telling River about her but he decided first things first since Amy was already asking where Rory was. The Doctor put his hand on Rory's back.

"River, Amy, this is Rory," he said.

Amy searched his face for signs that he was teasing her and when she realized she wasn't, she and River stared at Rory in silent horror.

"It's alright, he won't hurt you, it's just Rory in raptor form," Eleven said.

"Rory?" Amy said, coming towards him slowly.

Rory walked over to her and Amy gasped when he nuzzled her cheek and cooed in her ear. River walked up and put her hand on Rory's back and Rory looked over his shoulder at her and cooed at her.

"How?" Amy said to Eleven.

"The Valeyard mutated him and Rose here," Eleven said, gesturing to Rose. "And tried to enslave them with mind control collars so they would be forced to kill all of us. We managed to get the collars off and they're not a threat now."

"Wait? That bastard I just knocked out did this to my husband?" Amy growled as she pointed behind her to the TARDIS interior. "Ooo, I'm gonna kill him."

"Take a number and get in the queue," Jack said.

Ten whispered to Rose to follow her as he walked towards the TARDIS. As they walked, Rose looked briefly at Eleven before stepping inside. Meanwhile, Amy was hugging Rory around the neck while Rory tried to hug her back.

"Can he be cured?" Amy said to Eleven when she broke off the hug.

"I think so," Eleven said.

Rory chittered at him.

"There's more of you?" Eleven said. "Oh…oh no…the other raptors, of course."

"What's going on?" Amy said.

"I speak raptor."

"Okay, is there anything you don't speak?" Amy said while River chuckled.

"No, I can pretty much speak anything," Eleven said smugly.

He asked River to help carry Amala into the TARDIS and he grabbed the upper half of her body while River grabbed the lower. Amy stayed by Rory's side while they and Jack followed them into the TARDIS. By the time they got inside, the Doctor, Rose and the Valeyard were gone. Eleven asked Jack and Rory to wait in the console room while he and River carried Amala back to the med bay. While they did it, Eleven planned to tell River about Rose in private and explain to her who she was and how much she meant to him.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX

While they were doing that, Rose was carrying the unconscious Valeyard on her back while Ten led her back to the cells.

"You're being very helpful, Rose," Ten said to her while they walked. "I might have to keep you as a raptor after all."

He noticed Rose was silent and glanced at her. He thought he saw sadness on her face while she walked beside him.

"Rose, are you alright?" he said gently.

I'll be alright, Rose chittered softly.

"Is anything wrong?" the Doctor asked.

I can't tell you, Rose chittered back.

"You found out something about our future, yours and mine," the Doctor stated.

Rose nodded. The Doctor put his hand on her neck.

"Whatever it is, we'll survive it. We're both survivors," Ten said gently.

Rose nodded.

"And once this is over, I'm erasing your memories of the other me and what happened here."

Good, Rose chirped.

"I have to do it as well since I can't know my own future," the Doctor said, stroking her neck. "But listen, whatever happens, whatever is going to happen, remember to cherish each moment and make it special. Okay?"

Rose nodded and the Doctor stroked her neck.

"Sure you don't want to be my tauntaun?" the Doctor teased.

He smiled when he noticed a smile spreading across Rose's snout and she shook her head.

"But it would impress the Daleks," the Doctor said. "Me on your back with a huge scimitar and you barking like you did when there was danger. The Daleks will wet themselves…if they urinate. Do Daleks urinate?"

He smiled when he heard Rose let out a series of barks that he thought sounded like laughter to him. He asked and got conformation of that from her and he rubbed her snout.

"You and me, we're a team and we'll always be a team," he said fondly as they walked. "Team Tauntaun, that's us."

Rose snuffled out laughter and nuzzled his hand for a moment before they turned the corner and headed for the cellblock.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

River was astonished while she listened to the Doctor explaining who Rose was. Both of them were helping stabilize Amala and she was lying on a padded examination table while they stood on either side of her. The Doctor was starting a saline drip into her arm and River was rubbing a cream on her lower body that would help counteract the frostbite.

"And this is who you used to love?" River said, glancing at the Doctor while she applied the cream.

"I still love her, River. But Rose in the present is in another universe. This is a past version and she's still with me. This is long before I met you and once we're through here, she'll go back with him and I expect both of them will erase all this from their memories so they won't have knowledge of future events. I admit I kissed her but I do miss her just like I would miss you if you were in another universe. But that's all we did and she bares no ill will against you for loving me. I hope you don't do the same to her, especially since she is leaving here."

"Well, I can't fault you for having a life before me," River said, finishing with the cream and grabbing a white cotton blanket. "After all, you are far older than I am."

"Yes, I am and I have loved many people in my lifetimes. Not saying that to upset you, just stating a fact. Some humans have many loves in their lifetime, do they not?"

River nodded as she covered Amala with the blanket. The Doctor left his work for the moment and walked over to her. He took her hands.

"River, it hurt to lose her and I know it hurt for her to lose me. But I need to move on with my life and she will do the same. If you were in her place and you were in another universe I would want you to go on and wouldn't you want me to do it as well?"

"Of course I would but I would always love you."

"And that is how Rose feels. Except she hasn't lost me yet but I had to get her to trust me since that bastard impersonated me and tried to manipulate her. We were thrown together, even before Rory came along and she carried over her feelings of love for me that she has for my previous self, just like she did when I was my ninth self and regenerated. I'm not asking you to be best mates, just be civil to her until she leaves. Can you?"

River nodded and smiled when Eleven kissed her cheek.

"I told her that you both have a special place in my hearts and that's the truth. I have two hearts so there's one for each of you."

River nodded and squeezed his hands. She chuckled when Eleven tweaked her nose playfully and walked back to Amala's side.

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