For those that want more angst...

TARDIS, After Vampires of Venice
Side note: different take to Him (AU)

She leaned against the walls of the TARDIS kitchen, watching Amy put the kettle on. There was a skip in her step, for she was still buzzing with excitement from the adventure the quartet just had. Yes, she had to admit, it was a great adventure that made her feel as those ten doses of adrenaline was injected into her veins. The sense of danger, the suspense, the running, it was all there. However, it wasn't the same.

Everything felt different, no, actually, everything IS different.

There were still companions, but they weren't Donna, or Martha, or even Jack. Sure, it was Rory's first time on the ship as well, and she did enjoy his presence around, he seemed like the most sensible type of guy that would actually survive a zombie apocalypse. Amy was brilliant too, she always needed the girl company when it came to traveling, but nonetheless, traveling with the both of them changed the sort of aura.

The TARDIS was still there and always will be, the time capsule that takes them to where they're needed. Yet, she's changed as well. The interior, that is. No more coral structures that were rough to the touch, no more soothing blue glow that was emitted from below the metal grates. Instead, it was entirely replaced with what seemed like a playground. More than one set of staircase that led to who knows where, two levels in just the console room alone, a swing just below the console even, and a soft orange glow that lit up the room. Heck, there was even a small TV set and more levers. Even the kitchen she was standing in changed, there were more cabinets, definitely, and the table was made of entirely glass, unlike the wooden one back then. The atmosphere just changed to seem a bit more...child-like.

And then there was the Doctor. If she were to rate the level of change that everything around her has experienced, then the Doctor gets the highest rating of all. Everything, and she really meant it, everything has changed about him. No more pinstripe suit or trench coat that was definitely oversized for a matchstick like him, no more old, worn-out converse shoes that he never seemed to get replaced, and definitely no more...him. He now wears a tweed jacket, suspenders, new polished shoes, and a bow tie. His sonic? Changed to become longer, and now spotting a green light instead of blue. The biggest change isn't his sense of fashion, she always knew it would be horrible, but it was him. His face changed, yes, alright, no more seeing that daft old face which she never got tired of seeing. Not that she was to judge, anyway. He changed in the way he acted, and that bothered her a lot. He's still smart, he still has that ability to outsmart people, but he handles it differently. It's like his mental self has become younger than before. He's changed the way he interacts with her, that's for sure. Maybe it's because Amy and Rory were around, but he never neglected a companion before. She doesn't know how to describe it, but she can't sense the Doctor that he used to be. Not anymore.

"So, what kind of tea do you want?"

Amy's words brought her back to reality. She wasn't sure how deep she was in her little world, but deep enough not to realise the kettle had done its job and the redhead was already setting the table. People always say time seems to stop when you're in the TARDIS, but how much time passes in the machine itself?

She shook her head, "No thanks."

The Scottish girl placed a cup, the same colour as her ginger hair, down on the table. She lifted the kettle, steam emerging from its sprout, and poured the water gingerly into the cup.

"Not a tea person then?" She asked, smiling brightly at the younger girl.

"Keeps me awake at night, not a good thing," She replied, returning a small smile.

"C'mon, have a seat, I won't bite," Amy offered, patting the end of the table across from her. Reluctantly, she sat down.

Amy was clearly still feeling the adrenaline rush through her veins, she didn't look a single bit tired. She took a sip of tea, and started what seemed to be an interview with her.

"So, where'd he pick you up?"

She raised a brow, then lowered it, realizing where this was going, and said, "I don't really know. It was raining, I was lost, then he appeared, took me somewhere sheltered."

"That's it?" The redhead asked, not impressed, "Not some 'crash into backyard, leaves and comes back 20 years later' that sort of thing?"

Her eyes fell to the table, "Yeah, I wasn't in the right mind at that time, so I don't really know the full details, never got the chance to ask him," She paused, digesting what Amy had just said, "I assume that's what happened to you?"

Amy suppressed a snort, "Yep, raggedy old man came late."

She laughed quietly, knowing that the Doctor was never on time, and never keeps track of it.

"How old are you?" Amy blurted out, "Sorry, you just seen a bit young for this, no offense."

"None taken," She replied, thumbs twiddling below the table surface, away from Amy's sight, "Just turned 16 a month ago."

"Is it always this dangerous? Does the Doctor know what kind of danger he puts you in?"

"Yeah, he does. Otherwise he wouldn't have taken me in and along with him."

There was a brief silence that fell in the kitchen, perhaps Amy thought she went a bit too far. She decided to keep the conversation going.

"Are you and Rory..."

"Engaged," Amy answered, pride showing on her face, "We're getting married tomorrow, 26 of June."

She smiled, "Congratulations? But isn't tomorrow..."

"A long way to go?" Amy interrupted, "Yep, that's what happens with the Doctor."

"I wouldn't change it, though. Traveling with him has been a blast, and Rory's decided to stay, so that makes things even better."

She nodded in acknowledgement, not knowing what to say about that. Amy noticed, and changed the subject.

"Where're they? Tea's getting cold."

"You know, guy and an alien," She said, "Always late. Who knows what they're up to?"

The Scott choked back a laugh, for she had just taken a sip of tea. She stood up, fumbling in her jean pockets.

"Gotta go back to the console room, left my pen there," She turned to walk out of the kitchen, "See you later, Amy."

"See you," Amy gave a small wave as she watched the girl turn to her right, and her ears picked up two familiar voices to the left.

"Rory, can you just say it once? I like it when companions say it, but you didn't."

"Look, Doctor, I told you, I read up about sci-fi after that freaky eyeball thing, I expected it."

"C'mon Rory!"

"No."

Amy watched with glee as the two boys entered the kitchen, glad that they were getting along just fine.

"There's my boys!"

The Doctor spun around, for his back was facing the girl, "Amy! Made tea then, I suppose?"

"Yep," The girl handed Rory a glass cup, "Your favourite."

Rory kissed her on the cheek, "Thank you."

"Where's mine?"

"Sorry Doctor, didn't know what kind of tea you wanted, you gotta help yourself there."

The couple didn't notice the Doctor's short pout as he searched through the cupboards for a tea bag. Rory took a seat beside his fiancé, and the Doctor, across them.

"So, how was Venice?" The Timelord asked the two, but the question was more directed to Rory.

"Great! Loved it!"

"Even with the freaky vampires slash girls transformed into aliens thing?" Rory questioned Amy's answer but was then met with her glare, forcing him to add on, "Yeah! It was a brilliant place to take us to for a date! Thanks!"

The Doctor grinned and took a sip of his tea from his TARDIS blue cup, "Glad you enjoyed it, Pond, so! Where to next?"

"Do you not get tired after one?" Rory stared at the two in disbelief, who shook their heads innocently.

Amy set her cup down, "Why not we let (Y/N) choose? Maybe she knows places better than you." She pointed a finger at the Doctor, who avoided her look.

"Yeah, she seems less likely to get us all killed," Rory agreed wholeheartedly, "Where did she go?"

"She said she left something in the console room, went to get it."

"But the console room is to the left, I saw her turn right."

The couple turned to face the Doctor, who had, for unknown reasons, became very quiet.

"Doctor?" Rory asked, trying to gain his eye contact, "Is there something going on between you two?"

Amy nodded, "Yeah, there's this sort of...tension thing. I talked to her just now, didn't seem really excited."

The Doctor looked up and forced a smile, "What do you mean? We're fine, I'm sure she's fine, she needs some time to adjust."

"She doesn't look fine," Rory pointed out, "In Venice, she didn't really look that happy. This may be my first trip but I'm pretty certain she usually isn't like that."

"Same here," His fiancé agreed, "Unless you're Rory, most of your companions should be more enthusiastic about adventures."

"Hey!"

"Alright, alright!" The Doctor surrendered and stood up, "Rory the nurse and Amy the pond, since you're so observant and concerned, I'll go talk to her, happy?"

"Yes, very happy."

With that, the Doctor left the kitchen, leaving his empty tea cup on the counter near the door. The couple looked at each other, not sure what he was getting himself into.

---

The Doctor turned right, left, and right again. He spun around, backtracking a bit and took the left turn instead. It couldn't be that she turned right and disappeared immediately after.

"C'mon old girl, where did she go?" He wondered aloud. The TARDIS responded with the flickering of the corridor lights and a soft yet cheeky hum.

"Don't play games with me, this is important," The Timelord said sternly, proceeding to think out loud again, "Was she really unhappy in Venice? Did I do something wrong?"

The machine responded with a dimming of the lights.

"What did I do to upset her?" He asked himself, slapping his forehead multiple times, "Think, Doctor, think, think, think."

As he thought, he continued to walk along the corridor and reached the end of it, emerging into the console room.

"Why'd you bring me here?" He asked his machine, scanning the room for any signs of a human being. His eyes fell to the deck below the console, noticing movement coming from below it.

"Clever girl."

The Doctor walked down the stairs, in an unusually careful way. He stopped as he neared the second set of stairs, kneeled down on the transparent floor and popped his head below it. There she was, sitting on the swing, preoccupied with her thoughts. Usually, she would know he was here, but now, it's either she doesn't or she's ignoring him. The Doctor cleared his throat.

"Hello (Y/N)."

The girl didn't respond, but seemed to have stiffened instead. He continued, blowing some of his floppy hair away from his face.

"What're you doing down here? Shouldn't you be with the Ponds having tea?"

"Can't have tea, can't sleep at night," she replied in a barely audible voice. He mentally slapped himself, how could he have forgotten?

"Well then, what're you doing down here anyway?"

"Got lost," she said, not having yet turned to face the Doctor. The Timelord pulled himself up into a standing position and proceeded down the stairs.

"What were you looking for?"

"Room, couldn't find it."

He sighed, not liking what was happening. Her replies were only this short and didn't consist of any pronouns when she was upset with something, or someone, and this someone, in this case, was most probably him. He kept a cheerful look on his face.

"C'mon then, stop moping about, I'll help you find it," He offered, standing right behind her. Peering over her shoulder, he found her fiddling with her pen. Her gaze was locked to the floor, so he couldn't exactly see her facial expression.

"Found what's needed, it's okay," Her voice was becoming softer and softer, to a volume where it was probably impossible for a normal human to hear.

The Doctor took a step forward and sat down beside her, wrapping his arms around her, "What's wrong, (Y/N)? You're not yourself, even Rory's noticed and it's his first time here."

She remained quiet, shutting her eyes tight. A voice sounded in his head, a voice of someone really familiar.

"You're not yourself too."

He raised a brow, confused, but waited for her next action.

"Doctor," She started, him waiting in anticipation. She removed his arm from her shoulder gently and inhaled sharply.

"Could you..."

"Could I what?" The Doctor asked after a brief moment of silence from the girl. This time, he kept his hands to himself by fiddling with his own thumbs. He looked at her but she continued to avoid his gaze. Through the silence, he felt a voice tug at the back of his head.

"Take me home. Take me home. Why is it so hard to just tell him?"

Being the optimist, he clung onto that bit of hope that he would never have to hear those words. Another second passed, and that hope was gone.

"Take me home?"

Her words faltered. It sounded more like a question than a statement, really, but was he in the position to say no?

"Why?" He blurted out his thoughts accidentally. He reached out to hold her hand.

The moment his hand made contact hers, a burst of memory flooded his head, causing him to feel dizzy. Most were a blur, too fast for him to process, but some stood out clearly, obviously the ones he needed to see.

She and his past self were running, away from the aliens and into a room. He soniced the door to lock it, only to realise they had locked themselves inside. She shot him a look of disbelief, to which he responded with a shrug. A moment of silence later, the two burst into laughter with the alien pounding on the door behind them.

The scene changed.

He was holding not her hand, but Amy's, as they ran towards a room. She had tripped over something and fallen, slowing her down. By the time she got there, the Doctor and Amy were no where to be seen in the room, for the room led to several others. It was only after twisting and turning for perhaps three hours did she find her way back to the TARDIS. She waited for the pair to return, and when they did, he merely acknowledged her with a "Where've you been?" before giving Amy a high-five. She didn't even get the chance to reply him.

And it wasn't just that.

She had just woken up in her room on the TARDIS. She headed for the console room to look for the Doctor, but neither he nor Amy were anywhere in sight. The TARDIS displayed a foreign place on the TV screen, and she knew that the pair had gone on another adventure again, without her. She closed her eyes and sighed, waking up to Amy's face in front of her. They had returned, and Amy was wondering if she was alright. She nodded, but inside she knew she wasn't. The Doctor didn't even bother to check up on her.

His hand jerked away from hers, and the flow of memories stopped immediately. She hadn't spoken a word, but his question was answered fully.

Was this really how she saw him? How he was treating her? Had he really neglected her so much? He didn't even realise, perhaps too caught up with all the running and excitement with his new pals, all the new foes he was facing, and the new challenge of the mysterious cracks. All those did take up time, but if he wasn't mistaken, he definitely had time to care for her, or at the very least, talk. He didn't put her on his mind, like he used to. He didn't, and that's what bothered him. The worst part of all? He had no idea until he was given those flashbacks.

A pair of soft hands touched his, snapping the Doctor out of his thoughts and back to reality. This time, she looked at him straight in the eye, and he did the same. Her lips quivered before parting.

"Please?"

Another wave of dizziness hit him, not as forcefully like the last, and he was shown another flashback, one he had long since forgotten.

His younger self was prancing around the console, providing much entertainment for the girl on the chair.

"So! Where to next?" He had asked her, tapping her nose once.

"Anywhere?"

"Good choice! There's actually a place called Anywhere, down in the galaxy of..."

The rest of the words were a blur to her because she couldn't really understand what his rambling went on about.

"Doctor?" She asked suddenly, "When would you leave me?"

He stopped flicking levers and hitting buttons, stunned. Slowly, he turned around, "Why're you asking that?"

"Everyone leaves me," she replied casually, but the twist in her heart tightened, "You would too."

She watched as he averted her gaze, "I won't leave you."

"That's what they all say," she replied, "Then it'll go from a conversation a day to one per month, then per year, then none."

"Why're you asking me this?"

She remained silent, not knowing how to reply.

He walked over to her, one firm step at a time. Bending down to her height, he looked her straight in the eye, and she never forgot his words.

"I will never, ever leave you behind, or neglect you. Promise. You're special to me, and usually, it's the other way around. People leave me."

Their eye contact broke as she turned away, "Well, at least we're in the same boat."

The sound of his laughter turned into a melody that drifted aimlessly throughout the halls of the TARDIS.

Guilt rushed into the chambers of his hearts as he blinked, exiting the flashback. Her hands were no longer on his, and her eyes were fixated on the ground. Despite no words coming out from her mouth, he could hear her still, telepathically.

"Take me home, please."

"It's all so different suddenly."

"I don't wanna leave."

"I can't do this."

"I'm sorry, I need-"

"Some time away," he finished her thoughts, and she tilted her head upwards.

Finding himself staring at her, he cleared his throat to relieve the awkwardness and looked away.

"Alright," he started, "I'll take you home, if that's what you want."

He stood up and forced a smile, making his way up the stairs with her trailing behind.

"Got a life, eh? After I dropped you off the other time, must have been a while. You did grow up quite a bit, haven't you?" He blubbered away, flicking a few switches and pressing several buttons.

"So have you."

She remained silent as she brushed past him, leaning against the railings and facing away from him, towards the door.

With a pull of the lever, the Tardis whirled to life. He stood rooted to the spot, and so did she. Her hand moved to her eye and back down again. She was wiping her tears, he knew, but he doesn't know what to do. Nothing else was heard between the two other than the wheezing sound of the engines as the time machine landed.

The Doctor approached the girl, a hand reached out to touch hers, "Are...are you sure you want to go?"

She nodded once and moved slowly towards the door, withdrawing her hand away from his.

"We could go on one more adventure, like a 'see you again', that sort of thing?"

She didn't stop.

"Or you could go settle your life, I get the Ponds married, and we'll continue from where we left off, yeah?" He sniffed, but she was getting closer to the door. His voice started to break.

"You're...you're coming back, right?"

She stopped in her tracks, just as her hands touched the door. He couldn't let her slip away from his life, not like this. This wasn't how he imagined it to be.

"Please?"

The doors shut with a click of the lock. She was gone without another word, but he heard her loud and clear.

"I don't know."