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THE SILENCE
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HOLLIE STOOD IN THE TARDIS WITH ORION, BITING HER LIP. The man had his arms crossed, pretending to watch the scanner while the Doctor spoke to President Nixon in the Oval Office, where the TARDIS was now parked.

"What you thinking?"

The voice made Hollie blink and look up from the TARDIS doors and turned to find Orion watching her.

"That's a big question." She replied.

"Then start small." He suggested. "Who are you wishing you could speak to?" He began moving, stepping slowly around the console. "I've seen that exact look on my sisters' faces before, when they want to say something but don't know how or when."

He let his arms drop to his sides finally facing her properly.

Hollie sighed. "I—" She paused, frowning . "I wish I knew."

She huffed in frustration, picking at the sleeve of her over-shirt. "I tried to talk to the Doctor earlier but River cut me off." She admitted, picking at the sleeve of her over shirt. "I wanted to tell him that something isn't right."

Orion tilted his head. "What's not right?"

"You already know." Hollie said sharply, shaking her head. "You're from the future, Orion. You know why I am acting like this so why even ask?"

"Because it makes you feel better." He said simply. "Look, yes, I know your future, and your past. But if I can help you shape what comes next, I will. I just can't give you all the answers."

Hollie nodded slowly, her voice quieter now. "I remember them."

Orion frowned. "Who?"

"Those creatures." She ran a hand through her hair. "It's fuzzy, and I probably should've said something way sooner, but ever since I walked into the TARDIS I've been having dreams. Some two nights in a row."

"About them?"

Hollie nodded. "Most of the time yeah." She shifted on her feet. "Sometimes it's just 'me'." She did air quotes. "But I know it's not because I'm not her."

"You're not who?"

"The kid." Her brow furrowed and her gaze moved to the glass flooring as the words suddenly flowed. "Not the one we've been looking for." She explained. "I'm somehow looking through a kid like hers eyes. The dreams never last long, but they're so vivid. Then they fade. I wrote the first one down the night it happened, because it freaked me out — it was my first night on the TARDIS. I barely remembered it since writing until I opened my book to write the next one."

She looked up from the glass flooring. "Is that weird?"

"Define weird when you travel through time and space with a Time Lord." Orion quipped.

Hollie let out a small laugh, though it faded quickly. "How can I be dreaming of actual creatures I've never met?"

"Either it's an almost impossible coincidence or you had met them before." He said thoughtfully, beginning to pace now. "You wouldn't remember, obviously." He nodded at her. "Not back then. You wouldn't have been exposed enough but what if you were? Slowly." He hummed. "It's not impossible. Think about it. A kid all alone, seeing creatures time and time again. You'd be terrified." He shivered slightly. "I know I would be and those dreams of yours could be your subconscious trying to make sense of it all, tell you what really happened?"

Hollie eyes narrowed slightly. "I barely remember it but... in one of them I was in New York. And those creatures were chasing me."

She swallowed hard. "I know I was a kid because I heard myself. I sounded like one. But not how I remember myself sounding."

"Right."

"And I've never been to New York." She added quietly. "Not when I was that young."

"Why haven't you told the Doctor?"

Hollie gave a nervous laugh. "Because I am terrified." Her voice cracked. "What if they did this?What if those creatures planned this? Planted me here?" She took a breath, shaky now. "What if I'm bait? What if I'm the reason they win or they kill someone?" She paused for a moment and swallowed hard, meeting Orion's eyes with tear filled ones. "It would all be my fault."

Orion stepped closer as she swallowed hard, trying to fight them off.

"He'd never blame you for that."

"Orion..." Her voice was barely above a whisper. "He blames me for dying."

He gave her a pointed look, raised eyebrows and all. "You and I both know that's not true."

"It is the truth though." She muttered, shaking her head. "More than what River said earlier."

Orion frowned. "What did River say?"

"She knows something." Hollie said rolling her eyes. "More than she's letting on. And it's big. Scary. So much so she stopped me from telling the Doctor — then followed me out of the console room to basically say 'wait it out'." She scoffed. "But I don't want to wait. I'm terrified Orion. Scared that I'm the reason That someone's going to die. Or already has. And I can't even talk to talk to him about it."

"You can talk to me." He offered. "And my sisters."

She gave him a small, grateful smile. "I appreciate it. But it's not the same."

Orion chuckled. "No, you're right. It's not. But it's better than bottling it up."

Hollie nodded. "Yeah... I guess you're right."

He grinned. "Feeling any better now you got that off your chest?"

She couldn't help but smile, he had that smug look, the'I told you so' face she'd seen before. The Doctor used to wear it too, Whenever he caught a glimpse of one of her unfinished sketches and beamed at it like it was a masterpiece while she said it horrible because it was half done.

"Yes. thank you."

Orion winked. "I told you so."

She rolled her eyes. "Of course you'd say that."

Orion went to open his mouth again only to be cut off by Hollies phone ringing.

She instantly grabbed it out of her pocket and answered, Cantons voice coming down the phone sounding far too alarmed for her liking: "It's Amy, I think they got Amy."

Hollie instantly darted to the doors, pulling them open and speaking through deep pants. "Doctor, it's Canton, he said something about Amy—"

The Doctor sprinted into the TARDIS, River, Rory and Nova on his tail.

"What's happening?" Nova questioned, watching the Time Lord run around the TARDIS, River behind him as they piloted the ship.

"Canton said Amy." Hollie quickly answered a second before the ship wheezed, landing at their destination. The Doctor was out first, the others following behind.

"Amy, can you hear me?" They heard Canton call from up the stairs. The Doctor instantly took off, the rest following after him as Canton spoke again. "Amy, I'm going to try to blow the lock. I need you to stand back."

"Okay, gun down." The Doctor called, reaching the top step and fishing out of screwdriver, flashing it at the locked door Canton was stood in front of. "I've got it."

"Amy, we're here. Are you okay?" Rory called through the door as it unlocked. The group rushed in, Hollie holding a hand near where one of her daggers was shethed.

"I can't see." They heard Amy call. Orion frowned glancing around the childrens bedroom they were now all stood in.

"Where is she, Doctor?" Rory questioned.

Cassiopeia and Nova quickly made their way over to an empty spacesuit lying in the middle of the floor, River behind them. "It's empty." Cassiopeia frowned, glancing at her sister. River nodded scanning it with her device.

"It's dark." Amy's voice filled the room. "So dark. I don't know where I am. Please, can anybody hear me?"

Hollies blood ran cold as she spotted a tiny red flashing light on the floor, Rory looked down too, his heart sinking into his stomach. "They took this out of her." He knelt down gently, picking it up and cradling it in his hands as if it was Amy herself. "How did they do that, Doctor? Why can I still hear her?"

"Is it a recording?" River asked.

The Doctor stood still for a moment, all eyes on him before he answered. "Er, it defaults to live." Hollie's hands flew to her mouth in horror. "This is current. Wherever she is right now, this is what she's saying."

Rory held the nano recorder up, speaking into it. "Amy, can you hear me? We're coming for you. Wherever you are, we're coming, I swear."

"She can't hear you." The Doctor tried gently. "I'm so sorry. It's one way."

Rory's head snapped to the Time Lord, anger flaring in his eyes. "She can always hear me, Doctor." He snapped. "Always. Wherever she is, and she always knows that I am coming for her. Do you understand me? Always."

The Doctor didn't reply, he wasn't sure what he should exactly reply with. Instead he just stood there for a long moment before closing his eyes and holding his breath as Amy's voice quietly came through the small blinking device in Rory's palm.

"Doctor, are you out there? Can you hear me? Doctor?" Her voice grew slightly louder and Hollie squeezed her eyes shut. This wasn't fair. Why did they have to take her best friend? It wasn't her who could even (barely!) remember these damn things. If anyone should have been taken it should have been her, not Amy. "Oh, God. Please, please, Doctor, just get me out of this."

Rory held up the device he was cradling in his hands towards his face again. "He's coming. I'll bring him, I swear."

Everyone instantly turned towards the door as an unfamiliar, confused voice called out. "Hello? Is somebody there?"

Canton pointed his gun. Hollie's hand twitched towards one of her daggers. She'd never actually used said it before, but it was there if she needed to and she'd try her damn best.

Canton relaxed, and so did she, as a balding man appeared in the doorway.

"I think someone has been shot." The man said.

Hollie's eyes snapped to Canton. To her knowledge, he was the only one besides River carrying a weapon, and River had been in eyesight since they got to the orphanage. She couldn't have shot anyone.

"I think we should help. We c—" He faltered, frowning. " I can't re— I can't remember."

The Doctor didn't hesitate. He darted out of the children's room. The group hot on his heels as they hurried down the stairs, through the narrow corridor, and turned sharply into a small office.

Hollie froze at the sight.

One of the creature was lying on the floor, three long disgusting and thick fingers pressed to its chest. White foam around the wound where it had clearly been shot.

Her stomach turned at the sight of it, not the wound.

The creature backed away weakly as the Doctor approached, one hand held out while crouching down towards it.

"Okay." He whispered to himself.

Hollie bit her lip, eyes flickering between the creature on the floor and the Doctor as he addressed it.

"Who and what are you?"

"Silence, Doctor." It hissed.

The voice sent a chill straight down Hollie's spine. She flinched when Orion's hand landed on her shoulder. She turned to him sharply, eyes narrowing.

Does he know?

She frowned at him briefly before her eyes flickered to Nova standing outside the room, peering in.

Do they both know what River apparently knowns? Whatever it is she's not saying?

Maybe she'd have to ask them later.

"We are the Silence," the creature hissed again. "And Silence will fall."

Hollies frown deepened. I've heard that before... She thought.

It rang in her head. She heard that name or rather what was that saying before. While she couldn't remember how long she had been exactly travelling with the Doctor, not in linear time, anyway, the words struck something deep. She remembered a voice. Hissing. Definatly not 'the Silence' as this creature claimed to be, but it was hissing about it. The day she met the Doctor again, after twelve years apart. After he crash-landed into Amelia Pond's Garden.

She'd thought it was just a dream. She had suddenly fallen asleep when they were facing Prisoner Zero.

But maybe it wasn't a dream.

She'd asked him about it two years later, what happened when she blacked out. He'd told her she was out cold. He told her that it was Prisoner Zero talking about the crack in time. That voice. It swallowed people, timelines, memories. Said he fixed it, or at least thought he did until it reappeared when they faced the Angels in the Byzanitum a day or so later.

Had these creatures came from the crack?

But that had been closed...

The Doctor made sure of that with the second Big Bang. He'd fixed it.

So if 'the Silence' was from the crack were they stuck? Forced into this universe, surviving the only way they knew how?

That still didn't explain one thing:

How did they know her?

The Doctor frowned for a long moment before he jumped up. "River, Rory, Orion, Cassiopeia and Nova back to the TARDIS. We Need to go to that warehouse where we found the little girl."

Hollie frowned. "What about Canton and I?"

The Doctor's eyes flickered to the creature on the floor before he moved past the others, dragging Hollie with him out of the room and into the corridor, walking a little way down it. "I can't trust them... obviously."

"Obviously." She echoed, crossing her arms.

"So I can't even trust you to stay in the TARDIS." He added, giving her a pointed look. "And I know you'd object if I tried."

Hollie bit her lip slightly. "It's that dangerous?"

"Hollie they took Amy." He stated flatly. "They could easily separate you and take you next. Maybe that's what they wanted all along. And as safe as the TARDIS is, you're safer with me."

Hollie sighed. "So while everyone helps, I'm supposed to just sit there, in eyesight of you?"

"No." He replied.

"No?"

"You stay beside me." He answered, like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Hollie groaned. "I want to help, Doctor. Let me do something."

"You will be helping." He protested. "Helping me help Amy by not making me worry about you."

She huffed at him then. "I'm not a child."

"No," he agreed, gaze locking with hers. "But you are Hollie Aria. And for a reason I haven't figured out yet, you're veryimportant to those creatures. That means something. And that something probably isn't good."

He stepped closer, voice dropping. "So you do as I say. And you stay. With. Me.

This was the Doctor. The real Doctor. Behind the giddy and excitable 907 year old Time Lord who loved fish fingers and custard and bow ties. The Ancient, oncoming storm. The one that made entire empires run even at a faint whisper of his name, and it was only simmering beneath the surface here. Not even out in full force.

Never had he looked at her like this and that completely frightened her because that meant that he was probably just as scared about the whole thing too.

She bit her lip and slowly nodded. Because deep down, she knew he was right.

The Silence had been in her dreams since night one aboard the TARDIS. Being next to him was the only place she would probably be safe.

But still, she wasn't helpless. She wasn't some damsel.

And if she died... she'd just regenerate again, wouldn't she?

Okay, She thought. Maybe that is a bad idea. The Doctor barely believed she was herself in this body, who knows what he'd be like if she changed again today.

×××

Hollie stayed in her room, the door locked, while the others helped the Doctor to bring the Silence into the TARDIS, and then to the Prison build at area 51.

She'd pushed back when he explained what they were doing, she really didn't want to see another one of those things again if she could help it.

Reluctantly, the Doctor agreed, on one condition: that she stayed in her room, with the door locked.

'Just in case,' he'd said.

Which made her frown, because he was always saying nothing could get through the doors of the TARDIS.

She sat curled on the bed, knees pulled tight to her chest, staring at the black TV opposite her. The dark screen faintly reflected her back at herself. She didn't move.

Not for a long time.

Eventually, she bit her lip and slid off the bed. She crossed the room to her desk, opening the draw. Her journal sat tucked inside. The one will with every dream she'd written down since that first night on the TARDIS.

She brought it back to her bed with her before opening it and flicking through the pages and reading odd entries. Starting from the beginning.

There were so many pages. At some point she'd stopped counting. It felt like years since she first started logging the dreams; strange vivid and terrifying. When she didn't sleep on the TARDIS, whether they were in the middle of an adventure, had been captured or the TARDIS herself had been taken it was a blessing. A twisted one, sure, but a blessing all the time. No sleep on the TARDIS or no sleep at all meant no dreams. No awful, impossible visions that felt too real to be fake.

She couldn't remember any of the things in her dreams ever actually happening to her, how could they when she had lived her whole life in Leadworth? She had never been to New York or any of the other strange places she had dreamed about. And yet... they felt real. Like memories, not imagination.

Hollie desperately wanted to tell the Doctor. She probably should have, ages ago. Back when the dreams stopped for a while, during the week they were stuck on Velos-3 — the planet where the Doctor had stopped a war that could have killed millions.

But chaos surrounded the Doctor. Which meant it surrounded her, too.

One of Velos-3's twenty-nine moons had been under threat, and there just hadn't been time. She wanted to tell him, really, she did — but then it was always running, always saving someone, always a step ahead of disaster.

And when it wasn't, when they finally got back to the TARDIS, after the Doctor had stopped the war, she'd been too tired. Too drained. She hadn't even known where to begin.

The planet was at war with itself; a Velosian colony tried to destroy the twenty-ninth moon. It had taken a full week for the Doctor to stop them, to save the people who would've died in the blast radius, both on the moon and the planet below.

By the time it was over, the moment had passed. They were off again, off to explore another planet and probably save someone else too.

Almost an hour later a knock sounded at the bedroom door. Hollie discovered it was Nova when she opened it. The young woman had come to retrieve her once the Silence was in the prison and apparently being treated for its wound by a Doctor that Canton had brought in.

Hollie followed Nova back through the corridors, towards the console room. She eyed the back of the blondes head suspiciously as they went, remembering the look Orion gave her when in the orphanage. If Orion knew something then Nova had to know something too. It seemed if one of them knew a detail all three of them did so.

"You know don't you." Hollie cut through the silence as they walked. Nova tensed slightly and Hollie spotted it instantly.

"I don't know what you're talking about." She denied.

Hollie huffed and quickened her pace slightly to walk beside the other woman. "You three know about my dreams."

Nova closed her eyes briefly and Hollie waited for her to reply. "We know your future Hollie. Of course we know of your dreams."

"River stopped me from telling the Doctor."

Nova turned to her. "She probably had a good reason."

This made Hollie frown. It didn't make sense. Why would River stop Hollie from seeking help? From telling the Doctor what was going on?

"But why?" She questioned. "Nova they recognise me. They somehow know me but I don't know them."

"You don't remember you know them." Nova pointed out.

That only confused Hollie more. "But where did I see them before? Where do I know them from? How could I have crossed paths with the Silence before and yet no one else has?"

"You don't know that nobody else has." She answered. "The Doctor could have faced them countless times and he would have no knowledge of such things. You could have been there with him. Amy and Rory too."

Hollie shook her head. "But why would I have had no dreams of that? A lot of my dreams are from a child's point of view and that isn't possible because I have had seen those things as a child. I hadn't even ever left Leadworth until I went to America for a school trip when I was in year twelve." She sighed and ran a hand through her hair. "It doesn't make sense and I really want to tell the Doctor but apparently I can't."

"Everything will be fine Hollie." Nova reassured which actually made Hollie more unsettled. "If it was that dangerous River wouldn't stop you."

"Will be fine?" She repeated. "That's not very reassuring Nova."

The woman shrugged. "I can promise you that it all works out. I'm from the future."

Hollie sighed and slowly nodded. She wasn't going to get much out of the other woman. 'Spoilers' as River said and all that. Now she knew just why the Doctor hated that damn word so much.

The two reached the console room shortly after, Hollie followed Nova to the doors and they left the TARDIS, stepping back into the abandoned warehouse they were last in three months ago.

The Doctor and River were examining a spacesuit with alien technology attached to it. Cassiopeia was sat with Rory who was still holding the small non recorder like his life depended on it.

"But why phone the President?" The Doctor questioned, glancing at River.

"It defaults to the highest authority it can find." She shrugged. "The little girl gets frightened, the most powerful man on Earth gets a phone call. The night terrors with a hotline to the White House."

Hollie frowned as she walked towards them, the Doctor brought out a TARDIS blue envelope, studying it and then sniffing it. She watched him curiously and grimaced slightly as he licked the back of it.

"You won't learn anything from that envelope, you know." River hummed from where she still stood beside the spacesuit.

"Purchased on earth. Perfectly ordinary stationery." He explained, waving it slightly. "TARDIS blue." He continued to wave it around. "Summoned by a stranger who won't even show his face. That's a first, for me." He suddenly spun around. "How about you Hollie?"

She watched him for a moment, River's eyes flickering between them both. "I thought it was you." She replied, stepping towards him and bringing her envelope out of her pocket and showing it to him.

The Doctor took the envelope from her and flipped it around a few times, even comparing it to his. "It wasn't me." He told her before licking her envelope and then handing it back to her. She scrunched her nose up in disgust and quickly pocketed the paper.

He tilted his head at her. "How did you even get it? You were in Kingsbury." He frowned. "You weren't even supposed to be in Kingsbury."

Hollie's eyes met River for a brief second. She had stepped away from the spacesuit slightly, watching the pair so carefully, like a cat stalking its prey. She shook her head slightly and Hollie knew in her gut she should have told him the truth. Told him it was Cassiopeia, but not the Cassiopeia standing near Rory and her siblings right now. A Cassiopeia from sometime in the future.

But she didn't. That would just bring more questions and it was just an invitation; it wasn't like anyone had gotten hurt from an invitation to a diner of all places.

Plus it had brought her back to the Doctor and as much as she said she hated him and was glad he was gone in the eight months she spent in the pub with Edith in Kingbury, she did miss him.

Stupid Hollie.

"Edith just brought it to me one day." She shrugged. "Said the postman delivered it."

He frowned, spinning on his heels to look at River now. "And what about you, River Song?"

River stayed silent for a long moment, the Doctor stepped closer to her, watching her carefully as Hollie could see her picking her words carefully. Like she had when Hollie asked her why she stopped her telling the Doctor about the dreams.

Oh, she knew something. Something she wasn't willing to give up.

"Our lives are back to front." She settled on. "Your future's my past. Your firsts are my lasts."

"That's not really what I asked." He countered.

"Ask something else, then." She shot back, turning her attention to the Spacesuit and the scanning device in her hand.

"What are the Silence doing, raising a child?"

"Keeping her safe, even giving her independence."

The Doctor began to pace. "The only way to save Amy is to work out what the Silence are doing."

"I know." Rory said, watching him.

"And every single thing we learn about them brings us a step closer," he Doctor said, clicking his fingers as he spoke for emphasis.

That made Hollie feel guilty. Very guilty.

"Yeah, Doctor, I get it. I know." Rory echoed.

"Of course, it's possible she's not just any little girl." He added.

Orion frowned. "What would she be, then?"

"I don't know." The Doctor huffed. "You try coming up with something."

"Well, I'd say she's human, going by the life support software." River said, reading her device.

"But?" The Doctor prompted, dragging out the word. Nova looked over River's shoulder, and nodded slightly.

"She climbed out of this suit." River said. "Like she forced her way out. She must be incredibly strong."

"Or she had help?" Cassiopeia frowned, scanning the suit with her screwdriver. She held up the broken restraints. "She was asking for help. If she needed help to get out, how did she just do it on her own?"

"Help or no help. She's incredibly strong and running away. I like her."

"We should be trying to find her." River pointed out.

"Yes, I know. But how?" The Doctor asked. "Anyway, I have the strangest feeling she's going to find us."

He turned as the crackling voice of a NASA feed being broadcasted drew his attention to the small television set up in the warehouse.

"Apollo 11, this is Houston. How do you read? Over."

"Why does it look like a NASA spacesuit?" Hollie asked.

"Because how else would they go to space?" Orion pointed out.

The Doctor snapped his head to him, pointing at him. "Oh, you are good!" He laughed, then looked at River, Hollie and Rory, all wearing blank faces.

"Think about it." He pointed at the TV. "They don't make anything themselves. They don't have to. They get other life forms to do it for them."

"So they're parasites, then." River guessed.

"Superparasites," the Doctor waved her off. "Standing in the shadows of human history since the very beginning. We know they can influence human behaviour any way they want. If they've been doing that on a global scale for thousands of years..."

"Then what?" Rory asked.

"Then why did the human race suddenly decide to go to the Moon?"

The countdown on the TV began.

"Ten, nine. Ignition sequence start."

"You mean the Silence are the reason people went to space?" Hollie asked.

He nodded.

"six, five, four..."

"The Silence needed a spacesuit."

"But that's insane." She shook her head. "Everything couldn't have stared because a group of aliens needed a spacesuit."

"Why does anything start Hollie?" He asked. "Because someone needs or wants something."

She shook her head. "Why are we even watching the launch?" She asked. "Why are we even here?"

The Doctor huffed. "Come on Hollie! This is obvious, catch up. The Silence are controlling humanity like puppets — making sure you lot fall in-line, do what they want, because they can. Because you won't remember. And then they need a spacesuit, for this little girl, so they make you build one. They're superparasites, they don't need to do anything, because you do it for them. But we can stop it."

Orion frowned. "Using the television?"

"Exactly!" He grinned. "How many people on Earth are going to watch the moon landing?

"Around six hundred and fifty million." Nova replied instantly. "Give or take."

"And that's a lot of people." He took one of Rivers devices as a message popped up. He smirked, showing it to Hollie: the image of the Silence, lying on the ground in the area 51 prison, staring into the camera."

"You should kill us all on sight."

He grinned. "We just need that."

Hollie shook her head. "Sorry." She said suddenly.

He blinked, lowering the device "What for?"

"It's just been a hell of a day."

He patted her shoulder. "It's okay." He said. Then after a beat: "I am sorry too."

Hollie's eyebrows rose. Was this it? Was he finally seeing her?

"I'm sorry I left you for eight months."

No, of course not. Stupid Hollie.

She nodded slowly and sat beside Rory, who was still cradling Amy's nano recorder. The redhead's quiet sobs came through. Cassiopeia followed Hollie, sitting on her other side.

"He's trying." She said whispered, watching the Doctor as he studied River's device, then moved to scan the television.

"Not enough." Hollie muttered, lifting her eyes to him.

Nova and River were scanning the spacesuit. The glove twitched. Nova stepped back.

"This suit," River said slowly, frowning. "It seems to be repairing itself. How's it doing that?" She looked up. "Doctor, a unit like this, would it ever be able to move without an occupant?"

"Why?" He asked.

"Well... the little girl said the spaceman was coming to eat her. Maybe that's exactly what happened."

"I love you." Amy's voice whispered from the nano recorder. Rory looked down at it, stunned at how she said those words. Her voice, soft as it was, filled the room. The Doctor froze.

"I know you think it's him. I know you think it ought to be him, but it's not. It's you. And when I see you again, I'm going to tell you properly, just to see your stupid face."

Hollie looked at Rory. She could see it on his face. The heartbreak, but she knew Amy. Amy meant him, not the Doctor.

"My life was so boring before you just dropped out of the sky." Amy continued.

Hollie bit her lip, Amy's metaphors were not helping.

"So just get your stupid face where I can see it, okay? Okay?"

Cassiopeia sighed and she shook her head as the Doctor approached. He ignored her. Hollie shifted slightly, letting him sit between her and Rory.

"She'll be safe for now." He said quietly. "No point in a dead hostage."

"Doctor!" Hollie hissed, swatting his arm.

"What?" He huffed, clearly offended.

"You can't just say things like that." She narrowed her eyes at him. "Idiot."

He grumbled under his breath. Rory looked at him. "Can't you save her?"

The Doctor shrugged. "I can track that signal back," he said, pointing at the nano recorder. "Take us right to her."

"Then why haven't you?" Rory snapped.

Hollie's eyes flickered between them nervously.

"Because then what?" The Doctor asked. "I find her and then what do I do? This isn't an alien invasion. They live here. This is their empire. This is kicking the Romans out of Rome."

"Rome fell." Rory pointed out.

"I know." The Doctor nodded "I was there."

"So was I." Rory said quietly.

The Doctor watched Rory for a long moment, silence surrounding them while Hollie and the triplets watched closely.

"Personal question." The Doctor said suddenly.

Rory blinked. "Seriously, you."

The Doctor nodded. "Do you ever remember it?" He asked. "Two thousand years, waiting for Amy? The last Centurion."

"No." Hollie raised her eyebrows, she could tell he was lying. So could the Doctor.

"You're lying."

"Of course I'm lying."

"Of course you are. Not the sort of thing anyone forgets."

"But I don't remember it all the time." He admitted. "It's like this door in my head. I can keep it shut."

Amy's voice returned through the recorder, still crying.

"Please, please, just come and get me. Come and get me."

Hollie bit her lip and looked at the Doctor as he stared at the television. "Doctor, what do we do?"

"We save Amy." He replied and turned to her, giving her the same look he gave her earlier in the orphanage. "Don't leave my side, Hollie."

She sighed. Orion stepped forward. "We'll look after her." He said, nodding to his sisters. They both nodded in agreement.

"I don't need babysitting." Hollie huffed. "I am an adult."

The Doctor gave her a look.

River stopped scanning the spacesuit and approached. "There's nothing else to check."

The Doctor nodded and stood, the others rising with him. "Let's go get Amy Pond back."

Hollie lingered, eyes on the television. The rocket climbed higher and higher on the tiny screen, a silent arc against the void.

Then her jaw set. She stood.

The Doctor grabbed the TV and vanished into the TARDIS. She followed.

─── ｡ﾟ☆･*.☽ .* ☆ﾟ. ───

This was way longer than I was expecting, there was just so much I knew I needed to happen in this episode because it's SO important to Hollie's story. I promise we'll move past Day of the Moon in the next chapter and then we're on to an original of mine! (I have no idea how long that will take to write so bare with me guys)
Hope you liked the chapter!