DOCTOR WHO: Arising -- A Nova Sue Prequel (Part 1.5)

Chapter 3: Telling the Parents

The Doctor takes River to tell her parents the good news.

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River was already knocking on her parents' door before the TARDIS even finished dematerializing.

Though, looking back, two seconds later, she began having second thoughts. She suddenly felt uneasy about being here, as, over a month ago, she was literally standing with her husband over her parents' grave in Manhattan, New York, after a nasty run-in with the Weeping Angels, and she hadn't seen them since. To her, now it almost felt wrong to be standing on their doorstep after witnessing what will soon be (to them) a tragic future, and one that could not be prevented.

Not that she had any time to make her mind up, because she could hear rapid footsteps approaching the door from inside the house. The door opened, and her mother, the lovely Amelia Williams (formerly Amelia Pond, or "Amy," as she now preferred to be called), emerged, wearing a long cooking apron over her chest.

"River!" she exclaimed upon seeing her daughter, wrapping her arms around her. "It's so good to see you!"

"It's good to see you too, Mother," River replied, returning the hug.

Though, it was a very tense hug, as this was the first hug she'd given her mother since New York. That sense of wrongness increased the longer they embraced, and at this point River was telling herself, don't cry, don't cry, don't cry, and yet one tear still managed to slip down her cheek. Damn hormones, she thought as she quickly wiped it away, hoping her mother wouldn't notice.

And, luckily, she didn't, as she said, happily guiding her daughter inside, "Come in! Your father and I are almost finished cooking lunch."

"Ooh!" River smiled. "What's on the menu?"

"Steak and Mash."

"Tasty."

River followed her mother into the living room where she saw her father, Rory Williams, reading the day's newspaper.

"Hello, Father Dear," she greeted him.

"Hey, River," her father smiled as he stood up and hugged her, much like Amy. "I didn't expect you to visit."

River shrugged. "I was in the neighborhood and thought I'd stop by for a few hours." Which was half-true, she thought, as she actually insisted on the Doctor dropping her off to tell them the good news—at least, she hoped it'd be good news to them. "I hope that's alright."

"Of course that's alright!" Amy said as she came back into the living room from the kitchen to check on the meal. "You're always welcome here, Mels."

"Thanks, Mummy Dearest," River smiled as she sat on the sofa across from Rory as he sat back in his chair, setting the newspaper aside.

"So, what's new in your life?" he asked as he sat in a comfortable position, crossing his legs.

"In as few spoilers as possible," Amy added jokingly as she joined her daughter on the sofa.

"Not much, at least spoiler-wise," River chuckled. "Just finished my sixteenth year teaching at Luna University, and now I'm just settling in for a long holiday."

"Nice," Rory nodded proudly.

Amy smiled, just as impressed. "Wow! Sixteen years! No wonder you look so exhausted. You definitely deserve a long break."

"I see you've put on a few pounds as well," Rory said in a slightly concerned tone. "Are you feeling alright, River?"

Oh, here we go, River thought, rolling her eyes. Father's going into Nurse-Mode again. Typical.