The Defender of Time

Three

December 24, 1892

Alessia awoke with a start, letting her eyes remain closed, immediately regretting leaving her sleep. She had just had the most amazing, impossible dream. She had been on a different planet, and younger.

Sitting inside of a large, ornate office, she was wearing what looked like a red robe, with gold accentuating the sleeves. A man, wearing an outfit similar, but more accentuated, had been sitting opposite her, giving her orders of some kind.

And then, she was wandering the streets of London, still younger, dazed and confused, when a woman walked up to her, holding her hand out and offering her a place to stay for awhile.

Then, she was screaming, wailing, she was in so, so much pain. A man stood over her, in a white lab coat, talking quickly to the man next to him: "She's got two, how can she have two?"

"Alessia! You're awake!" Came a vaguely familiar voice. She opened her eyes. This was not her bedroom. This was not anyone's bedroom, unless someone had horrible tastes in design. The walls were made of metal, with three hospital beds lined up along one wall. She appeared to be lying in a fourth. Across the room from her, tables stocked with medicine, surgical tools, and bandaging materials glared at her, and she recoiled at the sight of a particularly large needle.

The source of the voice walked in then, and she matched the voice with the warm face: it was Amy.

"Here, put on the glasses, they'll help." Amy helped Alessia sit up, handing her the round glasses and offering a warm smile. "Better?"

Alessia nodded slowly. "Where am I? Is this the blue box?"

Amy nodded encouragingly. "Yeah, it is. We're in the blue box. So," she hesitated for a moment, looking for words. "How come you didn't tell the Doctor you were... you know..."

Alessia looked at her quizzically, but before she had a chance to answer, Rory ran into the room, shooting a scolding look at Amy.

"A little girl wakes up after being unexplainably unconscious for nearly twenty-four hours and you don't call for the actual nurse?"

He quickly rushed to Alessia's side, checking for a fever and putting a stethoscope to the right side of her chest. She giggled a bit.

"My heart's on the other side, mister. You're a nurse, shouldn't you know that?"

"I've got to check both," he said calmly, moving the stethoscope to the other side of her chest.

"Both what?" she asked innocently.

Amy laughed uneasily. "Both hearts, Alessia. Make sure they're both beating alright."

"Hearts?" asked Alessia, increasingly confused. "What do you mean?"

"You mean you don't know?" Rory sounded even more confused than Amy was.

"Know what?"

"Stupid Raggedy Man," muttered Amy. "Always forgets the details with us. Right, Alessia," she said, turning to the girl. "Are you alright to stand?"

"Yes, I suppose, but--"

"Good, then we've got some running to do."

Amy helped a weary Alessia out of the hospital bed, and then, as soon as she was sure the girl was feeling alright, they began to run.

First, they ran down an empty hallway that was definitely much longer than it looked like when they finally rounded the corner into the centre room Alessia had entered from. Then, Amy threw open the door, pushing Alessia out unexpectedly. Alessia fell down to the carpet, not recognising where she was at first.