Chapter Text
Rory leant forwards towards his wife. The movement unleashed a fresh wave of pain, which spread outwards from his stomach and then lingered, aching throughout his body. Pain was constant and familiar now, but that didn’t really stop it hurting.
Amy lay in his arms, small and warm. He had been holding her for a long time, watching as she shifted in his lap or winced in pain. Now she was completely still, except for the gentle rise and fall of her chest. Rory pressed his thumb along her lips. He could feel her breath on his skin, so he kept his hand there. Her eyes were closed.
Rory was scared. His mind was too clouded for him to think coherently about why, which was probably a blessing, but his sense of dread was as pervasive as the ache in his bones. Amy was so still now that his arms barely felt her presence. If he closed his eyes it was as if she wasn’t there at all.
***
“Amy!” the Doctor kept yelling. “Amy! Rory! Ponds!” He was pacing down the corridor, banging pointlessly on its stone walls with balled fists. This would have worried River slightly, not because he might be hurting himself but because he definitely was. It would have worried her, except right now she had plenty to worry about already. As did the Doctor. She ignored him, striding onwards a little ahead of him until she reached a door.
“Doctor. Here, Doctor!” River had to raise her voice to be heard above his. She tried the handle, not surprised to find it locked. The Doctor stopped shouting, dashed over to the door and pushed in front of her, sonic at the ready. Without a backwards glance he bounded through the door. River hesitated for a moment, then followed.
Rory and Amy were on the floor in the centre of the room. Amy was lying across Rory’s legs, worryingly limp. Rory was leaning over her heavily, as if he couldn’t quite support his own weight, but he looked up as the door was opened.
The Doctor was by Rory’s side in a flash, but his eyes were on Amy. He lifted her head and torso from Rory’s arms, pulled her away from him and carefully lay her flat on the ground. River wanted to go to Rory and soothe the shock and exhaustion straining his face, but Amy was unconscious and River had the medical kit strapped to her back. She ignored him and knelt down opposite the Doctor.
“Pulse is okay. Breathing’s shallow,” River said with two fingers on Amy’s neck.
“Yeah.” The Doctor was waving his sonic screwdriver over Amy and taking readings with no obvious purpose. Rather than waste time challenging him, River got to work by herself. She unzipped the kit and pulled out a plastic bag, which she ripped open with her teeth. Inside was a face mask, which started to make a whirring noise as soon as the bag was opened, and which had no straps attatched. Instead, River pressed it over Amy’s mouth and nose; it seemed to shrink onto her skin to form an airtight seal. The movement of her chest became more regular and deliberate as River strapped a scanner onto her upper arm.
“She’s coming round, Rory.” River called over her shoulder. It was true; Amy’s eyelids were beginning to flicker, though not, if River was honest, in a way that suggested they would be opening permanently quite soon.
“She’s dehydrated,” the Doctor interrupted. “Did you have water?” He was pinching the skin on the back of Amy’s hand and frowning. The question was phrased so bluntly that it took River a moment to realise he was talking to Rory and not her. In that context it almost sounded like an accusation.
“Yes.” Rory said after a moment. He was staring at the three of them with strained eyes, shrinking back a little as River and the Doctor stared back at him. First turning to glance at the vital signs on Amy’s scanner, River left the Doctor to satisfy himself that he had checked everything he ought to be checking and moved over to Rory. She crouched down in front of him and lifted a hand to his stubbled chin, tilting his face so that she could see it better. He sat obediently as she looked him over, but kept his eyes on hers in a way she found quite unnerving.
“It’s okay,” she muttered awkwardly, “We’ll get back to the TARDIS,” she added pointlessly. Rory continued to stare at her, but some of the tension in him seemed to fall away as she talked.
“Amy’s really sick.” He spoke slowly then blinked a few times. He was exhausted, River realised, with quite a bit of relief; his odd manner probably had more to do with tiredness than anything else. She leaned over to the medical kit and picked up another scanner.
“Good job she’s got a doctor and a nurse to herself then,” River said. She put her usual twinkle back in her eyes and curled her lips. Rory was staring straight through her and plainly didn’t notice, but that didn’t matter - it was mostly for her own benefit anyway. He looked down a few seconds late as she rolled up his sleeve and strapped on the scanner. “In case you do a runner,” she said, and smiled. “Ready to go?” she called to the Doctor.
“Mmm.”
“Can you walk?” River asked Rory. He nodded. “Okay, let’s go,” she said to everyone, getting to her feet. She held out her hands to pull Rory up beside her, who winced as he rose and leaned on her quite heavily once he was up, but seemed quite ready to move. The Doctor scooped Amy up in his arms so that the scanner was still visible to River.
“Quick as we can,” he said, already negotiating his way through the open door. River was about to object on Rory’s behalf, but he was already starting to walk and bringing River along with him, clearly in pain. Setting a swift but steady pace, River helped him through the door and after the Doctor.