'I love you, it's ruining my life' - Taylor Swift
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"Your world would be much better off if you lost me."
"Don't say things like that. What difference does it even make? Either way, I'm travelling with you, and I'm in danger. One way we'll both just...
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Being back in the warehouse is not a pleasant experience for any of them, particularly Cherry. She's changed into comfier clothes now, wearing her warm Ugg boots with some leggings and a blue hoodie after the Doctor helped her wash the blood off of her face and remove the tally marks from her skin. She wasn't really fussed about her outfit or her head injury, but the Doctor told her they wouldn't be able to help Amy properly unless she was resting. That's how she ends up sitting on the floor of the warehouse with an icepack pressed against her head and Rory checking in on her whenever he is not preoccupied with talking to Amy's flashing nanorecorder.
The Doctor and River are examining the spacesuit closely. Cherry can't look at them. It makes her feel sick seeing the Doctor so close to the suit that killed him. She leans her head back on the crate behind her, blocking out the sound of Amy crying through the nanorecorder. She tells herself it's good that she's crying. It means she's still alive. But it's hardly a comforting piece of information. She is still alive, but she's terrified and Cherry can't do anything to help her.
"It's an exoskeleton. Basically, life support. There's about twenty kinds of alien tech in here," River says, scanning the suit with her communicator.
"Who was she? Why put her in here?"
"You put this on, you don't even need to eat. The suit processes sunlight directly. It's got built-in weaponry, and a communications system that can hack into anything," River carries on, and Cherry raises her eyebrows.
"Why would they need all that for one little girl?" she pipes up, and the Doctor turns to her with a frown.
"Oi, you. Stop listening," he orders, and she rolls her eyes at him. "You're supposed to be resting."
"I have and I'm fine," Cherry insists, casting the ice pack aside. It's barely even cold anymore. The pressure of the lukewarm compress is probably causing her more pain than just leaving it alone would. The Doctor sulks but doesn't stop her from getting rid of the ice pack.
"Could it hack into the telephone network?" the Doctor asks River.
"Easily," she nods.
"Why phone the president?"
"It defaults to the highest authority it can find," River answers simply. "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."
The Doctor walks away from the spacesuit and Cherry can finally bring herself to look at him properly as he takes out his Tardis blue invitation, the one from his future self, and he licks it.
"Gross," she grimaces.
"You won't learn anything from that envelope, you know," River tells him and he sighs.
"Purchased on earth. Perfectly ordinary stationery. Tardis blue. Summoned by a stranger who won't even show his face!" the Doctor says, waving the envelope around. "That's a first for me. How about you two?"
