Checkmate (Doctor Who fanfiction)

Wrong Button

I heard their conversation from afar.

"Say it again?" Amy asked.

"Apalapucia."

"Apalapu-"

"Chia."

"Apalapucia."

"Apalapucia."

"Apalapucia. What a beautiful word."

"Beautiful word, beautiful world. Apalapucia, voted number two planet in the top ten greatest destinations for the discerning intergalactic traveller."

"And, why couldn't we go to number one?" I asked, jogging down the staircase in a t-shirt and jeans and leather jacket.

"It's hideous!" He exclaimed. "Everyone goes to number one! Planet of the coffee shops. Apalapucia. I give you sunsets, spires, soaring silver colonnades. I give you-"

He opened the door, and I peered out to see a white room with a door.

"Doors," Rory said slowly.

The Doctor stepped out, and Rory and I followed. The whole place smelled like cleaning fluid. "Doors. Yes. I give you doors. But on the other side of those doors, I give you sunsets, spires, soaring silver colonnades."

"Have you seen my phone?" Amy asked, poking her head out.

"Your phone?" He asked, clearly disgusted.

"Yeah."

"Your mobile telephone? I bring you to a paradise planet, two billion light years from Earth, and you want to update Twitter?"

"Sunsets, spires, soaring silver colonnades? It's a camera phone."

"On the counter, by the DVDs," he sighed.

"No, it's not," she objected.

"Yes, it is."

"Oh, for God's sake. I'll show her," I said. I hopped into the Tardis.

"Thank you," she nodded. I hooked my arm through one of hers, and we headed down the hallway to the lounge. Once there, I pointed to a counter at the back. Here, the walls were pale yellow, and navy blue, and bean bags and sofas were littered around the television, that doubled as a 3D holographic projector. Yeah. Wicked cool.

I'd been subtly remodeling the Tardis, like it was the White House, and I was the First Lady. I would just casually suggest things like changing the color of a sofa, or some walls, or changing some carpet to tile, and then push the matter gently once in a while. In under two months time, The Doctor had undoubtedly swapped whatever it was out for something I suggested, and I enjoyed my victory in smug silence. I didn't try it on major places like the control room, the library, or the swimming pool. I respected those places. And besides, they were perfect, anyways. Places like the kitchen and the lounge were less important. The lounge most of all was my area, and The Doctor didn't mind changing something in there for me practically on request. The longest I'd had to wait for him to change something in there was a week. The Tardis didn't object. Either The Doctor was restricting her from changing things back to the way they were, or she just liked my style, and didn't mind. I'd been trying to get him to rip out those counters for two days, now. I didn't like where they were; everyone tripped over and ran into it.

Amy snapped her fingers in front of my eyes.

"Alive?" She asked.

"Yeah, yeah. Sorry. Wandered out for a moment. Phone?" I asked. She flashed the box at me, and put it in her pocket. The Tardis twisted the hallways so we stepped out of the lounge, and right into the control room. I remembered Idris, and ran my fingers down the handrail affectionately. She hummed happily.