River

Leadworth was quiet at the best of times, Amy reflected. Barely anything happened, and Rory was off visiting family, leaving her in the house alone. Especially after her regular breaks to travel with the Doctor, she was starting to go a bit stir-crazy.

And then there was a flash of light from the back garden. Amy hurried down the stairs, grabbing a cricket bat just in case.

She stopped when she recognised River Song of all people standing on the grass. She was wearing a fairly basic cocktail dress, skirt to just over knee length, small straps over her shoulders, relatively loose-fitting all in all. She waved as soon as she saw Amy through the door.

"There you are!" River said. "Come on then."

"Uh..." Amy said. She stepped out her back door. "Hi?"

"Why are you looking so surprised?" River said. "We arranged... Wait."

She glanced at her wrist and the vortex manipulator on it. After a moment she sighed.

"Overshot," River said. "Sorry. Don't tell my husband, he'd never let me hear the end of it."

"Uh-" Amy began.

There was a flash of light and River vanished again. Amy blinked.

Now she was standing alone in her back garden. She let out a long, weary sigh. Great, now she'd have to figure out what on earth that was all about...

She'd just about turned to walk back inside when there was another flash. Amy turned, to see River again standing in her garden, albeit not wearing a cocktail dress. Rather, for some inexplicable reason, she was dressed as a nun, wimple in hand.

Amy blinked. And to think moments before she'd been despairing at how dull Leadworth was.

"Hi!" River said. "So. Quick question, do you know who I am? Never sure when exactly I am relative to anyone else."

Amy hugged her. All the weirdness aside, and there was a lot of weirdness, River was still her daughter in some weird timey-wimey fashion. Appearances out of nowhere not withstanding...

"That's a yes then?" River said. She breathed a sigh of relief. "Good, didn't want to be chased off by disapproving grandparents again."

"Disa-" Amy began, getting a vague recollection of a night her parents had shouted about some intruder. "Wait, that was you?"

"Had a bit of a time of it lately," River said. She tapped her vortex manipulator. "Still recovering."

"The... manipulator... thing?" Amy said.

"The vortex," River said. "Long story. But did get me thinking, we've barely spent any time together. I know how much me not being around bothered you, and, well, what do you think?"

"Would like that," Amy said. "Actually get to know you, not just you flirting with the Doctor in front of me. Which is kind of disturbing by the way."

"Girl's got to have some fun," River said. She smirked. "But got it. Any ideas?"

"Day out somewhere?" Amy said. She glanced at the vortex manipulator. "Does that thing seat two? How about we go for one of your interests, something you like? I don't know much about that."

"I have just the place," River said. "Are you hungry? Naturia 6 has one of my favourite restaurants, ooh, I bet you'd love it there."

"Sounds good," Amy said. "So, uh-"

"Wait right there!" River said.

There was a flash of blue light. Amy blinked, then opted to linger in her back garden for a few moments more, starting to get an inkling.

She did want to spend more time with River, actually get to know her, her hobbies, her life. But urgh, bloody time travel.

A few seconds later and River reappeared, back in her cocktail dress. She tilted her head.

"Made a reservation?" Amy said.

"Right time," River said, exhaling. "Yep. And picked up this."

She tossed a bracelet to Amy; Amy caught it, and frowned.

"Temporal sidecar," River said. "Vortex manipulator's one-person-only, that lets me bring you along. Free now?"

"Yep!" Amy said. "Wait, do I need to change?"

"What?" River said. She glanced down at her own dress and shrugged. "Oh, no, it's a pretty casual place. If anything you're _over_dressed."

"Well. ok then," Amy said. She extended a hand.

God, it'd be good to do something more fun. She fitted the sidecar around her wrist and looked up at River.

All in all, she preferred the TARDIS. There was less whirling, less of eternity screaming in her ears, less colours she couldn't name flashing before her eyes-

And then she landed in what seemed to be a cloakroom. Amy gasped, rubbing her eyes, stumbling on the spot as she got used to the transition.

Groaning a little, she managed to look around. Yep, definitely a cloakroom, lots of jackets hung up, and... and... not jackets. Amy blinked, and shrugging returned her attention back to her daughter.

There was a slight rustle as River's dress fell to the floor. Amy blinked.

She'd been sure the day wasn't going to get any weirder.

"Uh..." Amy said.

"Oh, right," River said. "Sorry, been jumping up and down the timeline, must've forgotten to mention. Nude restaurant, pretty popular in his era. You did say you wanted to see my interests, these places are a lot of fun. Coming?"

River grinned, standing there without an ounce of shame, clad in nothing but the dress around her ankles, and her admittedly impressive hair.

She took off her vortex manipulator, hanging it with her outfit, before turning around to see Amy still in the same place. She hadn't moved an inch, still trying to catch up on recent events.

"Coming, mother dearest?" River said. She didn't seem to have any conception of what embarrassment was. "Food's great, I promise."

Amy faltered.