Summary: The Doctor comes back to the Library.
Disclaimer: I own nothing of Doctor Who
Rating: M
Pairing: River and the Doctor
RETURNING TO THE LIBRARY:
The Doctor stood in the Library remembering the first time he met River; remembering the message he had gotten on the psychic paper. She knew all about him, yet, he knew nothing about her. Replaying the scene of their first conversation he saw the look of pain in her eyes. He had caused his sweet River pain. Looking around now it all came flooding back. Locked deep in the main frame River was in there, the last chance he had had to save her. The Doctor stepped to the console and brought it online. What would he do? Would he type in RIVER and see if she responded? That sounded absurd even to him. "Oh, River, I wish you were here." He didn't know how long he stood there staring at the interface screen knowing that nothing was going to happen.
River stood in the shadows of the dark core computer room watching her love as he stood hunched over a computer console. He was remembering. She wasn't angry at him. How could she be? Yes, he knew from the moment he met again, how she was gong to die. But he couldn't have told her. It would have changed time and he never would have met her. That was a fate worse than death, never knowing the Doctor. Of course if she brought attention to herself how would she explain standing in front of him as a new flesh and blood person? River looked down at her hands seeing her hands; flesh and blood, not kilobytes in a computer generated environment. What would her Doctor see? She wasn't a flesh avatar. She wasn't another version of herself back in time. She was River, her consciousness in a cloned body from her very own DNA minus her Time Lord tricks. She had given up her regeneration a long time ago to save him. "Hello Sweetie."
At first the Doctor thought he had been hearing things. It would be the first time. His back went rigid as he turned to gaze at River. She was there. She was really there in the shadows wearing her enigmatic smile that he loved so much. He didn't give much thought to his actions. Going to her, the Doctor scooped River into his arms and held her close. She was real; she was solid, and not a trick of the mind. "Oh River!" he lifted her off her feet, spinning about. River held on laughing. "River!" He set her down, his hands immediately cupping her face. "How are you…? Who? I've missed you." In his experience the universe was never this nice. He couldn't form a coherent thought seeing her there, seeing her alive in front of him.
"The man who hired me, Mr. Lux, he felt guilty about what happened, and he paid whatever it cost to have my DNA cloned and my consciousness put back into my body." River answered the way she had been told when she had asked. "A brand new body with the same face," She smiled bringing her hand up to straighten his bow tie. "Watch out that bowtie." River teased.
"Hello." The Doctor said just as he had that day at Demon's Run.
River smiled, "Hello." She said in the same tone she had used at Demon's Run. River draped her arms over his shoulders o she could hug him. She needed to feel him close to her again. Her entire body shuddered. It was her Doctor, her husband, her love. Now, there was the chance they would have a life. No more back to front moments. "Oh, my Doctor…" River sighed.
The Doctor hugged River tighter reveling in the feel of her against him again. Tears clouded his eyes at the overwhelming amount of emotions flying through him. The first time he had met River was on the day she was going to die. He always knew that, even when he saw her again, even when he married her. "You escape death almost as often as I do!" He teased joyfully.
"I wouldn't be your wife if I didn't." River replied kissing the side of his neck before hiding her eyes. All she wanted to do was feel her Doctor against her. She wanted to breathe in the scent of him she had missed so much. He smelled of the universe, the TARDIS, and a wild storm all rolled into one. He was her oncoming storm.
The Doctor pulled back from River, his hands still cupping her face. He angled his head claiming her lips, filling her with all the passion, the sorrow, the happiness he was feeling. The kiss was ardent, it was sad, it was happy. He had River back. Greedily he feasted at her mouth. "River…." He gasped nipping at her bottom lips.
"Yes, sweetie…" River was out of breath. He had sucked all the air out of her lungs just from one kiss. "You still know how to kiss me." She said against his lips that were still pressed to hers. Her fingers tangled into his hair as they started to breathe together.
"I leave you alone for ten minutes and already you've found someone else."
The Doctor jumped away from River to see Oswin standing in the open doorway wearing a read dress. "Oh, Oswin…. Umm… Hello." He shouldn't have been so jumpy to have Oswin see him with River, after all River was his wife.
"A new traveling companion, honey?" River asked stepping around her Doctor to look at the brunette. "At least you're not traveling alone." Her Doctor never did well when he was alone.
"Who is she?" Oswin asked looking back ad forth between the woman with the really curly hair and the Doctor.
"Oswin this is River. River this is Oswin." The Doctor spoke quickly. "River is… uhhh… my… wife." He stumbled with his words. River, for her part, just waved at Oswin smiling.
"Is this why you wanted to come here? To pick up your wife?" Oswin shrugged, "You could have just told me that." She laughed extending her hand to River. "Hi, I'm Oswin Oswald."
"Hello, I'm Professor River Song." River shook Oswin's hand offering the young woman a smile. It was good to see her Doctor not traveling alone. He never did well by himself. "It's nice to meet you." River took her hand back looking down at the simple white cotton pants, the sandals, and the white shirt. "Not to be rude, but honey, I would really love to change clothes." To emphasize her point, River tugged on the hem of her white t-shirt.
"Right!" The Doctor exclaimed. He was more than eager to be away from this place. Even though he had River back the memory of her death still haunted him; had haunted him since taking her to Derilium. "Everyone back to the TARDIS." The Doctor took River's hand in his pulling her out the doors with him.
TARDIS:
River skimmed her gaze over each article of clothing she passed. Some of her clothes were here somewhere, she knew they were. It was finding them in this immense collection that was proving problematic. River let her fingers lightly touch the ridiculously long scarf that his fourth incarnation insisted on wearing all the time. Then she passed another row of clothes where the flamboyant jacket rested on a hanger. His six incarnation loved color, even if said colors never went well together. That thought made her laugh. Behind her a few steps away was her Doctor in his sports jacket, his suspenders, and his bowtie.
The Doctor kept pace with River as she searched the wardrobe for something to wear. He wasn't too keen on letting her out of his sight just yet. It was River and he just couldn't. Most of the time he never had the right words to describe their relationship, their marriage, but it was something he never wanted to let go of. She never let him get away anything. Going to her, he closed the remaining distance between them where he put his hands on her hips. "I missed you so much." The Doctor whispered. Being bold, he tightened his hold on her shirt so he could pull it up and over her head. River lifted her arms without complaint. To his roving gaze her body seemed the same. Gently his hands rested on her shoulders feeling the silky softness of her skin. River felt the same.
River let a shudder ripple through her at the light, loving touch he was giving her. Idly his fingers slipped down her arms then slipped to her back. She was having trouble breathing through the feeling of the tips of his fingers drawing down her spine, slowly, lazily he felt her skin. River sucked in a sharp breath when she felt his finger play of the waist band of her pants. "You're being the naughty one this time my love." River chuckled trying to mask her breathlessness. "What are you doing?" She asked, afraid to turn to him, to look into those ageless eyes of his. Then, his hands left her leaving River feeling cold. She heard the shifting of cloth and the barely audible sound of buttons being slipped free. Still, River couldn't turn to face him.
The Doctor slipped his suspenders off his shoulders to hang loosely around his hips as he pulled free his bowtie and unbuttoned his shirt. Without much care the shirt, still tucked in, fluttered around his waist bringing a small gasp from his as the air touched his bare skin. That did not deter him though. Slowly his put his hands on her hips sliding them over her heated flesh until he was hugging her from behind. His bare chest pressed to her bare back. Instantly he gasped at the overwhelming sensation of Rivers skin. The Doctor felt his two hearts beat faster and faster. He rested his lips close to her ear, "I'm holding you River. I just want to feel you." His voice was barely above a ragged gasp. This was what had been missing in his life; physical contact from the one woman in the universe who loved him more than her own life. Gently he rubbed the pads of his thumbs over the slight rise of her hip bones.
River let out a shaky breath she hadn't realized she had been holding at his whispered words. Finally she turned in his embrace, getting the courage to look into his eyes; her ageless god. There, she saw lust, desire, and love. Just as slowly as he had, River drew her hands up his arms, over his shoulders, and to the back of his neck where she tangled her fingers into his hair. He had let it grow again. "I'm yours sweetie," River whispered. "Whatever you want to do," Angling her head she kissed him sweetly even as his two hearts beat against her chest in counterpoint to hers. His tongue swept past her lips, teasing tasting River all at once. In turn she curled her tongue around his drawing a moan from her Doctor. River smiled into the kiss.
The Doctor ran his hands up and down River's back, thoroughly addicted to the silky glide of her skin. He could feel the pounding of her heart against his chest. "You hold me in thrall River. How do you do that?" He asked before kissing her again, slow and deep.
River pulled back, sucking in vital breath, breathing deep; her chest pressing tighter in against him. "I've missed this; us." She could feel his hearts beating so hard against the swell of her breast's. His hands came up, cupping her face. "I never stopped thinking about you, about the times we ran." River smiled drawing her arms up and over his shoulders.
"You're not leaving," The Doctor ordered his wife gently but made sure she didn't doubt his words. He had lost her once and just the memory of it was enough to break his hearts. He had barely known her when she had died but he had trusted her. "Now, we're traveling in the same direction. It will be me and you in this TARDIS…"
"With your new companion," River teased kissing her husband. "It sounds perfect." If she had it her way, she never would have left the TARDIS and now she never would. This was her home and she had her love here. It was the perfect home coming. "We have the rest of our lives to know each other in every way. Right now, I want an adventure, I want to run, and I want to change." River laughed when her Doctor stepped back and removed his shirt.
"Then we'll change together." The Doctor smiled looking through the rows of shirts for a new one to wear. He would still wear his bow tie and on a shelf he saw a fez. He knew he had one here.
River saw his start to reach for the fez, "Don't you dare." She warned. "It looked ridiculous on you the first time; it'll look ridiculous on you now." River laughed when he dropped his hands. Instead he came to her, stood behind her, and wrapped his arms around her again. "I love you." She whispered nuzzling his cheek.
"I love you too, River." The Doctor replied gently.
