Author's Notes: Check out my profile for the link to the promo video for this story. As with my other story, "Son of the Stars", the 10th and 11th Doctors will be referred to as "Ten" and "Eleven" for ease of differentiation. There are three varieties of chapters in this story: original story-line, based on an episode, and rewritten episodes. Note that this series will include various plots or reveals from episodes prior to the 12th Doctor, so do not read if you don't wish to be spoiled. The rating may also change to M later on, depending how I decide to write the romance between Eleven and River. Please review, as I value your feedback.

Prologue ~ The Final Day is the First Page

River had run with the Doctor for a very long time, and to so many places throughout the universe, even if it was never in the right order. The older she got, the younger he did; the more she discovered, the less he knew. There were days that were wonderful, and nights adventurous, but no one could run forever. River tried to savour every single moment she spent with the Doctor, her husband and friend, even when her greatest nightmare came closer and closer to the present.

His firsts were her lasts; the further they went, the more it slipped away.

After the painfully rushed and unfair partial goodbye to Rory and Amy in New York, River steered the Tardis away. She hadn't trusted the emotional Doctor to fly his beloved time machine while still raw from losing his best friend. Another of his firsts was the refusal to even battle with her on the matter. River glanced at him, where he sat on a step looking thoroughly depressed, and remembered the bickering they usually had over who would fly the Tardis and where. She filled her mind with memories, trying to shut out her own emotions to keep a grip on the situation.

Never let him see the damage.

'River.' Eleven finally spoke. His voice cut through her distraction and reached her hearts. His tone was so emotional, sad, and so much more painful to River than her own loss and dread.

She focused on his face, and withheld a sigh.

'Yes?' River asked, as casually as she could.

He didn't speak again, at first. He stared at the floor with a forlorn look, until something flickered in his gaze that worried her. It was the expression he had when a plan came to him in the middle of a very inconvenient moment – and not the plans that involved running from danger, but rather the foolish ones when he headed straight for it.

River knew the look better than the bars of her prison cell.

'What are you thinking about?' River pressed, hoping to snip the idea at the bud before it grew into a many-tentacled strand of chaos.

'Time.' He said seriously.

River held a brief breath and winced. That was never a good topic when he was emotional. Or over-excited. Or generally not already occupied with something else.

'What about it?' River prompted, glad he was talking rationally at least.

She'd had to actually restrain him earlier to stop the Doctor from taking his anger out on the Tardis, before he'd finally dropped onto the steps.

'It can be rewritten.' He said tiredly, hesitantly glancing at her. The Doctor looked guilty and wary, as if he'd already done something she would both disapprove of and likely slap him for.

'Sometimes, yes.' River exhaled. 'But not this. Never this. They're okay, Doctor. They're together, and happy, just as they should be.'

'I know.' Eleven said. 'I wasn't talking about them.'

River tilted her head slightly, expressing her confusion, as he slowly rose from the steps and approached her. No one in the whole universe could anticipate him better than her, yet River wasn't sure where this was going. She didn't know what he was thinking or planning, but her instincts alerted her it was probably something bad. Or, rather, something she wasn't going to like.

'They were your parents, River.' He repeated his earlier statement, from moments ago when she had walked out of the room to change.

She'd smiled from the shadows when he'd realised what she'd hinted at regarding Amy, and he'd run off to find the last page of the book. He was gone for a while. When he returned, the Doctor fell back onto his step and remained quiet. River had waited by the console, knowing to give him the space to process, and even now she did not think things were very promising just yet.

Unless it promised trouble because from the look in his eyes she knew that was certain.

'Your parents.' The Doctor shook his head, avoiding her watchful gaze. 'If things had been different, you'd of had more time with them. You'd have seen them at their best, and funniest, and brightest.'

'I have.' River said, still confused. 'I got to see them through all those times. Who else can say they got to grow up with their parents?'

'That's not normal.' He said, getting frustrated.

'Oh, Sweetie, you know normal is over-rated.' River chuckled, ignoring his mood for now. 'Where is this going?'

'You don't know?' He offered her a sly smile. 'I thought you could see the future.'

'Not all of it.' River shrugged. 'Only ours. And even then you still find ways to surprise me.'

'I hope so.' Eleven took another step closer. 'Because you're going to be very surprised.'

'Am I?' River flipped some hair out of her face, still smiling at her impossible man. 'Will I like it?' She teased flirtatiously.

'Eventually.' He sighed, breaking eye contact while trailing his hand over the one she rested on the console. 'You'll probably want to slap me first, though.'

'I probably will.' River narrowed her eyes. 'Sweetie, what is it? What are you up to?'

'Me?' He scoffed. 'I'm not up to anything.'

'Oh, you are.' She nodded.

'Maybe a little.' Eleven looked at her again, startling River with the depth of his green gaze...

/\/\

The look shining in his green eyes was almost an echo in her mind, as River winced and slowly opened her eyes. She wasn't in the Tardis anymore. In fact, she didn't recognise the place at all.

She was on a cold floor, surrounded by rows upon rows of books - a library?

Cautiously raising to her feet, River had to bite back tears of frustration and fear. She wrapped her white coat tighter around herself, and checked her pockets for her diary. It was still there, she exhaled with relief.

'Are you alright?' A nearby woman asked her.

River didn't answer.

She wondered why all the people crowded in the massive room were dressed in black. Not the funeral kind of attire, either. Her curiosity halted, as she looked further across the room and spotted the most familiar object in all the universe: the Tardis. Yet even from a distance she could tell it wasn't the same one she'd just been inside. Well, it was the same Tardis but from a different time.

'I hate him.' River grumbled, looking around for the Doctor.

She wasn't sure why he'd picked that time and place, of all the possibilities in her entire timeline - especially if it appeared to be a moment yet to be lived. River wasn't sure what to do. She was far too angry and disorientated to think clearly. She looked over to the Tardis again and decided to stay where she was to wait for the Doctor's return. He probably wasn't her Doctor, but River still couldn't risk being left behind. A library was a strange place to begin, River thought, without realising it was also where it had ended.

The final day of her previous life would now be the first page of her new one.

Chapter One ~ Hello, Sweetie

River's decision to wait nearby, with the Tardis in sight, didn't last very long.

Waiting was the most logical thing to do, to make sure she wouldn't miss her ride out of the place, except she had never been one to just stand around. The people clothed in black, a striking contrast to her white attire, were rather eager to leave the library. River wanted to know why. Whatever happened seemed to have settled, no doubt by the Doctor himself, yet she felt so out of place that the need to know overrode her common sense.

Heading to the area with the shop and teleport pads, River quickly recognised a nearby figure walking away with a red-haired woman. Assuming the woman was his companion, River pondered what to do next.

It wasn't her Doctor, not exactly, and he ventured slightly off-course on the path leading to the Tardis. River looked around for clues, and saw a man staring desperately in the direction of the pair. He stuttered with the letter "D", and River quickly intervened with the teleportation. She knew she probably shouldn't, and was already anxious about what her presence could change, but doubted talking to one man was going to alter much of the Doctor's personal future.

'Th-thank you.' He exhaled in relief, his eyes still trailing to where the Doctor and his companion vanished to. 'I need to find D-Donna.'

'Donna?' River repeated, staring wide-eyed at him. She remembered the hair colour and height, wondering if it could possibly be her. If it was, River had gone further back in the Doctor's timeline than she'd thought.

It was very disconcerting.

'D-Donna Noble.' He nodded. 'Do you know her?'

'Oh, I know of her.' River smiled sadly. The whole universe knew of Donna Noble, though River doubted those particular events had happened yet for the Doctor.

'I n-need to find her.' He said nervously, fidgeting in his likely preparation of running off to search for Donna.

'Hold on.' River stepped across his path. 'What's your name?'

'Lee.' He said, still looking over her shoulder. 'P-please. We made a promise.'

River saw the desperation in his eyes, and considered the stutter of his voice to be brought on by stress. She exhaled a breath, and nodded her head. River knew it might be a bad idea timeline-wise, but how could she deny someone the chance to see a person they cared about even one last time? She and Lee walked quickly, taking a similar path the Doctor and Donna had, back to the Tardis. River was surprised to realise she'd wandered further away than she'd thought, yet equally relieved to see the blue box was still waiting exactly where she'd spotted it.

She assumed the Doctor and Donna were inside, probably about to leave.

'Wait!'

A shout called out to them when River raised her hand to knock on the Tardis door. Turning at the familiar voice, River held her breath to brace herself. She saw the tenth Doctor running towards her with his jacket flapping like a poorly-attached cape.

He halted in front of them, his brown eyes wide with alarm, and pocketed his psychic paper.

'River.'

He spoke her name carefully. She saw through his attempt to mask a serious glimmer in his eyes. There was a lot of emotion attached to the way he spoke, and stared at her, but River wasn't sure of the meaning behind it. Donna was still around so it was very early for him, yet while River could tell he didn't really know her – this Doctor certainly felt strongly about seeing her stand there.

'Hello, Sweetie.' River flashed him her usual smile, trying to appear friendly and as if she hadn't noticed the depths of his brown gaze.

He averted his eyes, swallowed cautiously, then glanced beside her. River and Lee stood side-by-side, waiting for him to speak or move. The Doctor ducked his head and thought to himself for almost a full two minutes before coming to a decision.

'Wait here.' He said firmly, pointing at River.

'I was never any good that.' River smiled. 'Waiting around while you had all the fun – that's just not my style.'

'I need to talk to Donna first.' Ten said sternly, though his eyebrows raised a little at her smug comment.

'You know why I'm here?' River questioned. There was no way he could have known, not unless he'd always planned to send her back. Even so, the time wasn't right – she could see it in his eyes.

He was distrustful, cautious, and alarmed by her presence.

'Yes.' Ten said slowly. 'Who are you?' He finally acknowledged her company.

'Lee.' He said hastily, not wanting to get between anything. 'Y-you're with Donna?'

'Oh, Lee!' Ten grinned. 'Brilliant! Donna will be happy to see you. Just give us a moment, and we'll be right out.' He was cheerful enough, though the look in his eyes as he gave River a final glance was not promising.

At least she was confident he wasn't about to do his usual "sneak inside the Tardis and escape" routine.

River bit back her instinctual urges, and willed herself to wait outside as she was told. She had to take things slowly with this version of the Doctor purely because he had no idea who she was, not really. He knew her name, but she suspected it might be all he did know. An incredible sadness and dread filled her, making her wonder yet again why her Doctor had chosen this time and place to act as the foundation of her timeline reset. Remembering the incident in itself infuriated her – how dare he! She was so used to being swept into a new mystery and time by the Doctor that she'd momentarily forgotten the truth in the current situation.

It wasn't a trip; this was forever.

Her mood remained fiery when the Doctor and Donna emerged from the Tardis. Donna gave them space by ushering Lee off to the side, where they nervously talked among themselves, though she kept looking at River with a strange expression on her face.

'So, how did this happen exactly?' Ten asked, tucking his hands behind his back.

River, reminding herself this was the same man who had ignored her protests and sent her there, whipped her hand out to slap him across the face. Ten stumbled backwards, more with surprise than anything, and made a noise of utter disbelief.

'Oi!' Donna scolded from nearby. 'If you hit skinny-boy too hard he'll fall apart. Leave him alone!'

River, despite herself, snorted with amusement at the comment. Ten placed a hand to his cheek, offered Donna a disapproving pout, and looked back at River.

'I assume that's for something I haven't done yet?' He complained, with strange acceptance.

'Yes.' River said tensely, still irritated with the man. She couldn't believe he had done it, and hated how lost she now felt.

His quick recovery from the slap, however, didn't go unmissed.

'You knew I was going to do that?'

'Yeah.' Ten said, drawing out the word with a wince. 'Well, I hoped he – I – was overreacting.' He held out the psychic paper, which was now blank.

River realised his future self must have sent him a message to warn him, though River still didn't understand the overall plan. He'd had a long time to think about it, and for the first time River didn't know anything of what to expect. This Doctor hardly knew her, being so early in their backwards timeline, yet she had no idea either. They were almost at the same level of knowledge regarding the situation – River always thought such a thing would delight her, when in reality it worried her very much.

'Where are we?' River looked around suspiciously. 'When are we?'

'The library.' Ten answered. '51st century.'

'What happened?' River wanted to know about the time and place, not caring if it went against all his and her usual rules. This time she needed to know where she was heading, to understand why this exact moment was chosen for her reset.

'Well.' Ten smiled a little too smugly for her liking. 'Spoilers.'

'Can we go now?' Donna rejoined them with Lee at her side. 'I've had enough of this place, no offence.' She glanced at River, who was baffled why the statement could offend her.

'Yeah.' Ten exhaled. 'I suppose we should be off. You coming with us, Lee?' He was so casual about the question that its simplicity sprouted another round of questions in River's mind.

'Is that okay?' Donna glanced back and forth between the two men.

River ignored the conversation, instead focusing on the area around them. She wanted to find out more; a budding prickle of caution in the back of her mind told her it was a very important place. She'd heard of the library, of course, but had never been there.

'Doctor, how long have you known me?' River asked him, when everyone turned to enter the Tardis. She pretended not to notice the sad expression Donna directed at the Doctor.

'I don't.' Ten kept his back to her. 'We just met, here. You said I'd see you again; that it's only the beginning for me. That's not entirely true anymore, is it?' He finally turned, his expression guarded.

'No.' River said. 'You impossible man. You just can't give in, can you?'

Ten decided not to answer, and turned to raise his hand. River moved to get a better view of his face, further confused by the serious emotions she saw there, as he clicked his fingers. The Tardis door opened, and River quickly realised it might be the first time he had done that. Everyone went inside, and she took a moment to miss the Tardis' future appearance.

The Doctor watched her reaction carefully, but River was already a master of disguising her thoughts and feelings.

'Oh, you're gonna love this!' Donna grinned at Lee, who was busy staring at the size of the inside. 'All of time and space right outside those doors. And you're sure you want to come with us?'

'Yes.' Lee smiled.

'Alright then!' Ten grinned, masking his distrust and curiosity towards River by focusing on his companions instead. 'Welcome aboard the Tardis, Lee.' He added, not extending the welcome to River.

She felt very out of place inside the time machine, for the first time ever, and dreaded the days ahead. She wondered why the Doctor had allowed her inside so easily, without ever asking or mentioning it. She assumed his future self had told him to. River stood off to the side, while he operated the controls, and fought the urge to join him at the console.

She never imagined, after all this time, that he could appear almost a stranger to her.

'Hey.' Donna joined River's side, expressing sympathy and kindness. 'He told me not to say what happened today, but-'

'Donna.' Ten warned.

'Oh shut it, Spaceman. I gave you my word I, didn't I?' Donna rolled her eyes, though remained focused on River. 'Everything could change now, couldn't it? When we talked before – the other you, the future you, said he hadn't met you yet. You know him so well, but you didn't know me.'

'Donna.' Ten repeated.

'I know.' Donna sighed. 'I know, I can't ask that. But if things are changing...'

'Not everything.' River said, feeling the familiarity of knowing more than those around her about their future, yet none of her own. 'I don't know what he was thinking, sending me back so far, but I will do everything I can to prevent things from changing. I made him swear not to change one line.' She grumbled.

'I wouldn't.' Ten said sincerely, walking over to them with his hands shoved into the pockets of his striped pants. 'But if he – I – did, there must be a reason.'

'Your timeline is being rewritten, right?' Donna spoke up, while Lee wandered over to listen in as politely as he could. 'If it was in the wrong order before, like you said, then how is a rewrite going to change anything?'

'It's more than rewriting events.' Ten sighed. 'The plan was to match the time-lines so they're not in the wrong order. This is the chance for us, River and I, to remain on a linier time stream.'

'I hate you.' River grumbled again, not needing a reminder of what he'd caused.

'Oh, I doubt that.' The Doctor smiled, returning to the console.

For a brief second, there was a flash of her Doctor in those words and smile. River knew he was still the same man; she easily accepted every regeneration as the same person, but his level of knowledge and familiarity with her was what made him her Doctor.

He was standing right there, and she'd never missed him more.

The Tardis came to a general halt, bringing River from her thoughts. The Doctor hurried to the doors, and kept his attention on Lee. He was excited to have a new companion, even if this time around it wasn't by his choice. River did smile a little at that – how Lee was only on board because he was important to Donna. It reminded her of how the Doctor would travel with Amy, and later bring Rory along for Amy. With that line of thought, River had to conceal a gasp in sudden realisation of all the extra time she could be granted with her parents.

From beginning to end, unlike ever before.

'Wow!' Lee exclaimed, looking through the opened doors to the depths of space.

River moved closer to see it, never getting tired of the sight, but continued to keep her distance from the group. Always an outsider. Donna and Lee stared and talked about the stars, while River and Ten made eye contact. He stepped away from the pair, and leaned against the railing beside River.

'Who are you, Professor Song?' He asked, less guarded than before. Ten glanced at her, genuinely curious to know who she was, while also a bit unsure. She knew too much about him, while he knew so little of her.

'Spoilers.' She smiled.

'I'm really going to hate that word, aren't I?' Ten frowned.

'Yes.' River tried not to laugh at his disgruntled look.

'Can I trust you?' He studied her carefully.

'If you like.' River said with more tease, echoing words once spoken in her past but his future on the same topic. 'But where's the fun in that?'

The slight quirk at the corner of his lips was her first sign of reassurance that maybe there was hope of things going relatively smoothly - even for the early days when she was just a stranger who knew too much.

'I'm in space!' Lee raised his voice, thoroughly intrigued by it, while Donna smiled fondly at his enthusiasm.

'I never get tired of this.' Ten shared, observing the pair.

'No, I don't think you ever will.' River mirrored his action. 'That's something that will never change.'

'How much do you know about what's coming?' Ten wanted to know. 'Time can be rewritten, but some things should never be.'

River watched him, though he didn't meet her gaze this time. She wondered if he was thinking of anything in particular when he'd said that, and worried he was referring to her. River felt even more unwelcome, but took the continued conversation and his curiosity as a good sign.

'Well, let's see.' She exhaled, thinking for a moment. 'There are fixed points, of course. Some things will happen no matter what I do, but I never wanted this. I never wanted to change a single line - I will do everything I can to make as little impact as possible.'

'Really?' His gaze was piercing. 'Even the bad days? Even if there's someone you could save this time around? Would you really just let time happen because it was meant to?'

River realised how important her answer would be. He watched her, judged her, and waited to hear what she would say. She had to choose her words carefully. River wouldn't lie, but he was going to define a lot of things about her from her response to his question. He needed to know where she stood, and River understood.

It was in her understanding of him that meant she knew what to say.

'Time is water: nothing sticks to it, but everything flows with it.' River said. 'Bad things will always happen, and people will always die. Who are we to decide what and who? A time traveller must never be a God.'

'Yeah.' Ten relaxed his shoulders, smiling a little, as he resumed watching his companions. 'But sometimes ripples are created without noticing it at first. Was Lee here last time?'

River, remembering how random Lee had been to her yet was not random at all to the Doctor, worried how soon she'd already altered events in the Doctor's timeline.

'Not that I know of.' River admitted, ashamed. 'No.'

'No life can exist and not leave an impact.' Ten said, still calm despite the knowledge of a huge change she'd already caused. 'Sometimes, a few ripples are okay. They're happy.'

River watching Donna and Lee laughing together, and couldn't help the smile appearing on her lips. Ten stared her, but she ignored him for the moment. She was so determined not to change anything that River didn't realise how those changes might do more good than harm. Maybe her knowledge could help keep the changes controlled, as she knew what needed to happen and could ensure the smaller alterations didn't prevent those event from occurring.

'I don't know who you are, Professor Song. Not yet.' Ten added. 'I don't know why you're here. Not really. But I do know one thing - the one thing I will always know.'

'What is that?' River turned, delighted by the acceptance on his smiling face. She didn't know what exactly brought it on, but it was a very welcome sight indeed.

'You and I – it's going to be one hell of an adventure!' He grinned.

'Oh, it will be indeed.' River teased, laughing at his excitement. 'And you watch us run.'