Hey everyone, sorry I haven't updated Thoughts On Flight in forever, I've been having some trouble working out how to get from point A to point B and can't post what I have in case I decide to change it. Hopefully I'll work it out soon. Until then, however, enjoy this little oneshot :)
A Good Man
Her eyes felt heavy, she was still weak, but she couldn't sleep any longer. She was part Time Lady, she hardly ever slept. River licked her lips in an attempt to moisten her dry mouth and looked around. She was in the same room as before, she vaguely remembered her parents, and the Doctor, but it was different now. It was dark, night, and she was alone.
"Here,"
Or maybe she wasn't.
The Doctor stepped from out of the shadows and poured her a glass of water from a mug on her bedside counter, she accepted it gratefully and drank deeply, sitting up in the bed and watching this strange man as he sat next to her and smiled softly.
"Your parents are in the TARDIS," he told her softly, "Asleep."
She wasn't really sure how to react. Her relationship with her parents had been based on lie upon lie, on manipulation and calculation, she had used them to get to him, and although she recalled calling Amy 'mother' when she had woken earlier, she hardly considered the Ponds her family.
"Where am I?" she asked, pushing away all the guilt she suddenly felt after saving the Doctor and his companions,
"Sisters of the Infinite Schism," he told her with a smile, "the greatest hospital in the universe,"
She pulled her knees to her chest, hugging them gently, "I hardly deserve-"
"You deserve the universe, River Song," he reached out a hand to smooth back her hair, his hand running behind her ear until he cupped her cheek in his palm, "You have sacrificed so much, you have lost so much, all of this, it's at my hand, it's my fault"
She grabbed his hand in her own and squeezed it, "Don't blame yourself Sweetie."
He smiled sadly, "Who else is there to blame?"
"Me," she flashed him a wicked smile, "I got my own parents together, without me Amy would still think Rory's gay."
The Doctor chuckled, "Oh love a paradox, I do," he murmured softly, "we're full of them,"
"What else do you love, Doctor?"
She smirked at him, and the look in his eyes told her he liked that expression on her a tad more than he'd admit, which only made her smirk wider. He swallowed and shifted on the bed, unable to escape as her and still held his to her cheek.
"River…" he murmured softly, he had hoped to avoid this topic of conversation, he had after all been dying at the time, but he realised too late that in trying to dance around the question, he had answered it.
She grinned at him devilishly, "That's what I thought. 'Tell River a message from me' you said, 'tell River I love her',"
"'Tell River I forgive her," He finished and her smile fell. "I do forgive you River, but you really shouldn't have sacrificed what you did,"
She frowned at him and his soft, loving eyes, "I would do it again, I think," she whispered, "I would give my life for you."
He winced, "I know, and I hate it." He pulled is hand from under hers, not wanting to touch her, already tainted by belief in him, "I take the people I care the most about by the hand and lead them to their death. I'm a selfish, foolish, lonely old man River, I'm passed my prime, I think."
"Well I had to try," she whispered fiercely, "I- maybe I'm selfish too Doctor; maybe I didn't do it for you."
He smiled in spite of himself and gazed into her eyes, "Why then?"
"Because… because I want to see the universe," she whispered, pure sincerity flowing through her voice and from her sparkling eyes, "I want to learn to know you, understand you, to grow to love you and everything you can show me. You can teach me so much, so much that no one else can, about the universe and time, about me and our people; our world."
The Doctor felt tears drip down his cheeks as she spoke, such awe, such thirst for knowledge and adventure in her voice, each word filled with pure excitement at the sheer possibilities of the life held before her.
"That and I seem to remember someone telling me we'd get married."
He laughed, she had taken all his guilt and regret, all that sadness that hung in the back of his mind constantly, and made it disappear. He could only feel the excitement that literally radiated from her mind and filled him completely. The happiness and joy intoxicated the room around them, and they sat together on that bed laughing, until he reached out again and pulled her into a kiss.
It was meant to be quick, but after her initial surprise, River's hands found the back of his neck and pulled him closer, his hands found her hair and they clung to each other like a life source, like if they let go, all the happiness that still hung in the air would melt away.
River's knees were still at her chest, and as she melted into the Doctor's arms, her legs slackened and she shifted, moving closer to the Doctor as they kissed, and crawled on her knees until she was almost in is lap. She hesitated, letting the Doctor take control of the kiss. One of his hands left her hair and trailed down her back, over her hip and along her thigh, surprising her by pulling her into his lap so she straddled is hips, all the while his lips never leaving hers.
A small moan reverberated in the back of River's throat, bringing the Doctor back to reality. He pulled back, barely a fraction of an inch, their lips still brushing together with each, slightly panted, breath. "River," he whispered, swallowing thickly, his eyes searching hers for a hint of what to do next,
"Doctor," she smiled,
For a moment they just stayed as they were, breathing deeply and looking into each other's eyes, both their faces pulled into radiant smiles, until River broke the silence, her fingers pulling lightly at the Doctor's hair as she spoke.
"Tell me a story Doctor,"
He chuckled, "What about?"
"Anything," she whispered, "Everything. I want to know about Gallifrey and the TARDIS, all your adventures, all your faces."
"I'll tell you…" The Doctor thought, "About the time everybody lived." River smiled and lent forward to rest her head on his shoulder as he began to speak,
"I was travelling with a girl, a friend, close friend of mine, Rose. We were following an Emergency Level Mauve, an object flying through time and about to hit the centre of London,"
River listened, soaking in every word the Doctor spoke, about Rose, the gasmasks, Nancy and Captain Jack. She revelled in it, the London Blitz, and she could just picture him and his blonde in a Union Jack, saving the day with a homeless scavenger girl and a con artist from the 51st Century. Eventually the story ended and he began another, and as he told the story and time passed they found themselves lying down in the bed, on top of the covers, River held in the Doctor's arms, her body moulded into his, her head resting against his chest so she could hear the faint sound of his twin hearts beating.
He ran his fingers through her hair as he spoke, playing with the golden locks gently, telling her about Donna now, and the family they had saved from Pompeii. River smiled at his words but felt her mind clouding over. She was curled against the warmth of the Doctor's body, her and gripping his shirt gently, like a small child cradled against its guardian, being lulled gently to sleep with a fairy tale. River resigned herself to the fact that she needed more sleep, despite being a Time Lady, and lifted her head to interrupt the Doctor's words with a soft kiss. Then without a word, she lay her head back down, over his hearts, and fell instantly into sleep.
When she woke in the morning, the sun streaming into the room from the window to her right, and River was alone. Briefly she wondered if the events of last night had been a dream, but as she sat up she noticed she was still lying on the bed covers.
Frowning she reached over to pour herself some water, she saw her cup where she'd left it, and a partially empty jug. She smiled, and poured her water, her eyes finding a gift, obviously left by the Doctor.
It was a diary, a brilliant blue, its leather bound cover pressed to look like the TARDIS. River picked it up, abandoning her water and pulling at the red ribbon that bound the diary shut. She ran a hand over the smooth leather cover with a smile and opened it to the first page.
end