This is part one of my thanks to my 1000+ visitors last month. Once again, thank you to everybody who read my stories, is reading this story, as well as the unsung heros of reviews, favoriting and story alerting!
"What are we doing?" River cried, as the Doctor rounded a corner, dragging her along behind him.
"Stopping." He replied, stepping into a classroom and closing the door. He turned away without even bothering to lock it—not that a lock would have done much.
"We can't stop—those are daleks. They want us dead."
"Meh," he grinned, "I've been through worse."
"No offence sweetie, but you don't have the best track record of survival!" She shot back.
"And I thought that this would be about running! We'd get in trouble and run away! That's what we did last time."
"Last time was your mother. And no offense River, but your mother is frightful when she's upset, and that was her best china. And her flower bed." She watched him as he waved his sonic around the room.
"You would land on mum's flower bed. She's going to kill you."
"Which is why I'm more worried about her than the daleks. Do you know how many times I've faced them?" He examined the results and placed the screwdriver back into his pocket.
"Enough to regenerate 10 times!"
"Those were not all because of daleks. I have been shot by daleks…twice. And not once did I die. Good at surviving, that's me." He grinned, "Not the ultimate one. I know a man who can't die."
"Then why did you regenerate?"
"Saving you lot. It's an awful lot of work. One time I caught a disease. Well. Like a disease. Practically a disease. Really deadly without an antidote. Well. You can guess what happened. Then there's always radiation poisoning. I hate that. And falling…have you ever fallen from a scaffold?" She gave him a look, "No. Right. Sorry. But look, my deaths haven't been really violent. I don't die by getting shot."
"Why aren't we running?" She asked, following him around her history class room.
"Because, River Song, I don't run." He picked up a piece of chalk and started to draw on the board, large circular symbols.
"What is it that you're doing?" She snapped. She had sat down on her desk (the professor had placed her in the front of the classroom because he thought she was up to something. It wasn't her fault she got bored and read the entire history book the week after the semester started.) "And you do to run. You always run."
"I'm leaving them an offer. They can leave immediately or else."
"Or else what? What can you do to daleks?"
"I will destroy their entire fleet."
"And how do you plan on doing that?" She asked, crossing her legs and leaning forward.
"Don't know yet, but I'll think of something. I usually do." He turned around, "And I don't always run. Well. I do. But sometimes you have to stop or you'll run forever. The point of running is to have something to run to. Running from stuff can occupy your time for a while, but at some point, you have to run to a place or a person or it isn't worth living longer."
"We can't defeat the daleks in my college history classroom!"
"No. We won't. Tell me, how far up are we?"
"Three stories."
"Hmm. I guess we'll be going up then." He reached into his pockets, searching. "Oh, this, by the way, is yours. You told me you lost it and to give you a new one you next time." He tossed it in the air to her with surprisingly good aim.
"What is it? Why are you giving me…" she opened the tube, "Lipstick?"
He was in the middle of pulling out a length of rope, "You are such a sneak! I hate you sometimes, do you know that? You can't just decide you want something and make me give it to you. You are a sneak! And don't smile, it's not funny." He paused, "I'm talking to your future self, right now, so remember this lecture when I see you," he checked his watch, "in a few days. Spoilers, though. That, my dear, is your hallucinogenic lipstick. Kissing people makes them do your bidding."
She grinned, "You shouldn't have."
"No, I shouldn't have River, and it is your fault I did. I hope you feel thoroughly chastised."
"Entirely. Now, what are we doing?"
"Climbing up to the fourth floor." He threw the hook out the window, smashing the one above inward. "Ladies first?"
"You just want to look at my butt," She teased at him as she climbed up.
"Shut up."
"Knew it!" She called down as she shimmed up the rope and swung the window open.
"Still shut up!" He replied, pulling himself in clumsily. "Right. So. Now, all we have to do is wait for them to call."
"Call?"
"I gave them your cell phone number." He winked, "I'll pay to have the number changed, don't worry."
"Mum and dad were really upset about that the first time!" She complained. "I know. Spoilers. But don't try it again. You have a cell phone. Give them yours."
"Give the Daleks, my most powerful enemy my cell phone number? What sort of sense does that make?"
"It saves me some trouble and makes me feel grateful that you would put your life at risk for me?" She batted her eyelashes.
"Remember what I said about shutting up?"
"Make me." She shot back as her phone rang. "You'd be the Daleks then. I know you want to talk to him. Honestly, give me a second." She hit a button on her phone, "You're on speaker. Say hello love."
"DOCTOR."
"Hello, you worthless wastes of space." The Doctor said, almost pleasantly. There was an edge to his voice that could have cut diamonds, and River could see the look in his eyes. "That's the deal. Take it or leave it."
"WE WILL DESTROY THE HUMAN RACE."
"Did you boys wake up on the wrong side of the bed this morning?"
"WHO ELSE IS THERE?"
"I'm River Song." She answered, ignoring the Doctor's pointed eye-roll. "And if you don't get out of my school, I will bloody kill you."
There was a pause on the other end. "WE WILL RECONSIDER."
"Thanks so much for calling!" River hung up the phone. "What did I ever do to them?"
"Spoilers." He tapped her nose. "And it's not just you. They like to be all bluff and bluster in front of me, but you and me, we're unstoppable."
"Don't I know it." She wrapped her arms around his neck, and was interrupted by a loud noise. "They're outside the window, aren't they?"
"One is."
She turned and pulled a gun out of her waist and shot it in the eye stalk.
"Good, you've damaged it. Now, I suggest we run."
"You don't want me killing it?" She asked as they raced out the door and down the hallway.
"Not right now. You need to save your ammunition. When did you start carrying that around with you, by the way? And how does your father feel about it?"
"Spoilers." She grinned, "I do so like that word. And dad's currently fine with it. But he blames you."
"What'd I do? How did I do anything to make you get a gun?"
"You're the one who gave me the vortex manipulator. Don't spoiler me, Doctor, because it's not a spoiler. It's a birthday wishlist."
He grinned, "You do have a way of getting things out of me, don't you?"
"Daddy always said I have my boys wrapped around my finger." She winked, "And I do so love surprise gifts."
"I like giving them to you. I suppose telling you that a vortex manipulator would have been for school, not for gift- buying wouldn't do any good?"
"Oh, you know me."
"Yes." He grinned dramatically, "Incorrigible."
"I was thinking something a bit different." She laughed.
He pretended to look confused for a second, then said, "Pig headed?"
"I hate you."
"You really don't."
"THE DOCTOR HAS BEEN LOCATED." A voice said behind them, "THE DOCTOR AND RIVER SONG WILL STOP."
"Not likely." She turned around to fire a shot, but the Doctor pushed her gun down.
"Still thinking over your decision?" He called over to them. "If I were you, I'd be in your silly little ships and flying off already. I'm not happy right now. I don't plan to get mad for a while. But currently I am very, very angry."
"THE DOCTOR AND RIVER SONG WILL FOLLOW."
"Sweetie, I adore you, and you must understand that. But here's the issue. I really, really hate them. I'm going to shoot something very soon, and I'd prefer it wasn't you." She hissed.
"THE DOCTOR AND RIVER SONG WILL FOLLOW." The dalek insisted.
The Doctor winked at her, "You won't shoot me."
"I will slap you."
He flinched, and turned back to the dalek. "Right. If I were you, I'd phrase that as a request. And not one of those 'I'd follow it if you want to live' sort, because I'm sure you do want to live. I also wouldn't recommend any phrases like "I would sooner die than" because she really believes in saying what you mean." He paused, "Unless it's her."
"Shut up."
"River, stop proving my point." He tapped her nose.
"WOULD THE DOCTOR AND RIVER SONG PLEASE FOLLOW?" The dalek asked, either frightened, clever, or both.
"That's better, isn't it? We're coming." He took her hand and dragged her along with him.
"I don't care if it's polite, I want to shoot it."
I'm currently debating posting the next chapter this month or saving it for next month's thank you….opinions?
Again, many thanks! Please review!