Ch 100

The next few nights went rather similarly to the first; River and the Doctor never straying far from Terra. Regardless of who's turn it was to stay with Terra during the night, the other parent always ended up staying as well.

As the days went on, the infection went slowly and steadily down. By the end of the ten days, every scan they performed showed that it was completely gone. Terra was pale, sunken, and tired, but gave up a smile at the news. "[Does this mean I can go to school now?]"

"[Well...we'll see how you're feeling on Monday.]" River smiled weakly, "[You still need to get your energy back.]"

"[But I'm not sick anymore, right?]"

"[You're not.]" River assured, kissing her forehead.

Terra hugged her in response. "[I never wanna be sick again. Not even if I want to miss school.]"

"[I promise, I won't let you get sick like that again.]"

Terra pulled back with a nod. "[This means you don't have to sleep in my room anymore, right?]"

"[Yes, you're right.]"

"Getting to sleep in our own bed," the Doctor murmured. "That'll be nice."

River nodded, looking rather tired. She had taken last night's shift of watching Felix, who had been pretty restless.

"[We can have whatever you want for dinner,]" the Doctor told Terra.

Terra requested a list of her favorite foods, excited to finally be free of illness.

"I can start on that," he offered River.

"I'll check on Felix," River agreed.

"[Can I watch telly?]" Terra asked.

"[For a little bit,]" River nodded. Terra grinned and went to go do so.

The Doctor smiled after her. "We're out of the woods."

"It's certainly a relief." River smiled back. He moved to kiss her cheek and hummed in agreement. "I'll be on baby duty again tonight so you can get some rest," River offered.

"You've been on baby duty for two nights in a row, my love." Admittedly, last night was his turn but Terra had had a nightmare at the same time Felix had woken up hungry and somewhere in the midst of calming them down, River had ended up dealing with Felix for the rest of the night. "I'll take care of it."

"Positive?"

"Of course."

-x-

"The kids are all out of the house...Do you want to take a bath with me?" River asked, tugging on the lapels of her husband's jacket.

"You hardly even have to ask," he grinned following her pull like a magnet.

"When the baby comes, we won't have many moments like this," she murmured, pulling him into the bathroom.

"The girls are old enough to babysit, don't you think?"

"Not a newborn," she murmured, leaning in to kiss him.

"I suppose that does take a special skill set," he hummed against her lips.

"Mmm-hmm."

They got in the tub once it was filled enough, settling comfortably curled up together. "This feels wonderful." River breathed, relaxing in the water.

His arms rested snugly around her, her back to his chest. "I'm glad."

"Can you feel her moving?"

"Yes," he hummed, tracing circles gently around the baby's movements. "What's gotten her all excited?"

"Don't know..." She smiled softly, "Maybe it's the sound of your voice."

"Well, I know that does the trick for you, darling," he chuckled.

"You're not wrong," she laughed, tilting her head so she could kiss him, "In fact..." He leaned down and their lips met before she could say more. River hummed against his lips, smiling.

"She's definitely going to take after you," he hummed.

"You think so?"

"Absolutely," he punctuated the word with a kiss to her cheek. "Brilliant, brave, and just amazing."

-x-

River retreated to the bedroom to take a nap, the kids watching television and the twins heading to their friends' houses for sleepovers. With only the younger three children home, it wasn't too difficult to keep an eye on them. The Doctor kept a close watch on Terra. Despite her being rid of the infection, the illness had left her weakened.

Terra mostly just wanted to watch television with her older brother, and follow him around the house, eager to have someone to entertain her. The Doctor reminded them to play gently when they decided to go into the backyard. He made dinner as he watched them from the kitchen.

River came back down while he was cooking, "Can I help?"

He glanced over at her with a soft smile. "Of course."

"What do you need me to do?" she asked.

He explained the kind of sauce he wanted to make, glancing at the kids as he did. It looked like Arthur was trying to teach Terra a new game he had learned, though Terra didn't seem to have much interest. "Have you checked on Felix?" the Doctor asked distractedly.

"Yes, he's sleeping for now." River nodded, "Something wrong?"

"Hm?" He pulled his gaze away from the window. "Oh, yes. I mean no. Nothing's wrong."

"Are you sure?" She frowned, glancing out the window to see what he had been looking at.

Terra and Arthur had gotten their hands on a ball and they were kicking it around in some game that was a mix of football and play pretend. Terra was a bit sluggish and not nearly as fast as she usually was, but still seemed to be enjoying herself.

"I'm glad to see she's getting better." River smiled softly, putting a hand on the Doctor's arm.

"Me too," he breathed. "I shouldn't worry..."

"But you are worrying..." she said knowingly.

"Can't help it." He smiled weakly at her. "I'm her father. I think it's basically a default state of being."

"I know. I feel the same way."

He pulled her close to him so he could press a kiss to her temple and held her there for a moment.

"I love you," she murmured.

He smiled a little more warmly as he pressed his face into her curls and breathed her in. "Love you, too."

Despite their concerns, Terra only improved as time moved forward. Each meal she ate returned color to her skin. Each time she was able to run around with her siblings brightened the smile on her face. It was the first time in a while that River and the Doctor were able to sleep through the night getting woken only by Felix and not by worry.

-x-

The Doctor sighed as the three of them left the building. It was mid-August and they'd promised Terra that they would go out for ice cream if she came to the school orientation with them.

"I know we decided that this was the best fit for her... but I'm not sure how I feel about them teaching speech so young. She's three, River." He glanced at Terra, who was holding firmly onto River's hand. "And she can communicate with us just fine without verbalizing. You don't think it's a little much...?"

"No, I want her to learn as soon as possible. I'm afraid that the older she gets, the harder it will be for her to learn. And I know she can communicate with us, but the rest of the universe doesn't sign." She hesitated, "We won't always be here to help her, and she'll need to manage on her own."

"There are Deaf people who manage well on their own without speech," he pointed out slowly. "Not that I'm saying she shouldn't learn it... I just know how tough oral training can be. I don't want to make her ashamed to be using Sign."

River sighed, "I don't want that either, but… I worry about her."

"I know," his tone matched hers. It was a complicated thought to have about Terra's future. It was presumed that, like her siblings, she would take an interest in their off-world travels and fly the TARDIS herself when she was old enough. But looking at his daughter now, a girl who just came above her mother's knee in height and hated being away from River for more than two hours at a time, the idea of her growing up was as far away as the stars. "I just want to make sure, when she does start school, that we do what we can to make her feel supported."

"Well, like you said, we decided back in April that this was the best fit for her, but if the speech classes are too difficult, we'll pull her out and find another solution." She compromised, looking down at their daughter, who was now tugging both her parents in the direction of the ice cream shop.

He nodded in agreement. Terra seemed oblivious to their conversation, but also seemed to have school on her mind. "[Is school hard?]" the girl asked.

"[It's meant to be challenging, but not impossible.]" River shook her head.

"[But you won't be there when I go,]" she pouted.

"[Well, yes, but you'll make loads of new friends. And I'll be home with you every day after school.]"

Terra gave this some thought. "[Will my friends sign? Mia and Freya's friends don't sign.]"

River nodded, giving her an encouraging smile, "[Yes, everyone at this school signs. That's why we chose it for you.]"

She brightened up just a little then paused again. "[Mia and Freya and Arthur won't be with me either?]"

River shook her head, "[I'm afraid not.]"

"[Why not? They can sign.]"

"[They already have their own schools. They don't need a new one.]" River pointed out.

"[Can I go to theirs then?]" She asked

"[Nobody signs at their school.]" River reminded gently.

"[Oh...right.]" Terra frowned. "[But what if they don't like me at me school?]"

"[Why wouldn't they like you, my love?]"

She shrugged, looking at the ground. "[Maybe they'll think I'm boring 'cause I can't tell them anything about Mumma TARDIS or anything.]"

"[I don't think they'll think you're boring.]" River assured, "[You're much too wonderful for them to think that.]"

"[But what do I say if I can't talk about that stuff?]"

"[There are plenty of things you can talk about. You can tell them about Toby, your brother and sisters...]" She went on to list several more topics Terra would be able to talk about.

They reached the ice cream shop by that time and Terra felt just a little more at ease. "[Can I get two flavors?]"

"[If you'd like.]" River nodded, glancing at the Doctor.

He nodded his approval, smiling at the two of them. "[You can even get toppings.]"

Her eyes lit up, delighted at the thought and forgetting the worries she had just moments ago.