NOTE: This chapter was difficult to write, but a lot of fun! Don't worry if you're left with questions, this is the 'Let's Get This Party Started!' chapter!

Chapter Four

River shook off the icy chill that came along with traveling long distances with a Vortex Manipulator. Releasing her traveling partner's hand she stepped out onto the soft mossy cavern floor of Gemina. She looked out over the brightly glowing growths that lined every surface in amazement, it was unlike anything she'd ever seen before. River smiled as a pair of arms wrapped around her waist from behind her and embraced her tightly. The hug was quickly followed by an affectionate nuzzle against her neck.

"Well?" The Doctor whispered in her ear. "What do you think?"

"Oh, Doctor, this is simply amazing." River replied in awe.

"It gets better."

River chuckled as the Doctor's nuzzling turned to a string of kisses down her neck. When he reached the space where her neck and shoulder met he sunk his teeth into her ivory skin. River closed her eyes and held her breath as she enjoyed the sensation that teetered between pleasure and pain. When he became too aggressive with his bitting she reached up and tangled her hand into his hair and tugged on it to let him know he was going too far. He didn't release her right away, but instead left one more painful mark before finishing with a light kiss.

"How old are you?" River asked casually.

"I've started to lose track of my exact age. Why do you ask?"

"You look so much younger than I'm used to seeing you, and yet you know a lot about me, about us. It's not a combination that makes much sense to me, usually it's the other way around. As we cross my future to your past I know the day is coming when I'll be nothing but a stranger to you."

"Don't worry about that day."

"How can I not?"

"Because it's not this day."

River smiled as the Doctor took her hand and lead her through the network of glowing tunnels and caverns. They came to an open cavern that had a tiny drip of turquoise liquid falling from the ceiling. There was a vaguely square shaped dead patch of moss about three feet across in the glowing ground cover in the middle of the cavern. River didn't pay any attention to the spot but she was suddenly yanked to a stop by the Doctor.

"Doctor?"

"Damn it." He snarled as he dropped to he knees on the dead patch of moss.

"What's wrong?"

The Doctor didn't answer he just sank his fingers into the thick black moss. He closed his eyes and concentrated for a moment before muttering a few more choice curses under his breath. When he reached up and rubbed at his temples River caught a glimpse of the skin under the thick band of the Vortex Manipulator that he was wearing and saw how raw and red it was. It was a sign of time burns from over use of the device, he was traveling with it far more than just the few visits to take her places like he'd claimed.

"What is going on, Doctor?" River asked gently. "Where is the TARDIS?"

"I told you, I had to send the TARDIS away for a while. It's on a random setting to keep it hidden until things settle down with the Silence."

"You told me that, but there is something you're not telling me."

"There is *always* something I'm not telling you, River, and vice versa." The Doctor replied in a mocking tone. "The TARDIS will turn up sooner or later, she always finds me, she loves me."

"Doct..."

"Come, as long as we're here there is something I want to show you."

The Doctor jumped to his feet and roughly snatched River's wrist. He dragged her into a near by tunnel at a quick pace. Halfway down the naturally lit tunnel they came to an immense set of softly glowing bones. River was fascinated, but the Doctor barely even glanced at them as he continued to lead her along. The empty eye sockets of the massive skull held a red glowing fungus that made it look like the skeleton was watching her.

"Are those dragon bones?" River asked in surprise.

"Yeah, that was my fault." The Doctor muttered darkly.

"Your fault? Wait, I thought that only Gemino had dragons. How did it get down here?"

"It wasn't easy."

"What?"

"The waterfall is this way."

"Waterfall?" River repeated as they continued at their brisk pace. "Doctor can we just stop for a second?"

The Doctor didn't answer, nor did he stop. With a seemingly singular purpose in mind he continued to haul River through the twisting and turning caverns. She tried a few times to retrieve her wrist from him, but his grip was far more powerful than she expected. River was just starting to go from annoyed to angry when they reached their destination.

River was momentarily transfixed by the beauty of the bioluminescent waterfall. Time had carved away some of the stone so that now it fell down a different path, but it was just as breathtaking as the day that Amy had stood on the shore. River was staring at the flecks of gleaming colour when the Doctor tangled his hand into her curly hair and forced her to face him. River took a breath to protest but was cut off when he engaged her in a passionate kiss.

Although the Doctor's new found assertiveness had been refreshing at first it was starting to become worrisome. The Doctor continued with the ardent kiss, forcing her a few steps back. When he backed her up against a near by stalagmite River put her hands on his chest to push him away, however he retaliated by bitting down on her lip. Locked in the painful kiss River froze for a moment to give him a chance to release her on his own.

When he kept her captive she brought her hand up to the Doctor's left shoulder and rested her fingertips against the pressure point that she knew lay beneath. She didn't press down hard, but she let him know she was prepared to. The Doctor released her lip, but kept her trapped against the stone and reached up to tear at her shirt. River grabbed his wrists to stop him. He allowed her to keep his wrists but he leaned in to kiss her again. River turned away to prevent him from latching down on her lip again.

"Doctor, stop it." River demanded.

"You are so difficult to please," the Doctor snarled as he pushed away from her "first you tell me you enjoy it when I'm more aggressive and then when I am..."

"You're getting out of control."

"What? You don't trust me anymore?"

"I trust you, but something is wrong and we both know what it is."

"Finally figured it out did you?"

"You're traveling without my parents, without the TARDIS. It's affecting you. You're all alone, and we both know that's not good for you."

"Oh...that. Right. Well, you could fix that. I don't have to be alone." He smiled as he stepped in closer again. "Travel with me."

"I do."

"Not like this. Not these...trysts." The Doctor used the word as though it physically tasted bad. "Don't force me to be alone. Stay with me, travel with me all the time."

"You know I can't. The rules..."

"Rules, rules, rules, I'm so *sick* of rules." The Doctor rolled his eyes.

"They're your rules."

"I am a Time Lord!" The Doctor snarled in a sudden flash of anger. "I am above the rules!"

"Doctor, Sweetie, my Love," River put her hand on the Doctor's cheek "this is exactly what I'm talking about. This isn't you. You need to stop."

"Why should I?! I'm finally free!" The Doctor shouted with a manic laugh as he jerked away from her touch. "Can't you see that? All of Time and Space is *mine*! There's no one who can stop me!"

"I can."

River had meant for her statement to be more of an offer to help, but even to her own ears it sounded like a threat once she'd said it. The Doctor reacted far more violently than she expected so she was unprepared to defend herself when he lashed out and struck her hard across the cheek. River managed to stay on her feet, but her ears were ringing from the powerful blow. The Doctor pounced on her before she could get her bearings and grabbed a handful of her hand and used the purchase to yank her head back.

"Doctor!" River cried out in panic.

Ignoring her cry the Doctor swept River's leg out from underneath her and dropped her to the glowing cave floor. River brought her knee up just as the Doctor was coming down to pin her to the floor and she managed to drive it hard into his ribs. Growling in pain the Doctor straddled her and grabbed for River's wrists. Twisting out from under her attacker River got to her hands and knees and scrambled on all fours to escape.

River didn't make it far before she was grabbed by the shoulder and flipped over. This time the Doctor managed to ensnare her wrists and he pinned them above her head as he pressed his body weight against her to keep her down. Panting for breath the pair were streaked and smeared in various colours of bioluminescent stains from fighting in the glowing world. River's heart was pounding painful against her chest as the Doctor leaned in and pressed his cheek against hers.

"I may have appeared to have been at your beckon call in the past," the Doctor growled darkly in her ear "but do not mistake me for your *dog*, River, I am wolf drawn by the scent of your blood. Consider yourself lucky that I enjoy strong women, but do not think for one second that you have the power to stop me from getting what I want."

The Doctor propped himself up on his elbows so that he could look down on River. He studied her for a moment with what looked like true admiration in his eyes. Terrified River stared up at the Doctor. As he looked down on her his eyes glittered with a golden sheen for a moment. River's blood turned to ice as she realized that something was far more wrong that the Doctor having traveled alone too long.

"I should just kill you," the Doctor released one of her wrists so that he could run his hand through her glow stained hair "but I'll never be able to bring myself to do it."

River took the opportunity of having her hand free to strike. River had discovered the weak spot in the Doctor's armour quite by accident one night. She thought he had suddenly gone into a seizure, however once he had recovered from the effects he explained what had happened. Looking to use the tangle of nerves to her advantage she struck the Doctor's left shoulder with fear driven force and dug her fingers into the spot. The Doctor looked down at her hand casually and gave it a kiss.

"Sorry, River, that would have worked in the past," the Doctor chuckled "but Rassilon no longer has any way to test me now."

"Who are you?" River demanded.

"You know who I am. You are one of the few in the Universe who knows my name."

"No, you are not the Doctor."

"I hate that title, but I'm not ready to get rid of it just yet. But even when I do it won't change the fact that you are my wife."

"I don't believe you."

"You belong to me."

"The Doctor doesn't treat me like an object to be possessed."

"Really? You're kept in a cage during the day, only let out at night to be played with." He chuckled as he leaned in again to whisper in her ear. "You're my pet, but I love you. I love you so much that it drives me mad."

"Let me go!" River snarled. "When the Doctor finds out you've taken me he will hunt you down and tear you apart!"

"River, I'm not coming to save you from myself."

"You are not him!"

"I can prove it."

River continued to fight against her tormentor as he brought his lips against her ear once more. River gasped sharply as he breathed a single word in her ear, a name so secret that it had become part of prophecy and legend. River closed her eyes as tears streaked from the corners. Her tears mixed with the blue moss stain on her face and highlighted them in a soft glow. The Doctor carefully rubbed her tears away with the back of his hand leaving a red glowing blood like colour on her cheeks.

"Don't cry, River. Everything is going to be okay. We are going to rule the Universe: past, present, and future. Together. I love you."

"This can't be you...I know you, I know your future...you're a good man."

"History can be rewritten, that goes double for the future."

"If this is what you've become you know what I'm going to do if you let me live."

"You're going to go telling my name to all the wrong people to try and stop me."

"It's not supposed to end like this." River reached up and ran her hand through his hair. "You can come back from this, you're not evil, you're just sick. Let me help you."

"I don't want your help. I just want your love."

"I can't love you like this."

"You can. This isn't the first time I've slipped up with you. I don't mean to lose my temper, but you can make me so angry sometimes. This was barely an argument, the last time I broke three of your ribs and your wrist."

"The last time? In my future?"

"No, in your past."

"I don't remem...oh, no, no, Doctor, please don't..."

"Sorry. I won't be so aggressive next time."

"Doctor, no..."

The Doctor pressed his fingertips against River's temples as his eyes rolled back to white. River arched back and screamed as he tore into her mind and ripped out the memories of what had just occurred. Clawing at the mossy floor she arched underneath him and cried out again as the events melted away.

Passing out briefly River opened her eyes and smiled when she discovered the Doctor looking down on her. She was not expecting to find him on top of her, but it wasn't an unpleasant surprise. She had a slight headache, but she dismissed it when the Doctor leaned in and softly rubbed his nose against her cheek. A little confused as to what was happening River looked over at the stunning white and rainbow waterfall that trickled near by.

"River?"

"Hello, Sweetie."

"Are you okay?" The Doctor asked with concern.

"I think so. What happened?"

"Just a little accident with the Vortex Manipulator."

"Where are we?"

"Gemina."

"So...not another soul on the planet?" River asked knowingly.

"Just you and me."

"This all seems wonderfully intimate." River smiled as she ran her hands down his sides. "What exactly are we doing here?"

"We came here for the scenery, we were just talking when the accident happened, a hiccup in the time flow. You'll be okay."

"What were we talking about?"

"You were telling me how much you love me."

"With all my heart." River purred.

"Really?" The Doctor raised an eyebrow. "Prove it."

"Gladly." River smiled brightly.

Although still feeling disoriented River felt compelled to ignore the details of the 'accident'. Instead she sat up and guided the Doctor to lay on his back so that she could take control of their encounter, something else she felt oddly compelled to do. She paused for a moment when she noticed that they were both already covered in colourful glowing stains. Shaking off the uneasy feeling River reached down and unbuttoned his stained shirt. Opening the shirt River stared at the purple spiral pattern that marred the Doctor's chest over his left heart.

"Have you always had this?" River asked as she traced the marks.

"My whole life. You know that."

"Right, I...I guess I remember now. What is it?"

"A birthmark."