...Well that was close!
Clara looked at the figure, up and down, the figure was staring at both the Doctors, then she sprang into action, taking a device out of her bag and fiddling with it.
The Doctors looked puzzled, "Honey?" Raggedy asked despairingly. "I know it's you!" the Doctor said accusingly, "Sweetheart?" the Doctor added, worry edged in his voice. "It is you, isn't it?" Raggedy tried to put a hand on the hooded figure's shoulder but she twisted from his approach and moved the device to another part of the building. The Doctor tried to succeed where his younger self failed, "River? Please answer me. I don't like it when you get upset, I get upset two!" he walked over but again the figure moved away, focused only on the device she was trying to activate.
The Doctors both slumped next to each other on the steps at the top of the aisle, hands between their knees. Clara looked at the two men, they looked completely defeated. She walked over. "Doctor," she began, both men looked up, sadness etched into their suddenly old features. "It might not be her. We just have to keep looking." she said trying to comfort them. Both men sighed and looked down again. Clara gave up and sat next to the rest of the group who were staring at the hooded figure.
Amy still tried to convince the Doctors to give up their despair, "Please Doctor, on demon's run, you gave up and then our daughter found us, please don't give up on her." The men both hummed but turned their faces from the group's view.
The group's attention turned back to the hooded figure. She seemed to be assembling some form of transmitter. Clara thought it resembled one of those bubble guns you get at fairgrounds, but it was vertical not horizontal. The figure took out a small computer device and plugged it in to the bubble gun transmitter. She then pressed a few buttons and the bubble gun glowed a blue colour from its original silver. The comparison with the fairground prize grew so even more, when a bubble appeared at the top of the transmitter, but it looked more like an electric field. "Doctor, what is that?" Rose whispered. Neither Doctor answered, they just stayed sat, motionless on the steps. Jack answered Rose "51st century invention, basically it disrupts Dalek communication with their armour. The Dalek essentially becomes trapped within their own body, the transmitter only works for a short time though, then they have to recharge." Rose turned to the group. "Did anyone see the date? Are we in the 51st century?" Jack answered again, "No, she must have brought it here. The battle of Telminous happened in the 49th century, the dalek fleet was destroyed." Donna turned to Jack, "How would you know that?" Jack brushed his coat proudly. "Time agent training school, history of the Dalek race, I got the second highest mark. I was beaten by some smart ginger girl, she was pretty, really polite, and not there very long, but everyone fancied her..." Martha laughed, "Aww, Jack's first crush!" Jack scowled. "I was ten, she was barely more than seven!" he held out his hands defensively. Martha bit back a laugh but Rose wasn't nearly so diplomatic, "Seven! God Jack, you started young!" Jack turned back to the figure, attempting to change the subject, he asked rhetorically, "I wonder if she went to the training academy two? She certainly knew how to take out a Dalek with no problem. If she wasn't so silent and bland as a character, I might ask her out for a drink..." The figure must have heard his comment, as she huffed and held her chin up high, as if his offer of a drink made her feel disdain against him. She then went back to work on the machine, but not before looking across at the Doctors and sighing softly.
Suddenly a blue hum erupted from the machine and the figure stepped back. She, now satisfied the machine was working, put her computer device away in her bag and threw the satchel on the floor with a thud. This brought both Doctors out of their dark place and back into reality, they looked up at her sadly. The woman walked over, and swayed slightly. The Doctors both sprang to their feet, each holding one of her arms to steady her. The woman stepped back a bit, releasing her arms from the men's grip. The group stood also, an eerie silence filled the room, Clara felt really tense. The Doctors both stared at the figure intensely. She undid the tie of her cloak slowly, and the thick fabric moved from her front revealing a storm cage uniform, tattered and muddy. The woman then brought her hands slowly to her hood, and lifted it. The cloak fell to the floor, the group stepped back in shock.
"Hello Sweetie." River said softly, she stared straight at the two Doctors, her eyes shifted between them, taking in the utter relief on their face.
"What the hell were you doing honey? You scared us silly. We thought we'd never find you!" Raggedy said. "Never, ever, put me through that again!" The Doctor berated her, but his voice had only concern in it, River smiled.
Clara looked at River, the time she'd met her, River was a ghost, nothing more than a computer file, but now she stood in the flesh, Clara could see the true person. River looked tired, resilient, but tired. The Doctors both walked briskly up to River, presumably attempting to hug her. However just as they reached their wife, River's eyes rolled backward into her head, and her eyes shut. She fell gracefully toward the ground. The Doctors both reacted quickly, Raggedy catching her body, and the Doctor, her head and neck. Both, with a look of pure terror on their faces, lowered her to the floor. The Doctor had placed River's head on his knee and was scanning her with his sonic. River's mass of curls obscuring his trousers completely from view. Raggedy was holding River's left hand, stroking it, putting it on his cheek, kissing it, all the while, talking to River as if she could hear him. "Comon, Riv, wake up! This isn't funny, the Master said you could die, this is no time to play coy with us. Just because there are two men doting on you, does not mean you can be all girly and flirtatious, not that I don't like that of course, I find you incredibly attractive, you're hell in high heels!" Rory and Martha had ran to River's side as well, Amy was behind her husband.
"Doctor, I am a trained physician!" Martha cried at him. The Doctor shook his head and continued scanning River.
"Doctor, I'm a nurse," Rory pleaded with the older Doctor, as he seemed the less crazy of the two versions, Raggedy was still shouting at his unconscious wife. "And she's my daughter! I am not letting her die!" The Doctor's head turned sharply toward his father-in-law "You think I want her to die! After all we've been through! Rory, she's my family as well! She is not going to die because I will not allow it. River you are not allowed to die!" he spoke the last sentence in a whisper to his wife, her head lulled to one side. Raggedy caught her head before it slipped and placed it gently back on his descendant's knee, kissing her forehead after he did so, and then moved back onto his knees, looking at the elder man desperately. The Doctor stopped scanning River, his face was grave. He showed Raggedy the sonic, Raggedy 's eyes darkened and griped River's hand tighter. The Doctor moved River's head to the floor, Amy put her jacket under her daughter's head. She kissed River's forehead, and stroked her hair lovingly, removing stray curls from River's face "Doctor, she's burning up..." she cried softly, Rory kissed his daughter's forehead as well and then moved Amy away. The Doctor took hold of River's free right hand, and then looked across to Raggedy. "Doctor, what's happened to her?" Clara stepped toward the two Doctors but was held back by John firmly, a grim look on his face.
Golden sparks started to flow from River's hands and the Doctors both shut their eyes, griping her hands tightly "Stay back!" John shouted to the curious onlookers. The familiar sound of regeneration filled the ears of those who had been unfortunate enough to witness it. Amy and Rory started to cry. Seeing their daughter change not once but twice was taking its toll. Clara had learned about River along with the rest the group just before the phone call bringing the group here. Amy and Rory explained her story up to Manhattan but even they didn't know half of what River had done in her life. The diary the Doctor carried in his jacket pocket apparently held all her adventures with the timelord, as well as those she undertook alone. But that didn't matter now, Clara looked at the Doctors, "Doctor, you need to get back!" she screamed at them but they didn't listen. River glowed so bright that the three timelords all disappeared completely. "Doctor!" Clara screamed. As suddenly as the light appeared from River, it seemed to absorb back into her body. The Doctors leant over her, they weren't any worse for wear. No one could see her face, but it was definitely her, "She hasn't regenerated, I can see her hair!" Amy smiled and shook her husband. Rory just stared in disbelief.
Clara walked toward the Doctors but they gave her no attention, too obsessed by their wife's condition. River suddenly sat bolt upright. She glared at both the Doctors and staggered to her feet, distancing herself from them. The Doctors both stood quickly, holding out their hands, trying to get her to come toward them. "You better not have tried to heal me again!" River growled softly, her eyes blinking, trying to regain control of her senses, and balance. The Doctors shook their heads "We were trying to rid you of excess regeneration energy. Did you look into the time vortex to long?" The Doctor asked her coldly.
"No!" River retorted, "The Master held me there, I was starting to convulse, I...I" River brought her hands to her head in pain. The Doctors ran to her and helped her sit down on the steps. The Doctor leant her against Raggedy, her eye lids fluttered and Raggedy held her close to him, one arm around her shoulder, his other hand held her shaking hands on his knee, "Hey, hush now Riv. You're going to be fine, no not fine," Raggedy moved his hand from her hands to her chin, lifting it till her eyes met his, "You're going to be amazing!" he whispered warmly, he then nuzzled her nose and leant his forehead against hers. The Doctor turned to the group, "River absorbed too much of the time vortex energy when she was changed to a timelord. It wasn't her fault though," he turned and smiled to River and his younger self, still resting their foreheads against each other, he refaced the group, "the Master must have held her in place when she tried to turn from the vortex when she should have. The energy will eventually overload her body as River can't regenerate yet, her body is still too unstable, it's still settling. The clock is counting down because the energy is time energy, so it will return to the vortex through River's body at the point it comes from, one day from now. Me and Raggedy tried to dissipate the energy but it won't leave her because River's body is still stabilising." The Doctor turned and River stood up to face him, "I'm going to black out again aren't I?" she said quietly. The Doctor nodded in reply, Raggedy stood up and replaced his arm around River's shoulders and pulled her into a hug, he looked at his older self pleadingly, "We can sort this Riv, there must be a way. I'm not losing my wife!" the Doctor said, trying to comfort her, she moved from Raggedy 's arms and looked at the Doctor "We're not really married now, you know that, not totally..." she answered him. "What do you mean, not totally?" Clara asked, voicing everyone's feelings.
The two Doctors looked at one another.
"It's why I'm here." Raggedy started to explain but the Doctor took over.
"When a timelord marries truly, they tell their partner their real name, the one given to them by the vortex. It took me a while but I finally found I could trust River completely. Raggedy fell in love with her, that happened before he trusted her though. When we married, Raggedy told her my name, at that moment our souls were joined by the vortex, her mind and mine. When River became a full timelord, the vortex gave her a new name. That would be fine except that she knows my name but I didn't know hers. It meant that our marriage was split, but not completely. River knows her name and mine, but I don't know hers so my soul split and out came bow-tie as he is the one who last had this body so he was the easiest to pull out from my head." Raggedy man straightened his bow-tie. The group stared blankly. River looked at her husbands and then addressed the group,
"Pretty boy should be inside the mature one's head, but he's not because the Doctor's soul can't handle him in there at the moment." the group's faces seemed to regain life.
"Is she your translator?" Donna asked the Doctor, he put his hands in his pockets and walked lazily over to River, "Nope, she's my fiance, and we're getting married, so River hold out your hand, that way we can get Raggedy back in my head, and that's one less problem to deal with..." Both men strode toward her but River backed away.
Raggedy tried to catch her hand, but she quickly pulled it away, "Comon River! You didn't have a problem before!" Raggedy said, anger tinged in his voice. River looked across at the current Doctor and then shook her head,
"No." she said.