The Doctor struggled fiercely against the shear strength of the sound waves crashing into him. Everything around him was vibrating with incredible force. He swayed and stumbled as he slowly stood upright. Daring to take one hand away from his ear he somehow managed to get hold of his sonic screwdriver. He winced and doubled over in agony at the vibrations surging through his body. It would surely kill him if this continued. He feebly pointed the screwdriver at the Tardis door which juddered open reluctantly. With the fear of falling and being unable to stand again the Doctor shuffled his feet across the floor making slow progress towards the open door. He finally fell against the doorframe; the vibrations were much stronger in here. At the base of the Tardis console he could see River's curly head of hair. Unable to stand she'd curled into a ball, hands firmly over her ears, her eyes tightly shut. The Doctor fell inside his legs no long able to fight against the strong vibrations. He aimed at the console with his sonic device, the lever released and all sonic noises ceased. For a moment he laid there, his body adjusting to the lack of vibrations and absence of the immense pressure he'd been under.
"River...?" he called wearily at last, "... Are you alright?"
"...Yes," came a weak response.
"Good... Good...," he gasped pushing his hair back, "Never do that ... again... the universe clearly isn't ready... for a sonic Tardis" He closed his eyes and breathed in deeply. Never in his life had he felt such relief. His hearts couldn't cope with this kind of excitement anymore. River was just the kind of woman who'd be bringing a whole heap of excitement into his life. There was never a dull second with her and he was sure he'd never have another minute's peace again. He was learning all this the hard way of course. Without bothering to stand he kicked the Tardis door closed and laid there a few minutes more. What a day it had been...
"River...?" he asked quietly stepping tentatively up onto the console platform. She remained curled in a ball, her hands and arms shielding her face. His eyes, slightly wide and saddened looked as though they may break into silent tears, "River..." he repeated quietly kneeling beside her. He reached out to touch her shoulder; she withdrew, shaking terribly, "It's me... River...It's me"
"Oh Doctor I don't know what went so wrong," her voice shook uncontrollably, "I didn't mean for that to happen... It... It just..." by this time she'd finally sat upright. The Doctor's hand, now on her shoulder, calmed her only slightly.
"It's okay," he breathed as she hugged him tightly burying her face in his shirt. He kissed her hair and gave her a gentle squeeze, "It's okay"
The Doctor stared at the console, a long, blank, hollow stare, "Hey," he whispered pressing his lips to her ear, "Let's get out of here," he kissed her forehead and got up leaving her still sat in shock and silence.
He began his usual slog around the console deep in thought until he felt a presence behind him. He paused and turned around; it was River.
"I hate you sometimes!" she yelled shoving him hard against the console. He fell back over the controls in shock,
"Ah," he winced hitting the back of his head as he slid into an ungraceful heap on the floor. Through his blurred vision he caught sight of her marching away into the depths of the time machine, "ouch," he murmured clutching the back of his head. He checked his hand for any signs of blood; his face screwed up in pain. Shaking and disorientated he stumbled up, falling and steadying himself on the rail surrounding the platform.
"And who else have you got! ?" he yelled, "Who else in this universe would put up with you! ?" Shaking his head he put a hand up massaging his temples with his middle finger and thumb. He turned back and lent over the controls, "Nightmare..." he mumbled, "Absolute... nightmare" He tapped his fist on the edge of the console. He winced, suffering a shooting pain where he'd hit the console with the back of his head, "Damnit!" he cried unleashing his anger on the controls with a fit of kicks and punches. Satisfied that his mild temper had subsided enough he turned around wiping the thin film of sweat from his brow. River was stood watching him, her arms tightly folded and her eyes fixed in a steady glare.
"All that anger Doctor," she leaned forward moving her lips carefully so that he wouldn't miss a word, "All... that... darkness" He stared back at her, with a flick of her hair she turned and left him alone, hopefully, to have a good think about himself. A small clatter drew his attention away from her retreating to her room. His eyes searched all around the base of the console, but found nothing. Shrugging his shoulders he casually pulled the large lever on the console which shot the Tardis towards the stars, and towards their next stop. Flopping back on the sofa he hoped that the next time he laid eyes on River she'd be in a less hostile mood. He'd had many female companions on board the Tardis, but not one could compare to her. She was definitely something else.