River felt herself drifting through the crowds of well-wishers and drunk party guests, past buffet tables and a large dance floor full of gyrating couples, and out a back door to a dimly lit courtyard. She became aware that she wasn't merely drifting anymore, not when she saw the flash of blue—she was being pulled to the one thing in the universe that could ever anchor her.

She stood hesitantly by a tree strung up with fairy lights, waiting for the door of the blue box to open, and her heart flopped in her chest when it did.

"Oh—hello, River!" he said in a cheery voice, adjusting his bowtie out of habit. He stepped out of the TARDIS and gave her a customary greeting kiss on her nose. "You're here, good! You can tell me, what did I buy Sherlock and John for their wedding present? Was it the tea cozy?"

She only stared at him.

"What is it?" the Doctor asked. "Did I accidentally kiss an alien again?"

River burst into tears—she couldn't help it. She wanted to save him from the spoilers, she really did, but this was too much.

He yelped when she embraced him, throwing her arms around him and sobbing into his shirt. Awkwardly he petted her on the back. "Shh, shh, River, it's okay! I won't do it again! They keep throwing themselves at me, and you know how irresistible I am!"

She snuffled a laugh into his chest. "Shut up. Where are you coming from?"

"We were at Sherlock and John's with Clara—Lyra, I mean," he said. "I just slipped out to see if I'd gotten them a good wedding present, since you know I'm rubbish at gifts." He put a finger under her chin and lifted her face to meet his. "What's wrong?"

She only shook her head. "Spoilers."

"No, no, no—no wife of mine is going to get away with that word when I find her crying like this. What happened? And where am I? I don't want to run into myself here."

She cried even harder, and he seemed to understand.

"River. Did I…have I…?"

"Cass," she whispered, enfolding him in a tighter embrace. That threw him—she rarely called him by his real name, even in its diminutive form. When they were in the midst of emotional or intimate moments, they'd been known to call each other Cass and Carmine—it meant something important.

Automatically, he wrapped his arms around her and stroked her hair. "It's okay, River. Whatever it is, you're going to be okay, I promise you." He paused and ducked under the cover of her hair and whispered, "Did I die?"

She didn't answer, burying her face into his neck instead.

That was enough of an answer. "Oh," he said. He swallowed a few times. "Serious, then. Tell me I put on a good show, please."

"Cass, stop pretending this isn't serious, for goodness' sake!" she hissed, pulling away. Sitting on the stone bench nearby, she cradled her head in her hands and sighed.

"I'm just trying to lighten the mood, dear." He sighed and sat with her. "You took care of it, then. I have nothing to worry about. Was it quick?"

"Not really."

"Ouch. Well, doesn't matter. Are you safe? Is Lyra all right?"

"We're all fine. You bloody well saved us the way you always do." She wiped at her nose and gratefully took the handkerchief the Doctor gave her. "I'm sorry. Don't tell us, when you go back to your own time. I shouldn't have told you anything."

"You can't keep anything from me, Carmine. Not for long." He put an arm around her shoulder. "You'll see me again, soon. You have my screwdriver, right?"

River smiled bitterly to herself. The Doctor already knew she was going to the Library. She couldn't tell him that she knew, as well, even if he was so sure he could guess. "I do. And don't you worry—I'm going to find a way to save you. I'm already working on it."

"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't counting on it. But please don't worry about it, darling. If I'm gone, it's okay. You know things aren't meant to last."

"We're meant to last," she insisted. "We're supposed to be something that lasts forever. I can't just let that go. And I'm going to be meeting versions of you who won't even recognize me. I'll meet versions of you that won't know that we're married, or how much I love you, and I don't think I can deal with that."

"You can, and you will. For me," he said. He kissed her gently and booped her on the nose. "If this is the last chance I'll get to say it—"

"Don't—"

"—then I'm going to say it. I love you, River Song, more than all the universe. It will be an honor to die by your hands." He tried to communicate that is was going to be all right through his smile, but River wasn't having it. "Come on, then—it's a wedding, and I always dance at weddings. Can you be my last dance?"

With a heavy heart, River stared at the hand he offered her and took it, drawing closer to him as a jazzy tune leaked out of the window and into the courtyard. The Doctor led her in slow circles, rubbing her back comfortingly. "You must be lonely now."

"You wouldn't believe how much."

"I think I know a thing or too about loneliness."

"Not like this," she said, shaking her head.

"Is Lyra doing all right?"

"She's coping. Taking over your job—the TARDIS likes her well enough, now."

"Brilliant. I knew they'd get along eventually." He glanced at his wrist watch. "I think I need to go. I can't have Lyra see me, or the boys, if they know I'm dead."

"Can't you just stay?" she asked through tears. "You're always coming and going, sweetie, and I can never follow you—can I ask for just one more night?"

"Haven't we tampered with time enough, darling?"

"You owe me one, for what I did for you." She grabbed him by the wrists and gave him the sexiest smile she could manage. "Leave tomorrow morning. For one more night, let's run, and then you can go back." It was then that she understood what the Doctor had said to her in the moments before his death.

"I'm remembering it now—the night after Sherlock and John's wedding. It's what I'm going to think about."

"What are you talking about?"

"You'll understand soon. Goodbye, my mad lady. I love you."

She swallowed and smoothed the hair out of his eyes. "You told me you were going to think about it, when you died. You told me you'd think of this night when it happened. It's not messing with a timeline if it's already going to happen."

"Did I, now?" He smirked at her. "All right. One more night to run, you and me, one last time. The Doctor and his mad lady, the greatest love story in the universe."

She nodded calmly. "You and me."

And she leaned in and kissed her madman, and he tasted exactly like starfire.