3: Wind
River and the Doctor had been on Darillium for exactly one year, getting into trouble, exploring, and, of course, getting a good run in every day or so. Hand in hand, they had fled shop owners, wolf-like aliens living in the woods of the strange planet, and even a few small children. Tonight, though, was their anniversary (as close to an anniversary as two time traveller's always meeting in the wrong order can have), and River had specifically requested peace and calm for once. The Doctor was, of course, taken aback by his wife's uncharacteristic request, and doubtful whether he could actually realize it, but he was determined to make her happy, no matter what.
For that reason, and that reason only, the Doctor and River hadn't seen much of each other all day. He had left the small flat they were sharing before she had woken and hadn't contacted her since. Normally, they went to breakfast together, or walked to the markets and tried to negotiate with the tricky business-owners. When River realized the Doctor was not beside her in bed nor anywhere in the flat, the market was the first place she looked.
Though it was still night on Darillium, and only getting darker and darker every night as they were only 1/24 into the night, the market was always beautiful. Lamps lined the long, narrow street on both sides, lighting up the entire walkway as if it were the middle of a summer day in Italy (Earth's Italy, that is, not the planet Italy; that was actually a rather cloudy place). People from all over town would crowd into the marketplace, always coming in waves.
River and the Doctor always made sure to go before anyone else. The street was silent; still. Tiny insects would hover through the light of the lamps, enjoying their last moments before bug-hating crowds of people looking for food. River would take the Doctor's hand, as much as he at first protested, and they walked down the cobblestones slowly, still lost in the afterglow of dreams. Even the Doctor slept now, by insistence and, sometimes, command of River, so they would both discuss the plots of their strange, colorful dreamscapes. Being nearly-immortal time travellers certainly broadened the imagination.
River thought of all of these wonderful mornings as she made her way down the stalls on the morning of their first anniversary. Her eyes glanced over the apple-apricots and BoLa fruit stands, searching for gray curls but only finding disgruntled, half-asleep employees and exhausted parents herding yawning children. Dr. Song shook her head.
"Where on Darillium is that man? I could kill him sometimes."
Suddenly a heavily accented voice called out beside her. "Ya lookin' for yer fellah?"
River's turned wide eyes to a woman selling pastries. She was a kind lady who always threw in an extra muffin when the Doctor and herself looked more somber than usual. River smiled. "Have you seen him? I'm afraid he's being mysterious today. That usually means trouble."
"Mo' trouble 'an usual, then?"
"I don't think there is 'usual' with the Doctor."
"Well, I don't know 'bout mystery, but I saw 'im about an hour ago, goin' down to the road. Further than the two o' you usually go, I mean."
River pondered this for a moment, furrowing her eyebrows. "What's down there?"
The saleswoman shrugged. "On'y thing I know is the restaurant."
River's mouth fell open slightly, as if she were about to reply, but closed almost as instantly. Instead, she nodded to the woman and thanked her for the information, then set off down the street faster than usual.
She came upon the restaurant faster than she'd thought she would, hurrying through the empty space. A few employees dusting and setting tables eyed her suspiciously. One approached her, mindlessly squeezing a napkin in his hands.
"I'm sorry ma'am, but we are closed right now."
River merely held a smiling stare at the anxious waiter. "Ramon?"
The robot in King Hydroflax' armor marched into the room.
"Good morning, River! We didn't expect you this early in the morning."
The waiter's eyes widened. "Oh. You must be...so sorry, Dr. Song. Of course you can come in. Any time."
River pat the poor, blubbering man on the arm gently. Then she turned back to Ramon questioningly. "Have you seen the Doctor?"
Ramon faltered, shifting awkwardly on big, metal feet. "Ugh, actually I have ma'am."
"And? You have to be honest with me, Ramon. We are still married."
His face turned pink. "We are?"
River leaned towards him with a smirk. "I never like to burn bridges."
She pulled back. "Have you seen him?"
"Y-yes. But…"
River eyed Ramon with a smile. "What's making everyone so secretive today?"
She went for the stairs, but stopped when both the robot and the waiter rushed to block her off. Ramon glanced anxiously at the smaller man, and then turned back to River. "The upstairs is closed for now...even for you. Sorry."
"I know exactly where he is and what he's doing. Honestly, you all desperately need lessons in espionage. I don't know why he's doing what he is; I don't like surprises."
She pushed past them and hurried up the steps. Ramon followed as quickly as possible. The waiter went slowly back to sweeping the floor, gritting his teeth.
River reached the top of the steps and paused, glancing left and right. Something was different. Something was missing. And the balcony was empty; not decorated or lit up like she had thought it would be. She looked right again and felt her heart sink.
"Where's the TARDIS?"
Ramon stopped behind her. "He didn't say where he was taking it. He told us not to tell you he left."
River swallowed hard, staring at the space that the TARDIS usually occupied. It was like a missing tooth; oppressively not where it should be, taunting. "We promised not to leave. Last year…"
She blinked quickly. Ramon took a tentative step closer. "He'll be back soon."
Quietly, River muttered, "He better."
"I'm sure he will be."
River's head turned sharply in Ramon's direction, eyes glistening. Louder, she stated, "He better."
She shook her head and wiped her eyes. "Sorry; I'm acting stupid."
Ramon reached out a metal hand and set it on her shoulder. "Not stupid. Human, maybe, but not stupid."
A muffled voice came from the belly of the robot shell. Ramon rolled his eyes. "Not now Nardole."
He shook his head at River. "Sorry. I'll be right back."
Ramon's head was soon replaced with Nardole's. River smiled with raised eyebrows. "Yes Nardole?"
"I just wanted to say that the Doctor is definitely gonna come back. He's mad for you. And he'd have to be even madder to leave."
"Thank you, Nardole."
Nardole nodded, and then was replaced again with Ramon. "I think I'll take him downstairs."
River nodded. "I'll be here."
"Good luck, River."
"Thank you."
The robot marched back down the steps. River turned with a sigh towards the empty hallway. Suddenly, a groaning met her ears. She thought she was imagining it, but then it grew. Finally, the unmistakable outline of the TARDIS formed in front of her. The bright blue came next, bright and shining under the light of the chandelier.
The door swung open and out popped the Doctor, a satisfied smile on his face. He pulled the doors closed and turned back around, coming directly face to face with River. She was livid. His smile dropped.
Next thing he knew, his left cheek was stinging and he was bent over, assessing the damage. Shock was plastered to his face. When he straightened himself again, River looked no less furious.
"Where the hell were you?"
He opened his mouth to reply, but she cut him off. "You promised. You said you wouldn't go, and then you did. How long have you been gone? A week? A month?"
"I didn't time travel, did I? How long has it been for you?"
"Just...this morning. Where did you go then? A different galaxy? Did you save a town from some Sontarans? Ooh, or did you finally stop the Daleks?"
Her sarcastic tone and her wet eyes took the Doctor's voice. His mouth opened and closed multiple times before any words came out. "River...I didn't...I wouldn't...I love being here with you."
A tear escaped down her cheek. "Then why did you leave?"
The Doctor smiled softly. "I had to go shopping."
River took a deep breath. "Is that really the excuse you're going with? I thought you'd left. I thought you got bored of me and ran away."
The Doctor shook his head. "It was supposed to be a nice little surprise. I went to Earth for some gifts from home and...wait, you thought I did what?"
His eyebrows furrowed, mouth agape. A tense silence hung between them for many seconds. Then the Doctor found his voice again, softer now, nearly a whisper.
"River, I would never do that to you. Why would you even think that?"
River replied very simply, "Isn't that what you always do?"
The silence returned, harsher, cooler. Neither spoke. They simply stared at one another, reading their partner's eyes, trying to get at the truth. The Doctor blinked rapidly, and then took River's hand gently into his own.
"Dr. River Song, I will never get bored of you, and I will never run away."
He bent down on one knee, and River's eyes widened. The Doctor dig a hand into the inside pocket of his jacket. He was wearing the old black one with the red lining, River's personal favorite. He grit his teeth as he muttered, "I was going to do this later. It was supposed to be romantic or something; one of the waiter's ideas."
He pulled out a small black box and opened it, revealing a ring with a beautiful sparkling diamond. His eyes met River's and he smiled innocently. She almost laughed in surprise, but her mouth was frozen.
"Dr. River Song, or Professor if you prefer-will you marry me?"
"Sweetie, we're already married."
The Doctor shrugged. "That was in an alternate timeline. And besides, I never got to ask you properly. The human way."
River allowed a wide grin to stretch across her face. The Doctor replied with an equally joyous grin of his own.
"So what'll it be, Professor Song?"
"Ask me again. And this time, you can just call me River."
The Doctor smiled at the floor, then looked up at his wife with eyes a thousand years younger than she'd seen of late. He looked like a schoolboy, falling in love for the first time.
"River, will you marry me?"
"Yes. Of course I will marry you, sweetie."
The Doctor got to his feet and was instantly tackled into an enormous hug from his wife/fiancé. He kept smiling. In fact, he found, he couldn't seem to stop smiling. As River placed the ring on her finger and kissed his cheek and then, surprisingly to him, his lips, he just couldn't help but smile and laugh. It was as if he had forgotten all of his sorrows; what this night meant; what was in store for he and River in just 23 years' time. None of that mattered. Only tonight. Only one moment at a time.
When the excitement had died down a little and all was quiet once more, the Doctor and River sauntered slowly out the door and stood on the balcony, side by side, just as they had a year before. The Doctor's eyes were fixed on the enormous towers, singing their endless song, as his Endless Song fiddled with the ring on her finger. It gleamed in the moonlight, dazzling her eyes with its complexities.
"Where did you get this?"
The Doctor gave her a knowing smile. Her jaw dropped. "You didn't-"
"I may have lied a little earlier; I did time travel. I talked to the lad I had given the diamond to and told him to have a small piece cut off and made into a ring. Sorry."
"Is that why the restaurant only has one V.I.P. Lounge? He couldn't afford another because you made him cut off part of the diamond?"
The Doctor shook his head. "And because you can only have one V.I.P. Lounge. If you have two, then which one is really for 'Very Important' people and which one is just for 'Important' people? It all gets confusing very quickly."
"'Very quickly' or just 'quickly'?"
The Doctor nodded. "Case in point."
River smiled at the ground, and then turned back up to face the Towers. Slowly, her hand found his on the balcony. They stayed like that for a moment, her thumb caressing his tense hand below, fingers intertwining. She edged ever closer to him. The only sound was a the wind, whistling a melody between the towers. River leaned her head on her husband's shoulder, closing her eyes and sinking into the moment.
"Happy anniversary, Sweetie."
The Doctor bent his head down to hers, tickling her forehead with his bangs. "Happy anniversary."
With both of their eyes closed, they let the night wind sing them through their anniversary, letting them forget the bad that was to come and focus on the wonderful present they had to share. For two time traveller's who knew apprehension and sorrow and loss better than anyone, that was the best anniversary gift they could receive.