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savvyliterateTitle: Home is just another word for you
Written for:![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
lonewytch
Fandom/Characters: Doctor Who, Eleven/River - "home"
Rating: T
Word Count: 1,286
Spoilers: Takes place spanning early to mid series 6.
The TARDIS had a stowaway, and it was driving the Doctor mad.
Whoever it was had slipped onboard the ship in the days after Utah, after he'd returned River to the Stormcage, had taken Amy and Rory to a pirate ship and met his TARDIS in human form. He was fairly close to cracking the code behind Amy Pond's mysterious pregnancy. He'd been doing everything possible to prove that it wasn't what he thought it was. But time was running out, and if he was right, Amy's life was in danger.
First, the stowaway.
He thought the extra life sign was because of the suspected ganger. Something about it and the real Amy was getting the TARDIS confused. But that couldn't be it because the person moved. The dot would be in the library one minute. Then in the second kitchen, the one Julia Child modeled hers on. At one point, he'd even seen the dot in his bedroom. He'd torn through the TARDIS to see who the person was ... only to find a used towel on the floor in front of the wardrobe. He yanked it open, but there were his suits, bowties and his fourth incarnation's scarves. And a wilted stalk of celery. He thought he'd gotten rid of that.
The Doctor scooped up the towel and sniffed it. Something about it smelled very familiar, and he swore he knew that scent. He strode into the adjoining bath and poked through every bottle and jar in there. No, all his things, and none of them smelled like that towel. In fact, the scent reminded him of River.
Well, now he knew he was daydreaming, he thought as he sprinted back to the console room and plugged in the coordinates for the Stormcage.
"Are we going to see River?" Amy asked. She nudged his hip. "Is this a conjugal visit? Want me and Rory to make ourselves scarce?"
"No, it is not a conjugal visit, where do you come up with these things, Amelia Pond?"
"Oh, I don't know. Probably because the last time we were here, you had lipstick all over your mouth, and you were so distracted you fell off the stairs going under the console."
He scratched at his cheek, muttered, "I wasn't distracted," and strode out the door with the towel in hand and Amy smirking after him.
He found River in the middle of hotwiring what looked like a doughnut-shaped speaker with spikes protruding from it. "Hello, sweetie," she said without looking up. "You're here. Good, I can save this for another time. Give me a sonic, would you? I lost mine when we were in that exploding nebula. Actually, I can stow this away for another day. It shouldn't explode while we're gone."
The Doctor let himself into the cell, leaned over and sniffed River's neck.
River lifted her hand, caressing the spot he just sniffed and gave him a sultry smile that did things to his insides. Lots of fluttery things that made him fidget nervously. "Well, you're in a frisky mood tonight, sweetie," she said, rising to her feet. Before he could react, she looped her arms around his neck and kissed him.
The towel dropped as he flailed a bit, caught quite off guard before instinct kicked in and he gingerly touched her back. His mouth knew what it was doing though, eagerly returning the kiss as she slipped her tongue into his mouth and took it deeper. His hands slid down, brushed her bum, then snatched back up as if he'd tripped over a live wire. She pressed into him and he was so flustered that he swore he could feel four hearts beating. No, that was most likely him having a heart attack in addition to being aroused.
River pulled away, confused. "Are you all right?"
"Um ... Yes! Never better!" He quickly pulled away from her and grabbed the towel. He sniffed it, then shook it at her. "You've been on the TARDIS!"
"Of course I have! Why shouldn't I ..." River's voice died away as horror crept into her eyes. She spun away, diving at the narrow bunk, dragging aside blankets until she unearthed her diary. "When are we? Have we done Demon's Run? Do you know who I am?"
He clutched the towel tightly. "Who are you?" he asked softly.
River stared at him, the diary opened to a random page. He saw a sketch - him, her and billions of stars and a tree, and then she slammed the book shut. She stared at the cover, swallowed hard and smiled. "Well, that's something you'll have to live through, honey."
"Never mind that. Why are you randomly showing up on the TARDIS?"
River smiled sadly at him. "Who says it's me?"
"This towel does! It smells like you!"
"You can't prove it."
"I just did!"
"That could be from any number of times."
"Now you're just lying?"
"Aren't we always lying?"
Frustrated, the Doctor tore away from her, stalked halfway back to the TARDIS, then turned back. "Will I find out?" he asked.
River leaned against the opened cell door. "Maybe when you're older."
-----
The Doctor sprang onto the TARDIS, part of him devastated, but a good bit of him elated. River Song was Melody Pond! She was Amy and Rory's daughter! She'd been kidnapped, yes, but she'd grown up to be absolutely brilliant. She'd become River, and really Amy and Rory couldn't ask for a better daughter than that. There were still so many mysteries left to answer though, and he did need to figure out what happened to baby Melody.
He sent the TARDIS into the vortex, yanked the monitor down ... and saw the dot indicating his stowaway back in his bedroom.
He tore down the hall, running faster than he ever thought possible. He slammed into his bedroom door, smashing his nose into the wood. He muttered under his breath, rubbed it, then quietly opened the door.
His suspicions were correct. In the middle of the wide bed lay River, her clothes tattered and singed. Wisps of smoke curled from a recent fire that appeared to lick the hem of her pants. She was curled into a fetal position, hands tucked under her cheek as she slept the sleep of the truly exhausted.
He tip-toed to the bed and sat on the edge, staring down at her. He toed off his boots and curled onto the mattress himself, facing her. He absently brushed her curls, a matted, sooty mess. He knew who she was. She was safe because she wasn't his enemy. She was the daughter of two people he loved very much, and she was amazing.
"Hello, sweetie," she murmured sleepily. "When are we?"
"I just did Demon's Run. I know who you are."
"Have you done Berlin?"
He hesitated and sighed. Still more spoilers. "No."
"Good enough." She rolled into him and kissed him, and this time he kissed her back with no reservation. When his limbs flailed, they moved into the right places, his hands skimming over her arms and his leg sliding between hers.
Before his brain could shut off entirely, he pulled away and tapped her nose. "You've been stowing away on the TARDIS."
"Have I?" Her brow wrinkled.
"Yes. You keep disappearing before I could find you."
"Oh, sweetie. That was the TARDIS. You told me awhile back that there would be times that you were too young to realize I should be here. So the TARDIS made sure the timelines remained intact." She stroked his cheek. "I'm not stowing away, honey. This is my home."
He closed his eyes and leaned into the caress. "Yes, dear," he acknowledged, "this is your home."
Other days in the advent calendar
Dec. 1: A Moth Drawn to Flame - Doctor Who, Tenth Doctor and River Song (forirony_rocks)
Dec. 2: Profits - Ranma 1/2, Kuno/Nabiki (forrose)
Dec. 3: Bite, Break, Suck and Crunch - Doctor Who, Eleven/River (forgidget_zb)
Dec. 4: Not for Burning - Slayers, Lina/Gourry (forpharoah999)
Dec. 5: Running - Doctor Who, Eleven/River (forshadowturquoise)
Dec. 6: The First Move - Doctor Who, Amy/Rory (forladymercury_10)
Written for:
lonewytchFandom/Characters: Doctor Who, Eleven/River - "home"
Rating: T
Word Count: 1,286
Spoilers: Takes place spanning early to mid series 6.
The TARDIS had a stowaway, and it was driving the Doctor mad.
Whoever it was had slipped onboard the ship in the days after Utah, after he'd returned River to the Stormcage, had taken Amy and Rory to a pirate ship and met his TARDIS in human form. He was fairly close to cracking the code behind Amy Pond's mysterious pregnancy. He'd been doing everything possible to prove that it wasn't what he thought it was. But time was running out, and if he was right, Amy's life was in danger.
First, the stowaway.
He thought the extra life sign was because of the suspected ganger. Something about it and the real Amy was getting the TARDIS confused. But that couldn't be it because the person moved. The dot would be in the library one minute. Then in the second kitchen, the one Julia Child modeled hers on. At one point, he'd even seen the dot in his bedroom. He'd torn through the TARDIS to see who the person was ... only to find a used towel on the floor in front of the wardrobe. He yanked it open, but there were his suits, bowties and his fourth incarnation's scarves. And a wilted stalk of celery. He thought he'd gotten rid of that.
The Doctor scooped up the towel and sniffed it. Something about it smelled very familiar, and he swore he knew that scent. He strode into the adjoining bath and poked through every bottle and jar in there. No, all his things, and none of them smelled like that towel. In fact, the scent reminded him of River.
Well, now he knew he was daydreaming, he thought as he sprinted back to the console room and plugged in the coordinates for the Stormcage.
"Are we going to see River?" Amy asked. She nudged his hip. "Is this a conjugal visit? Want me and Rory to make ourselves scarce?"
"No, it is not a conjugal visit, where do you come up with these things, Amelia Pond?"
"Oh, I don't know. Probably because the last time we were here, you had lipstick all over your mouth, and you were so distracted you fell off the stairs going under the console."
He scratched at his cheek, muttered, "I wasn't distracted," and strode out the door with the towel in hand and Amy smirking after him.
He found River in the middle of hotwiring what looked like a doughnut-shaped speaker with spikes protruding from it. "Hello, sweetie," she said without looking up. "You're here. Good, I can save this for another time. Give me a sonic, would you? I lost mine when we were in that exploding nebula. Actually, I can stow this away for another day. It shouldn't explode while we're gone."
The Doctor let himself into the cell, leaned over and sniffed River's neck.
River lifted her hand, caressing the spot he just sniffed and gave him a sultry smile that did things to his insides. Lots of fluttery things that made him fidget nervously. "Well, you're in a frisky mood tonight, sweetie," she said, rising to her feet. Before he could react, she looped her arms around his neck and kissed him.
The towel dropped as he flailed a bit, caught quite off guard before instinct kicked in and he gingerly touched her back. His mouth knew what it was doing though, eagerly returning the kiss as she slipped her tongue into his mouth and took it deeper. His hands slid down, brushed her bum, then snatched back up as if he'd tripped over a live wire. She pressed into him and he was so flustered that he swore he could feel four hearts beating. No, that was most likely him having a heart attack in addition to being aroused.
River pulled away, confused. "Are you all right?"
"Um ... Yes! Never better!" He quickly pulled away from her and grabbed the towel. He sniffed it, then shook it at her. "You've been on the TARDIS!"
"Of course I have! Why shouldn't I ..." River's voice died away as horror crept into her eyes. She spun away, diving at the narrow bunk, dragging aside blankets until she unearthed her diary. "When are we? Have we done Demon's Run? Do you know who I am?"
He clutched the towel tightly. "Who are you?" he asked softly.
River stared at him, the diary opened to a random page. He saw a sketch - him, her and billions of stars and a tree, and then she slammed the book shut. She stared at the cover, swallowed hard and smiled. "Well, that's something you'll have to live through, honey."
"Never mind that. Why are you randomly showing up on the TARDIS?"
River smiled sadly at him. "Who says it's me?"
"This towel does! It smells like you!"
"You can't prove it."
"I just did!"
"That could be from any number of times."
"Now you're just lying?"
"Aren't we always lying?"
Frustrated, the Doctor tore away from her, stalked halfway back to the TARDIS, then turned back. "Will I find out?" he asked.
River leaned against the opened cell door. "Maybe when you're older."
-----
The Doctor sprang onto the TARDIS, part of him devastated, but a good bit of him elated. River Song was Melody Pond! She was Amy and Rory's daughter! She'd been kidnapped, yes, but she'd grown up to be absolutely brilliant. She'd become River, and really Amy and Rory couldn't ask for a better daughter than that. There were still so many mysteries left to answer though, and he did need to figure out what happened to baby Melody.
He sent the TARDIS into the vortex, yanked the monitor down ... and saw the dot indicating his stowaway back in his bedroom.
He tore down the hall, running faster than he ever thought possible. He slammed into his bedroom door, smashing his nose into the wood. He muttered under his breath, rubbed it, then quietly opened the door.
His suspicions were correct. In the middle of the wide bed lay River, her clothes tattered and singed. Wisps of smoke curled from a recent fire that appeared to lick the hem of her pants. She was curled into a fetal position, hands tucked under her cheek as she slept the sleep of the truly exhausted.
He tip-toed to the bed and sat on the edge, staring down at her. He toed off his boots and curled onto the mattress himself, facing her. He absently brushed her curls, a matted, sooty mess. He knew who she was. She was safe because she wasn't his enemy. She was the daughter of two people he loved very much, and she was amazing.
"Hello, sweetie," she murmured sleepily. "When are we?"
"I just did Demon's Run. I know who you are."
"Have you done Berlin?"
He hesitated and sighed. Still more spoilers. "No."
"Good enough." She rolled into him and kissed him, and this time he kissed her back with no reservation. When his limbs flailed, they moved into the right places, his hands skimming over her arms and his leg sliding between hers.
Before his brain could shut off entirely, he pulled away and tapped her nose. "You've been stowing away on the TARDIS."
"Have I?" Her brow wrinkled.
"Yes. You keep disappearing before I could find you."
"Oh, sweetie. That was the TARDIS. You told me awhile back that there would be times that you were too young to realize I should be here. So the TARDIS made sure the timelines remained intact." She stroked his cheek. "I'm not stowing away, honey. This is my home."
He closed his eyes and leaned into the caress. "Yes, dear," he acknowledged, "this is your home."
Other days in the advent calendar
Dec. 1: A Moth Drawn to Flame - Doctor Who, Tenth Doctor and River Song (for
irony_rocks)Dec. 2: Profits - Ranma 1/2, Kuno/Nabiki (for
rose)Dec. 3: Bite, Break, Suck and Crunch - Doctor Who, Eleven/River (for
gidget_zb)Dec. 4: Not for Burning - Slayers, Lina/Gourry (for
pharoah999)Dec. 5: Running - Doctor Who, Eleven/River (for
shadowturquoise)Dec. 6: The First Move - Doctor Who, Amy/Rory (for
ladymercury_10)