Title: A Final Gift
Author: ponygirl72
Rating: T or PG for very light implied naughtiness
Pairings: Eleven/River
Warnings: None
Word Count: ~750
"Sweetie, I'm home!"
"Oh, hello, River. You look lovely tonight. That dress is certainly very, um... sparkly."
"You don't look so bad yourself, Doctor. Love the suit. Now, tell me, you bad, bad boy-- is that a sonic screwdriver in your pocket, or are you just really happy to see me?"
"In my--? Oh. Oh. That little thing. As a matter of fact, it's a present. For you, I mean. A present for you from, well... me."
"Hmm... so... a night out to listen to the Towers on Darillium and a present. Now that is exactly the sort of thing a girl likes to hear. Come here, you..."
"River! What are you--? I just finished putting those on! That's so rude! What do you think you're doing?"
"Unwrapping my present, of course. That, and I love it when your voice goes all squeaky. Now, hold still while I... wait. Hang on a minute. This actually is a sonic screwdriver."
"Well, of course it's a sonic screwdriver. What did you think it was?"
"..."
"River!"
"No, but seriously. You made me a sonic screwdriver? I... don't know what to say, Sweetie."
"You don't have to say anything, River. Just-- just come with me tonight."
"Always, my love. Whenever and wherever you want; you know that. What's the occasion, though? Did I forget our anniversary? And, if so, is it the anniversary of the time we sort of got married in an alternate universe that never happened, or the time when I tried to kill you? Because I never know how to calculate that first one."
"Neither. It's just... high time that you had a screwdriver of your own. After all, you're heading out with that new expedition of yours in the morning. I thought it might come in... useful."
"Huh, well, if you say so. Anything else I should know about it? Ooo, look! Is that a damper?"
"It is. And this switch is for the red setting."
"Mmm... kinky."
"It's not kinky! How would you even--? No, wait, don't answer that. For your information, the red setting is used to cut through the interference caused by dimensional RAM overload--"
"Well, that's certainly useful."
"-- and some hair dryers."
"Hey, now! That was only the one time, and I apologised afterward. It was a bad hair day; what was I supposed to do?"
"But your hair always looks like that... ouch! What was that for?"
"That was for being a prat. You love the hair, and you know it. Speaking of which... what's with the new haircut? I mean, really? Not that it doesn't look smashing on you, my love, but what exactly brought this on?"
"I thought... it was time for... a new beginning."
"O-kaaay. Look, has something happened? You seem a little--"
"Of course nothing's happened, River. I'm fine; everything's fine. And why are we standing around in the control room talking about hair when we could be going to Darillium?"
"No reason at all. Would you like me to drive?"
"Go right ahead. Mi TARDIS es su TARDIS, etc., etc."
"Right, now I know something's off. Where did you say we were in your personal time stream, again?"
"Right where we're supposed to be, I'd imagine. Does it matter?"
"They're your rules, dear, not mine. Alright, then. Hold on, I'm dematerialising her now."
"..."
"..."
"..."
"Sweetie, you're staring. Tell me what's wrong."
"What? Nothing. Nothing's wrong. I'm just... taking notes on your piloting technique."
"Of course you are. Well, we've arrived. Shall we?"
"After you, River."
* * *
"Oh, my goodness. How ever did you arrange for these seats? They're amazing!"
"Well, you know how it is. I know a hexapod who knows a hexapod."
"Oh, Doctor-- It's even more beautiful than I'd imagined. Thank you so much for bringing me here."
"I know how long you've wanted to see it. I thought it finally seemed like... the right time. You know how it is. One day follows another-- even if they're never in quite the right order-- and before you know it, a lifetime has passed you by. River, I just want you to know how much I appreciate having you here with me; how much I-- "
"Shh, my love. Stop. You know that I'll never leave you alone, don't you? I can't be with you all the time-- and face it, you wouldn't want me to be-- but my heart is yours for as long as I draw breath. You must never believe otherwise. I love you more than life itself. Never, ever doubt that."
"..."
"Doctor? Doctor, what's wrong? Are you... crying?"
"Hush, River-- not now. The Towers are starting to sing."
fin