A/N: This is based on River's reveal from A Good Man Goes to War so if you haven't seen, then don't read! the first section is the reveal scene, the second is what I created to happen just after the reveal and the third and final section is just for all of us Doctor/River shippers a little bit later on after the reveal...
"Who are you?" the Doctor asked seriously, his dark eyes demanding an answer.
River paused for a moment staring at him blankly. "Oh look, your cot! Haven't seen that in a while!" she beamed eagerly taking hold of his hand in hers and skipping over to the cot.
"No, no you tell me who you are?" his tone turned frustrated as he slipped his hand out of hers to grip hold of her wrist tightly.
She withdrew her hand from his grip placing it over his leading it to the cot. "I am telling you." She stroked the back of his hand with her own. "Can't you read?"
The Doctor looked down at her hand stroking his and where she had placed it. His eyes scanned the cot then he realised the answer was staring him in the face. He looked deeply and solemnly into her eyes gleaming with hope. She is smiling her beautiful smile as she tilted her head towards him, clearly relieved that he finally knows. She looks so stunning and how he's never noticed before is a question that he can't even begin to answer!
"...Hello." he finally smiles still captivated by her beauty.
"Hello." Her grin widens, the first time she has said it without that teasing tone. Her heavenly voice reassuring him that there is hope at Demon's Run and its right here in front of him.
He chuckled, his eyes never leaving hers. "But... but that means..." he began leaning closer to her.
"I'm afraid it does!" River laughs in confirmation.
"...Ooh..." he glanced over to Amy and Rory then back to River. He pointed to her "But... you and I... we..." he made kissing gestures.
"Yes..." She purred.
The Doctor chuckled again, rubbing his hands together excitedly. After a sincere moment of silence he asks "How do I look?" as he straightened his bowtie.
River smiled again, looking him up and down "...Amazing." she shook her head in agreement.
"I better be." He joked.
"Yes, you better be!" River nodded.
The Doctor spun on his heels and began saying his goodbyes to everyone. He soniced the force field off the TARDIS before opening the doors and wondering inside. River looked down at the cot still smiling and he leaned his head out of the door grinning at her once more before departing, completely ignoring Amy and Rory.
Amy glared at River quizzically. "Where's he going, what did you tell him?" she interrogated as she marched over to River and the cot.
"Amy you have to stay calm." River's voice was soothing but Amy wasn't in the mood.
The redhead picked up a gun from the floor and pointed it directly at River- she wouldn't shoot; she was just angry and confused. "Tell me what you said."
"Amy don't!" Rory warned.
"It's ok Rory, she's good." River reassured the Centurion. "It's the TARDIS' translation matrix; it takes a while to kick in with a written word... You have to concentrate." She glanced down at the cot, hoping Amy would pick up on the hint.
"I still can't read it." Amy was shaking her head in denial, her temper was boiling.
"That's because it's Gallifreyan, it won't translate." River reached inside the cot and took hold of the Prayer Leaf. "But this will... it's your daughter's name in the language of the forest." She took hold of Amy's hand and placed the Prayer Leaf in her palm.
"I know my daughter's name!" Amy snapped pointing a finger at River.
"Except they don't have a word for 'Pond' because the only water in the forest is the river." She explained. "The Doctor will find your daughter and he will care for her whatever it takes. And I know that..."
Amy and Rory inspected the Prayer Leaf as the word translated. It read 'River' in gold embroidery. She flipped it over and it read 'Song.'
"It's me..." River's voice was shaky out of nerves, anxiety and happiness. "I'm Melody... I'm your daughter."
After a few minutes of long, agonising silence Amy took a steady step closer to River. It was just the three of them now; River had taken the others home whilst her parents had time to take all of the new information in. Amy reached out a hand and placed it on River's cheek. River smiled and leaned into the touch as a tear she tried so hard to hold back escaped her eye. Amy stroked it away as she looked River over once more; Rory too took a long look at her, she never cried unless it truly was heart-tugging. Both of her parents smiled at exactly the same moment at realisation mixed with a new found sense of pride that this amazing, impossible, enigmatic wonder of a woman is their daughter.
"...I...I can't believe I nearly shot you." Amy sobbed feeling so guilty.
Before River had a chance to respond, she was pulled into a loving embrace by Amy. She was her mother- never in her wildest of dreams did she ever think of the possibility of being related to such a brilliant woman, let alone bringing her into the world. One hand around River's back keeping her close and the other on the back of her neck as she leaned her head against her mother's chest. Amy's first maternal hug, when her daughter is all grown up. It didn't feel wrong, it felt... amazing.
Rory wrapped his arms around the women, one around his wife and the other around his daughter. He was a dad to a dear friend; he was the happiest man in the world. He's seen what River is capable of, granted he may not have known her for as long as Amy has but he had come to like her very quickly, now he loved her so much.
"You should head home... the Doctor will be waiting for you." River pulled her head away.
"And what about you?" Rory asked placing a hand on her forearm stroking it.
"I'll be heading back to Stormcage; they'll be missing me by now." She grinned as she began to set the co-ordinates into her Vortex Manipulator.
Amy ran over and grabbed the cot before they all set off back to Leadworth. They materialised just outside Amy and Rory's home in the front garden where the TARDIS was already waiting. The Doctor had his arms folded leaning against the door.
"How goes the day?" he echoed River's words to him with a smirk plastered on his face. River couldn't help but laugh.
"Where's Melody... River, oh you know who I mean?" Amy questioned.
"She's inside." The Doctor stepped aside to let them enter.
"I'll go and check on her." Rory suggested as he smiled to the older version of his daughter with pride glistening through his eyes. River nodded her head to her father, she knew he was proud, it didn't need saying.
"River, please stay... just for a little while." Amy begged placing both of her hands on River's arms.
River stared at her for a moment, then to the Doctor, then back to her mother. "I'm sure I can stay for a few hours but I do have some things that urgently need doing." She smiled.
"Thank you." Amy hugged River tightly before following Rory into the TARDIS to check on the baby.
River approached the TARDIS and all the Doctor did was beam a large grin at her. "Welcome to the family." He outstretched his arms leaving an empty space for River to fill.
"...There's no place I'd rather be!" she laughed as she stepped into the Doctor's hug.
His arms wrapped around her enveloping her in apology, love and affection. One was securely on her hip whilst the other was placed on the back of her head rubbing it consolingly. He inhaled the delightful aroma of her hair, sweet just like she was. Both of River's hands were on the Doctor's back and she leaned her head between his hearts, feeling the soothing beats. He kissed her forehead before releasing her, enabling her to step inside the TARDIS.
"You know River, I always knew that you were special but not even I knew you were this special." The Doctor chuckled. His eyes moved from the cot to River's gorgeous face.
She smiled at him again, like she did earlier. "Deep down you did, I know you did. I'm not stupid Doctor; I'm a Time-Lady." She winked.
"You're brilliant and smart and... beautiful." He turned is hand that was under hers so he could entwine his fingers with hers whilst his thumb caressed the back of her hand. "Not to mention impossible... the first part human, part Time-Lord."
She was blushing; he had never seen her blush. She looked so cute when she blushed. "There's one more thing about my DNA you need to know..." she took his hand in both of hers and lifted it off the blue wood of the cot.
She guided his hand to her chest, he was nervous about touching her there but he didn't fight it, he didn't pull away. He wanted to know everything, he wanted to understand. She placed it in the middle of her chest, at the top of her cleavage. There were two strong, pumping beats thumping on her chest.
"Two hearts, you have two hearts?" the Doctor swallowed hard as he felt the hypnotic, soothing rhythm of River Song against his skin. Each Time-Lord has their own rhythm that their hearts beat, their own song. The Doctor will remember River's song forever as each beat pulsated on his fingertips.
She nodded her head, stroking his hand with both of her own. "I'm more Time-Lady than human... I guess that makes me more impossible, huh?" she breathed contently.
"This is just... wow... can you... regenerate?" he asked curiously.
"I can and I can't... I can heal wounds, like you, but I don't change my face." She explained.
The Doctor grinned and leaned a little bit closer to her. "Good, I've grown rather fond of this face." His other hand stroked her cheek tenderly.
This had brought back River's cheeky, flirtatious smirk he was all too familiar with. 'What's she going to say this time?' was all he thought.
"...Well, that's not the only part of me you've grown fond of..." she grinned.
River guided his hand that was on her chest slightly lower so it was cupping her breast for a moment, it was a perfect fit in his hand. Oh, how he could get used to that- provided that every once in a while there was no clothing in the way. Then she moved it lower resting it on her toned, flat stomach.
The Doctor's eyebrows furrowed with confusion as his face wrinkled. He thought as River waited patiently for him to figure it out. Then it hit him "Oh...did we... um, you know... have..." his eyes wondered to the cot as he cleared his throat. He could have ended that sentence in two possible ways, either one resulting in the other.
"Yes, we did." River chimed in a blissful voice.
"But you're not now, are you?" his eyes wondered to her stomach.
"Oh no, no, no!" she laughed. "That's all in my past, your future." She poked his chest.
"That's a spoiler!" The Doctor tapped her on the nose; she smiled cutely like a child.
"That's what you told me to tell you now." She argued with a grin. "I'm not breaking any rules."
The Doctor raised an eyebrow. "Oh really, anything else you're allowed to tell me now?"
"Just this..." she held up one hand in front of the Doctor's face and on her finger was a ring. "...And no more."
"Is it ours?" he asked, just as he was about to take her hand to examine it she pulled it away.
"I'll leave you to ponder on that one for a while..." she smirked.
"Cheeky..." he chuckled.
"I learn from the best!" they both laughed for a few wonderful moments.
A minute of silence entered the room as the Doctor and River just stared contently into each other's eyes trying to figure out what the other was thinking without cheating. Admittedly, the Doctor was mainly focussing on the fact that River was so beautiful.
"...Stay, please." the Doctor whispered from the silence. He took hold of her hand in his own pulling it to his lips before kissing it lovingly.
"I can't, not for too long anyway." River sighed heavily. "You know the rules..."
"Just for a bit, I have a room for you if you like..." he offered offhandedly.
"Show me the way." River surrendered after some careful consideration.
The Doctor held her hand tightly as he guided her down the corridors to an unoccupied bedroom. "Here will do nicely. Your room River, feel free to pop in anytime you like." He opened the door and let her step inside first.
"Thank you, my love." She beamed as she perched herself on the bed, took out her blue diary and slid it under the pillow.
The Doctor sat next to her with an arm laced over her shoulders. "Do you always keep it there?" he questioned offhandedly.
"Yes, to remind me of all our adventures." She grinned as she patted down the pillow over the blue book.
"I keep mine in my pocket..." the Doctor kissed her temple.
"You have one already?" River asked in amazement.
"I bought it because I wanted to remember too." he explained. "I care a lot about you River and whoever that lucky man is," he glanced at the ring "...whether it is me or not I know he'll be happy with you." He stroked her hand in his as he shifted leaning back on the headboard of the bed with River resting her head on his torso. His other hand wrapped around her body keeping her as close to him as possible. This felt so right...
"He most definitely is." She reassured him.
"So, how long have you been together?" he had a feeling it was him and she knew he knew it.
"Well he's a complicated, wonderful man although he's not always around but he's always been there when I needed him. He proposed so many years ago, in fact too many to count!" she laughed, oh how she loved being a Time-Lady.
"You're tired River, you should get some sleep." The Doctor suggested out of the blue.
"...As long as you stay with me." River nuzzled further into the Doctor's chest.
"I don't have a problem with that, I hope your husband won't." he smiled.
"Oh he seems fine with it." River smirked.
She eased her eyes closed as she relaxed her body in the Doctor's embrace. Her breathing evened out as she drifted off. The Doctor looked down at her; she looked so angelic when she slept. He had never seen her sleep either and he hoped to see a lot more of her sleeping on him too, it was good. He could feel her beating hearts again thumping the song of River.
At the very same moment, baby River Song drifted off to sleep in the cot under the watchful eyes of her dedicated parents Amy and Rory Pond. They too needed some rest so they climbed into bed next to the cot and dreamt about how everything was going to be fine that they were a proper family, they were parents.
Whilst they were asleep the Doctor had some time to think. River was a complex woman- a complex, brave, incredible woman. He thought back to when he met her in the Library and had a sudden realisation- she died to be born. This woman even contradicted everything that made remote sense about her life, not only did she sacrifice herself to meet the Doctor she sacrificed herself for herself. If he died, not only would she not have met him, Amy and Rory would not have met the Doctor therefore River would not be part Time-Lord but then there's the Pandorica- if the Doctor died, he wouldn't have been able to reboot the universe in time for Amy and Rory's wedding so River would not have been born in the first place.
"Oh, River Song you are magnificent, the most important woman in the universe. You may not feel it until the end but you always have been." He kissed her temple tasting her sweet skin being as affectionate as he could this early on.
River Song risks her life for her loved ones on a dangerously regular basis; she is a hero despite being locked away in prison. She defies all laws of metacrisises, she's escapes the inescapable, throws herself off buildings and out of space ships only to be caught every time and she is the most intelligent, unstoppable woman in the universe. Her timeline is running in circles instead of a straight line but somehow she manages to cope like it was as easy as a normal life, like everyone could understand no matter how complex it was she always knew how to make it simpler.
The Doctor vowed to protect her and protect her he shall. She is their future- their River Song...
Fin...