Up, Up, and Away

Chapter 18

Yaz

When the child stopped crying, Marge set him back on his feet, but didn't release his hand. He turned to look up to his big sister before speaking.

"I have to go now. The shadows want me back," he whispered.

"No. I'll go. I'm going in his place, they can take me, they can keep me in there forever but they will not hurt him," River exclaimed, voice shaking with what I couldn't distinguish as anger or grief. The Doctor whipped around as if she was about to tell her wife why she couldn't leave her again. Instead, I watched her think.

Marge gratefully pulled Willie into her chest again, and Ryan never removed his hand from her shoulder.

The Doctor her fingers on the Professor's cheek. I wasn't sure if she was transmitting some sort of message or if River just knew what her wife was trying to say. The archeologist smiled but she didn't want to go.

"Oh, sweetie," River began. We all watched her console the Doctor as if she were a child.

"I was never really here, anyway. Once the shadows touch you, you're gone. And they're inside of me. I'm not alive. I can't be," River said, choking up. The Doctor looked frustrated, but she knew she couldn't argue.

"Where exactly are you going?" Graham asked, scratching the back of his head.

"Back into CAL. I died to keep the library safe, and when I came out, I endangered everyone. I thought I could control it, but the Vashta always had the upper hand," River said, seeming to only be talking to the Doctor. River and the Doctor had their arms linked.

"I'm not alive. I shouldn't be here," she said despairingly. Willie shook his head at her in what seemed like exasperation.

"They want me and you back. I have to go," he told River. To this, Marge thoroughly objected.

"You're not going anywhere without me," she demanded. Surprising us all, her siblings popped out of the kitchen.

"Us too. We're not letting you leave without us," one of the older girls said. Marge frowned but nodded, and motioned for them all to come over for a hug. Ryan stepped back and nobody spoke as Marge and her 7 siblings wrapped their arms around each other in the tightest embrace. Marge took a shaky breath in and readied herself for what would come next.

"You can't go," Ryan said quietly, almost to himself. Marge's head snapped up as if just remembering he was there. She smiled sadly and closed the distance between them.

"Come with us," she begged, taking hold of his hand and thoroughly surprising the rest of us by kissing his knuckles. Ryan looked extremely tempted by the idea of running away with her, but I saw his eyes reluctantly drift up to Graham. It was then and there that I witnessed Graham smile the proudest smile I'd ever seen.

Ryan's eyes drifted to me, next, and I smiled a bit. He nodded gently and focused on the Doctor. He grinned and shook his head before facing Marge again.

"I can't. My fam," he said, eyeing the Doctor directly, "is here. I could never leave them once I've just found them," Ryan concluded. Marge was clearly disappointed, and so was Ryan, but they each accepted and respected the other's choice.

"I won't forget you," she promised, squeezing his fingertips between hers. He raised his eyebrows and smirked.

"I doubt it, with all those handsome digital boys where you're going, you'll move on in a flash," Ryan teased. She laughed and shook her head, clearly not understanding the "digital" part of his remark.

"I don't understand you, Ryan, but I won't forget you," she decided. Ryan bent down and kissed her forehead, making Graham's jaw drop. The two separated and Marjorie went back to her siblings, while Ryan made his way back to us. Graham pulled him into a hug, and this time, he was hugged back.

I placed a hand on his shoulder and the Doctor smiled at him from where she was still standing arm in arm with her wife. We all watched as Marge grabbed her sibling's hands and they formed a big long line with her as head, and Willie directly behind.

"Thank you, Doctor," Marge called, receiving a humble nod in response. Without another hesitation, she lead her siblings straight into the mass of shadows. They disappeared, and River knew it was her turn to go.

"Don't miss me too much," River teased, pulling away from her wife and walking backwards towards the Vashta. She was way too confident.

She was almost to the edge of the darkness when I noticed the Doctor was about to make a break for it. Sure enough, the Doctor took off sprinting towards her River and nearly knocked her over when she reached her.

"What?" River asked, staring down the Doctor's frantic, desperate hazel eyes. Without hesitation, the Doctor kissed the archaeologists. It wasn't a kiss like I'd seen in a while, it was a kiss from... a married couple.

When the Doctor pulled away, her smile looked goofy and dizzy.

"I didn't get to kiss you goodbye last time," the Doctor mumbled sheepishly after her sudden outburst in confidence. River smirked and threw her arms out as if she were flying.

"Never say goodbye."

She fell back into the shadows, leaving the Doctor standing alone to face the emptiness.