Chapter 1 - ...Another One Opens
Clara slammed the TARDIS doors closed, grumpily following the Doctor, Cosima and MK down the steps towards the central console. She was frustrated beyond belief, of all the times for the Doctor to arrive in her front room it had to be at the moment she declared her love for Cosima. Their first time together had been spoilt by the renegade Time Lord and his awful timing. Her head was still coming down from her hormone induced high, leaving behind an aching feeling of longing for the dreadlock sporting woman just a few paces in front of her.
It was almost as though Cosima picked up on her thoughts as moments later, she slowed down her stride and stood next to Clara, "Don't worry, they'll be plenty of opportunities", the American whispered in to her ear. She felt Cosima's arm snake around her waist, feeling the warmth from the clone's body almost immediately. Compelled to acknowledge the gesture, she stretched up and kissed Cosima gently on the neck. Clara smiled internally as she felt Cosima's body react to her touch, her grip tightening on her waist almost immediately.
"Sorry am I interrupting you?" the Doctor once again spoilt the moment, his broad Scottish accent instantly deflating Clara's mood, "just because you named it a snog box", the Time Lord looked disgusted as he said those two words, "doesn't mean that you can do those types of things in the console room".
Cosima leaned in a little closer to Clara, "He definitely ruder this time", she said in a hushed tone.
"Yeah tell me about it", Clara grumbled. By now the TARDIS was already in flight, however, there was one other occupant that she had completely forgotten about. MK, the Scandinavian clone who had arrived with the Doctor, was standing awkwardly as far away from the console as she could. Her backpack was now resting on her front, her arms wrapped around it protectively. She wondered how this clone had managed to track down the Doctor so easily, many others had tried for years without so much as a sniff of the blue box.
In the light of the TARDIS, MK looked extremely pale. Clara immediately flashed back to the first time she encountered Cosima on the streets of Toronto several months ago. Panic filled her system, was MK also suffering from the degenerative disease that had nearly claimed Cosima's life? "Alright not science girl", the Time Lord addressed MK, "where are you taking us?"
Without verbally responding MK pulled her laptop from her bag and placed it on the console, "DYAD have been paying particular interest to this location", she opened up a map, "very high concentration of people, most I've seen outside of Canada".
"Can I?" Cosima asked her fellow clone, indicating at the laptop. MK looked reluctant but eventually allowed the American to look at the on screen map. Cosima's eyebrows furrowed as she zoomed out, "Melbourne?" she asked in surprise, "As in Melbourne, Australia?" MK nodded in confirmation, "I didn't realise that DYAD had a presence in Australia", she added.
"They don't", MK replied, quickly nudging Cosima's hands away from her laptop, "but Rachel has fingers in a lot of pies".
"Rachel, as in the Rachel who kidnapped Kira and I before attempting to destroy your cure?" she directed the question at the room but all the time her eyes were on Cosima. The last time she had seen Rachel Duncan was on the floor of a lab inside DYAD headquarters with a pencil protruding from her eye. She was alive when they left her but it sounded like she had fully recovered and was back to her malevolent best.
"Yeah, fortunately there's only one Rachel messing with our lives", Cosima groaned.
"There really is a lot you need to tell me", Clara said firmly, she really had missed a lot in the eight months since her adventure in Toronto. Out the corner of her eye, she could see the Doctor glaring at the trio of women. There was a look of frustration on his face, something which she had learned wasn't a good thing, "Stare any harder and your eyebrows will fall off", she commented to the Time Lord.
"Forgive me for wanting to know why I'm taking my TARDIS to the other side of the planet", the Doctor replied sarcastically, "for the record I really don't like being deceived not science girl".
Clara pinched the bridge of nose in annoyance, the Doctor wasn't in her good books today, "Can you at least address them by their proper names, I know civility isn't your strongest attribute but could you at least pretend to care", she snapped. She had become very sensitive about people not viewing the clones as individual people. It probably wasn't the Time Lord's intention but he was coming off a little disrespectful. A gentle touch on the arm from Cosima quickly evaporated her tension, "I'm sorry Doctor but this has come as a surprise to me".
"Apology accepted", the Doctor stated, not really acknowledging that he had partially caused the situation, "setting co-ordinates for Melbourne Australia, like a good taxi driver", he grumbled under his breath
Cosima suddenly snorted, "You were right", she said, remembering her earlier conversation with Clara. Turning her attention to MK she asked, "How did you know where to find the Doctor?"
MK went to reply but suddenly coughed. Her eyes went wide and she looked surprised when the fit passed after a couple of deep coughs. Both Clara and Cosima looked at each other, a bad feeling passing between them. "Your phone isn't very secure", MK eventually replied, "I found the Doctor's number in your address, then called him using a mirror of your number".
Instinctively Clara fumbled with her handset, "You hacked my phone?" she asked incredulously.
"I wouldn't take it too personally", Cosima said, "Mika here can hack virtually anything", she added with a proud smile at her fellow clone.
"It was necessary", MK continued, "I have been following and protecting Sarah and the others for a long time". Her head twist curiously towards Clara, "You are a rogue element and various parties have been following you". Clara froze, someone had been keeping tracks on her all this time? She hadn't noticed anything unusual but then again, her life was far from normal at the best of times, "Who knows what would've happened if you hadn't turned up", MK added, dragging Clara out of her private freak out.
"I know I wouldn't have been as happy", Cosima smiled broadly at the English teacher.
"Aww", Clara replied, her heart warmed by the comment. She ignored the disproving look from the Doctor and placed a tender kiss on Cosima's cheek. She had to agree with Cosima, even though they hadn't seen each other in the flesh for several months, just the knowledge that the American was out there kept her going.
The moment was interrupted by another coughing fit from the Finnish clone, this one much more violent than the last, "MK you should be resting somewhere", Cosima stated, acutely aware of the rehabilitating nature of the illness.
"I'm fine", MK was able to choke out between breathes. It was clear that she was far from alright, there was spots of blood on her hands and on the floor of the TARDIS. Suddenly she went very still and her eyes rolled into the back of her head.
Clara and Cosima cried out as MK slumped towards the ground. The Doctor though was much quicker than the two women, catching the tumbling clone before she could hit the floor. Cosima immediately rushed over to her sister clone, carefully taking her vital signs, "She having a fit", the American said confidently.
"Wait for her spasms to ease and we'll move her to the medical bay", the Time Lord added, keeping his arms gently yet firmly wrapped around MK.
Clara though had frozen, she knew that Cosima had suffered from fits at the height of her illness but see someone who looked like her suffering, that really brought it home, "Don't worry, it will soon pass", Cosima attempted to soothe her girlfriend's nerves. The teacher appreciated the gesture but it wasn't really working. This might be the first time she had met MK but her connection to Cosima made it feel like she had known the Finn for her entire life.
The seizures soon eased and the Time Lord was able to carefully lift MK up and walk her towards the infirmary. Clara thought the room was further away but the TARDIS must've sensed the urgency and moved it a little closer to the console room. Laying the clone down on the nearest available bed, the Doctor began to scan her with his sonic sunglasses, "That stuff you used on Cosima, could you use it on MK?" Clara asked.
There was an agonising silence as the Doctor completed his scan. Somehow Clara knew the news wasn't good by the way he slowly removed the glasses, "The disease is too far advanced", he said solemnly and began to tap away on a console beside the bed.
"Can't you do anything for her?" Cosima begged, the footage she watched of Jennifer Fitzsimmons slowly wasting away at the forefront of her mind.
"I'm doing it now", the Doctor replied without looking up from the console, "the TARDIS is equipped with a temporary stasis field which will suspend MK here in time. It's only a temporary solution, which is why we need to make this trip to Australia quick". He threw his sunglasses over to Clara, "We should be landing in a couple of minutes, I'll stay here and keep an eye this one". Clara nodded and hurried out the room, leaving a confused Cosima to follow behind.
By the time Cosima had caught up with Clara, she was already inspecting the controls of the TARDIS, "He taught you how to fly this?" she asked in awe.
"Sort of", Clara replied, a deep frown on her face, "enough to manage in an emergency but that's it. He's probably worried that I'll steal it and run off across the universe in his box". The teacher found the button she was looking for and gave it a firm push, slowing the pace of the time rotor. She could see Cosima looking at her curiously, it was making her feel a little uncomfortable, "You're staring now", she smirked.
"It's nothing", Cosima shook her head, "but you're different somehow, you've become more like the Doctor".
Clara hadn't thought about that before, she had become a little more assertive during her travels in the last few months. It had been a gradual evolution, although taking the lead during the incident with the Boneless was probably the true starting point, "Does that make you think differently of me?" she asked, a little afraid of the answer.
There was a brief pause, leaving Clara in suspense, "Just remember Clara you only have one life", the American replied, turning her attention to MK laptop to get more information about their destination.
Cosima's response confused Clara, of course she was aware that she only had one life. What the clone was trying to imply with that comment was a mystery, one to which she would get to enquire about. The TARDIS made the familiar groaning noise, indicating they had reached their destination. Clara pulled down on the main control lever, parking the TARDIS securely, "TARDIS Airlines welcomes you to Australia", she said with a cheeky smile, attempting to push the previous conversation out of her mind.
"My compliments to the flight crew", Cosima smiled briefly in response before turning back to the laptop. Clara skipped around the console, snaking her arm across the American's shoulders, "There's a lot of links on here for someone called Daniel Thowercas", she commented.
"Never heard of him, is he any good?" Clara replied.
"No idea, apparently he's a writer", Cosima stated, scrolling through the mass of material on MK's laptop, "he's attending a signing session in a small book store in the centre of the city today", the clone frowned and shook her head, "or tomorrow, this travelling in a box thing is totally confusing".
"Just wait until you travel in time", Clara smiled and offered her arm to Cosima, "what do you say, shall Cossie and Ossie go visit the land down under?"
"I thought you'd never ask", Cosima replied with a broad smile and the pair left the TARDIS, hoping to find this Daniel Thowercas as quickly as they could.
A/N – Welcome to the much delayed sequel to "Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace". I'll be honest I've had this initial chapter on my computer for months but the lack of new Doctor Who and Orphan Black kinda drained my creative juices. With DW back and OB returning soon, it's reignited my desire to continue where Echoes left off.
I can't promise quick or regular updates though, my muse seems to be wondering around at the moment and I'm striking wherever the iron is hottest. Hope you enjoy.
