Cara ran. And ran. And ran. On and on into the night, without stopping. They were after her again. The faceless attackers. This must be a nightmare. Yet she was still inexplicably afraid. She dodged down an alley between two buildings, not watching as the pursuers in the black cloaks thundered past. They chased nothing off into the distance. Releasing her breath, Cara turned to leave the alley. She found herself facing a giant silver statue shaped like a figure eight lying on its side. It moved slowly toward her, soundless, mindless, unstoppable. Completely filled with fear and horror at the emblem, she stumbled backward. Cara fell onto her back, her hand landing on her chest. She pulled it away, and it was sticky with blood. She couldn't tell if it were hers or someone else's. She felt the ground give way and she was falling, falling, down toward a white-blue light. The darkness returned to smother her.
She woke up, gasping. Her eyes roamed the unfamiliar surroundings until she realized that she was in her newly-assigned bedroom in the TARDIS. The Doctor had insisted that she have a place of her own on board his ship, and had let her furnish it using items from the TARDIS' eccentric collection of oddities from across time and space.
Flipping the power switch on the old CD player she'd found, and then hitting the top of it twice for good measure, Cara stood. She stretched luxuriously and straightened out the blankets on her bed. Then she smiled, remembering that today was an important day in history. If anything could be called "history" anymore.
The beat from the music on the CD called to her to dance, and so she did. She picked up one of her pillows and swung around the room with it, singing, "…what's the name of the game? Does it mean anythinnnng to youuuu?"
"No," said a voice outside of her door, "but are you ready, Dancing Queen? I'd like to get an early start."
Cara giggled and switched off the music, "Coming!" She tightened the sash on her nightgown and twirled out the door, straight into the Doctor's arms. "Time to go shopping!" She grinned at him, "You promised."
The Doctor hid a smile and pretended to look annoyed, "must we?"
"Hey," Cara plucked at his shirtsleeve, "you get a signature look, so why can't I?"
The Doctor shook his head, but led the way into the TARDIS, "Well, come on. Let's get this over with."
When they reached the TARDIS' wardrobe, Cara whistled, "Talk about the 'place where nobody dared to go'."
"Have fun," the Doctor waved as Cara vanished among the endless clothes.
"This could take ages!" Cara's voice exclaimed.
"Good thing we're Time Lords then," the Doctor called back.
Cara reemerged, wearing a trenchcoat and fedora, "How's this?"
"Good, but the magnifying glass is over the top," the Doctor gestured to the object she was holding.
"Probably," Cara agreed, returning to the clothes.
Next, she was dressed in a glittering green gown tastefully studded in pearly silver gems. On her head, a matching tiara perched in her intricately braided hair. She shook her head, "I don't think this would be very practical."
"Not unless you frequently go to fancy dinner parties," the Doctor nodded.
"Aha!" Cara exclaimed. She was now wearing dark, mirrored glasses and a black leather jacket. She struck a tough pose, "no monsters would dare to attack me in this!"
"Great," the Doctor grinned, "I'm traveling with the Terminator."
"Right," Cara sighed, "I'll be back."
She returned in a toga.
"No. Enn-Oh. No." She gave the toga a disapproving glare.
"Looks nice," the Doctor tried not to laugh.
"It's…breezy," Cara frowned, "and the head wreath would never stay on with all the running we do."
"Probably right," the Doctor admitted. Then he grinned widely at her next choice, "Now there we go!"
She wore a loose-fitting beige striped shirt, brown pinstripe slacks, tan deck shoes, and a thick brown coat that reached down to her ankles. She twirled, the coat swirling around her legs, "Yeah?"
"Definitely," the Doctor agreed, "good, comfortable, stylish working clothes."
Cara felt inside the pocket and withdrew a small, blue rubber ball, "What's this?"
"Oh, well, you know," the Doctor took the ball, "in case you get bored and just really need to throw something." He tossed it down and it sprang back up, proceeded over his shoulder, and hopped off into the TARDIS corridors.
"Probably shouldn't have done that," the Doctor muttered, listening to the ball's fading echo.
Cara giggled, "So now that I'm geared up for battle, what's next?"
The Doctor shrugged, "I don't know, what does one do after one goes shopping?"
Tilting her head, Cara replied, "I guess, eat? Yes, definitely eat. And possibly go to a movie."
"Dinner and a movie," the Doctor chuckled, "is there a hint in here I should be getting?"
Cara just smiled and took his arm, "depends on if you want it or not."
The Doctor looked at the Time Lady, but said nothing. The two walked arm-in-arm all the way to the TARDIS control room, chatting about previous encounters.