A Kiss from the Lady

by HollowShadowWolf

Missy tries to surprise Clara with a trip to a medieval like planet for a girl's night out. Instead, they find themselves having to choose a champion for the arena to take part in the Proving, where only one warrior comes out alive. And y'know, sometimes it takes a Prince Charming look, a warrior's duel, and a few drops of blood to finally get a kiss from the lady.

A/N: Major props go to Bailey, for not only putting up with my anxious butt and motivating me and the plot bunny muse, but also for BETAing this long ass epic, and helping come up with a title and summary. You rock always and forever dude.

Props also go to Aimee for coming up with the idea of Clara wielding a sword on a trip with the Doctor. I just had to add my own echo twist.

---

Clara had been surprised when she returned late from school one Friday, after endless extra hours of lesson planning and marking, to find Missy waiting for her in her flat.

She'd locked the front door and headed straight into the kitchen towards the kettle. The Time Lady had used the noise of the boiling water and clinking crockery as cover and emerged from the living room where she'd been waiting to sneak up behind the human. Missy had without warning wrapped her arms around Clara's waist and set her chin on the other brunettes' shoulder in a very intimate and possessive hug. Clara had just enough time to gasp and tense, teaspoon falling from her hand, before a pair of lips hovered next to her ear and whispered "Hello poppet".

Clara had stalled at the familiar voice and feeling of hot breathe on her ear, which gave Missy enough time to activate her Vortex Manipulator and disappear the two of them in a blinding white light.

What didn't surprise Clara was that she and Missy were now currently surrounded at weapon point.

As they'd materialised in their new surroundings, the momentum had knocked them from their upright position to a more horizontal one. The two hit the ground with pained grunts as Clara landed on top of Missy, who still had her arms wrapped around the human's waist. Clara rolled sideways quickly, wrestling herself out of the Time Lady's grip, crawling away slightly before staggering up to her feet, fighting the nausea, breathlessness, and the lights that danced across her eyes. Third time travelling by Vortex Manipulator definitely wasn't the charm.

"Missy!" Clara exclaimed after she'd finally caught her breathe. Rubbing her eyes she turned to face the Time Lady. "What the hell do you think you're..." Clara trailed of as she took in their surroundings.

They'd arrived in what seemed like a room in a castle. Ancient stone walls adorned with flickering torches, medieval style weapons and tapestries surrounded them. A lit fireplace was set into one of the walls and fur rugs covered the stone floor.

However what caught her eye was the group of people of varying species and genders. All appeared strong and battle hardened, and were staring at the two with either confused or furious looks. All of them also carried some sort of weapon - swords, daggers, a few axes - which were currently pointed at the pair of newcomers.

Missy hadn't yet noticed. Still too busy cackling and whooping at their little trip. The Time Lady stood and smoothed down her dress.

"Oh what's wrong puppy? Cat got your tongue?" Missy giggled. She smiled at Clara as the human looked understandably tense and on edge. The Time Lady frowned however when she realised the human wasn't actually looking at her but at something behind her. Missy turned and took in the glinting weapons pointed at them.

"Oh," Missy muttered, taking a step back. Clara noted that Missy seemed to subtly place herself slightly in front of the human. Clara blinked and shook her head slightly. She must be seeing things. Her eyes were probably still suffering from the Vortex Manipulator.

The crowd before them parted slightly. A very tall and slim built, yet still muscular, male humanoid feline walked forward. His fur had the orange and black markings of a tiger though most of his body was covered by trousers and a tunic. A sword inside its scabbard hung at his waist. He emerged from the group and crossed his arms, studying the two intently with bright yellow eyes. Clara noted he had no form of shoes on so his paws were bare against the fur carpets.

After a minute he sniffed and finally addressed the two women.

"Come with me," he said in a quiet but gruff and commanding voice.

"Oh! To where exactly?" Missy asked, crossing her own arms. Clara winced at the mocking tone Missy used. Of course the psycho would choose to exacerbate the situation. Clara locked eyes with the feline and mouthed 'sorry'. The feline smiled softly, one ear twitching slightly as he uncrossed his arms.

"You must meet with the King," he said. Without waiting for a reply or protest her turned and began to walk back through the crowd. Missy turned slightly to look at Clara who flicked her eyes to the Time Lady's, worry etched all over her face.

Their eye contact was broken when one of the group, a humanoid bull like figure with a large axe, gave Clara a rather harsh shove forward. Clara stumbled, Missy reaching out with both hands to grip the human's upper arm to steady her, sending an icy glare at the bull. He seemed to take a step back, fear flashing in his eyes. He coughed apologetically and gestured with his axe towards the direction the feline had gone.

Clara looked to Missy with a shrug and started forward, her arm sliding out of the Time Lady's hands as the other woman loosened her grip to let the human walk. Missy sighed and, with one last glare to the bull, followed too.

---

"What have you gotten us into?"

Clara's harsh whisper echoed slightly down the stone corridor. The Time Lady huffed as they continued to follow the feline through the castle. They were flanked behind them by another two guards. A female humanoid bird like creature with bright and colourful feathers, and daggers at her belt followed behind Missy. The other was the bull from earlier, who wisely chose to trail behind Clara to avoid the Time Lady, yet still hovering back slightly farther than his companion just in case he incurred Missy's wrath by getting too close to the human.

"That room was supposed to be empty!" Missy snapped at the human.

"Oh my God," Clara exclaimed, rolling her eyes, "You're just like the Doctor."

"Am not!" Missy countered indignantly.

"Are too!" Clara barked back, "You and him both have time travel at your fingertips and nine times out of ten you never get where you want to go."

"Excuse me. He has no excuse. He has a fully functioning, if old and rusty bucket of bolts, TARDIS to work with. I on the other hand only have this." Missy shook her wrist where the Vortex Manipulator sat. "Cheap and nasty time travel, remember. Besides I still get it right more often than he does."

"So what happened this time? Something distract you?" Clara responded with a smirk.

"Yeah, the puppy wouldn't sit still," Missy lied quickly. Clara didn't need to know the great Mistress had forgotten to double check her co-ordinates because of something as silly as being excited to play with her human. "So really it's all your fault." Clara scoffed knowing full well she hadn't been moving when they'd teleported from her flat.

Their bickering was cut short when the feline stopped in front of a wooden door. The cat knocked on the wood and the group waited until a voice called "Come in!" from the other side. The feline opened the door and beckoned the two to go inside.

The two women stepped over the threshold and into what looked to be a study. Bookcases filled with tomes and parchment lined the back wall. Portraits and tapestries covered the other two walls either side of them. In front of them was a large wooden desk covered in ink stained parchment, quills and open books. The room was warm and cosy. Well used and lived in.

Behind the desk stood a human looking man. Possibly creeping into his early 50s but built like an ox. He had a thick salt and pepper-ish beard, that still held the remains of what could have once been red, and a large scar down the left side of his face, but his smile was warm and he had friendly twinkle in his eye. He wore what looked to be a similar trouser and tunic combo to the tiger, but had a light breast plate and a red and gold sash over his chest.

Next to him in a chair sat a graceful, human looking woman with long blond hair in a braid and deep blue eyes that her elegant dress seemed to match. She studied the two carefully but her smile was no less warm.

Clara heard the door close behind her and glanced to see that only the feline had followed them in. The other two most likely waiting outside.

"What do we have here then Tiberius?" the man asked, his voice rough but just as warm as his smile. The feline stepped up closer behind the two.

"These newcomers... appeared, in the warrior's common room Sire." The man's eyes seemed to light up at the cat's words.

"Oh how wonderful! It's been sometime since we've had newcomers. Even longer since they came on such an important day too." The woman next to him smiled at his excitement.

"I do apologise for my husband's manners," she said, standing from her chair, "He is just excited. This is Eddard, the King of our land. I am Sophie, his wife and Queen. What might your names be?" Clara glanced at Missy who made no move to reply.

"I'm Clara, and this is Missy. We were just-"

"Passing through," Missy finished, taking a small step forward, "So I'm afraid we won't be staying." They were met with confused looks.

"But you must," Eddard stated, "Not only is today the annual Warrior Celebrations but as newcomers to our land you must go through the Proving. We can't have unproven warriors amongst our people. It is the law."

"I'm sorry Proving?" Clara asked, worry already pooling in her gut that something bad was going to happen. The two rulers glanced at each other before Sophie took a breath and stood.

"Our land is a land of warriors. We have a standard to maintain. There is to be at least one proven warrior to every citizen and child who cannot fight according to our laws. Every group of newcomers must prove themselves to be allowed to remain. You two are no different I'm afraid whether it was your intention to stay or not." Clara swallowed and glanced at Missy. The Time Lady was strangely stoic, still refusing to speak up.

"So what does this…Proving entail?" Clara asked carefully. Eddard's eyes twinkled as he took in Clara's words.

"The Proving is a duel between a newcomer and one of our best warriors," the King explained. "The number of newcomers in the group defines the number of duels. Since there are two of you, only one will have to duel." He moved out from behind the table as he spoke to stand in front of the two women. "There are two ways to win and complete the Proving. One is to disarm your opponent and have them surrender. The other is to kill them. There is only one way to lose. Death. Should the duellist be killed in the arena then their sponsor, unless a child, will die too." Eddard let his words hang in the air and sink in. Clara's eyes had been growing wider by the second and the worry had become full blown fear.

Clara looked over at Missy again. The Time Lady didn't seem surprised by the King's revelation but there was something unreadable on her face. Regret maybe. Clara wasn't sure.

Eddard broke the tension with a swift clap and rub of his hands.

"So which one of you is to be our mighty warrior?" There was a pause before Missy nodded towards Clara.

"She will." Clara spluttered for a second before Eddard interrupted any protests.

"Excellent! Ser Clara, Tiberius shall take you to our Quarter Master to get prepared. Lady Missy I shall have Isis and Baldo escort you to the Preparation Room where they will explain how things will proceed from there." Clara had no time to argue or even process the words as Tiberius gently took her upper arm and began to tug her towards the door.

"Missy!" Clara shouted, internally cringing at the distress that had crept into her voice. The Time Lady still refused to look at the human. Clara huffed in frustration and turned her head away to follow the feline, pushing the panic that was slowly rising back down.

It wasn't until she was out the door that Missy looked at where her human had gone, apprehension written all over her face.

---

Clara tried her best to keep her breathing calm as she followed Tiberius down another set of stairs. The fear, panic and apprehension were all still there, mixing together in a swirling pool in her gut, but it was quickly becoming submerged by rising anger. Had Missy planned this? To get Clara killed like this? She wouldn't put it past the psycho. Show up unannounced, drag her off to a planet and make Clara responsible for her own death because she couldn't swing a sword. But then again it didn't seem like Missy had intended it, if what Clara had been able to read from the Time Lady's face was correct. Plus Clara was technically responsible for Missy's own life in this case. Missy wouldn't willingly just put her life in someone else's hands this way. Would she? Surely the woman had a plan?

Clara shook her head in frustration. Always too many questions going unanswered when it came to Missy. 'Don't open that box now!' a part her brain yelled.

Her thoughts were thankfully interrupted as the sounds of people shouting and clanging metal began to filter through. Tiberius lead her through an open doorway that housed the noise. Countless different types of weapons were littered about the room. Some on walls, some on tables, some in people's hands. At the far end of the room Clara could see what looked like blacksmith equipment, seeing the smoke from the fires and steam melding together in the air. People of yet more different species milled about, moving from one table to another, sparring or building weapons and armour.

She couldn't look around for long as Tiberius lead her over to a man in the centre of the room. The feline cleared his throat and the man looked up from where he'd been appraising a small axe. The man seemed human and was short, shorter than Clara possibly four feet, and bald. His face seemed permanently angry and a large scar ran down the right side of his face, through his eye and down to his jaw. He looked at Clara with one green and one glassy, milky eye in a manner that reminded Clara of being at school. Like she was being appraised just like the axe.

"Ser Clara," the feline said, "This is Quaxo our Quarter Master. He shall get you outfitted. I must return to the King. I shall see you on the battlefield. Good luck." With a clasp and a squeeze of her shoulder, and a final nod to Quaxo, the car turned and retreated the way he came.

Clara watched him leave before turning her attention back to the Quarter Master, who was still appraising her.

Eventually he nodded with a 'hmm' and grabbed Clara's wrist in a firm grip as he lead her over to a large rack of equipment and armour that ran along one if the walls.

"So you're the newcomer that's going through the Proving." His question was rhetorical, a statement really, so Clara didn't bother to answer. "Well you're cutting it mighty fine. Celebrations start in half an hour." They stopped in front of a large expanse of softer flooring in front of the weapons rack. To Clara it looked like the mats the school used in PE. The human wondered if this planet was fully stuck in medieval times like its appearance. She doubted it if the mats were anything to go by. What other futuristic to the appearance did this planet have?

Clara was interrupted from her observations when Quaxo started to remove her leather jacket from her shoulders.

"Hey!"

"You can't fight in this cub," the Quarter Master responded. Clara rolled her eyes. Was dog really written all over her. Maybe it was just was they called their unproven warriors. She hoped. One person her calling her a puppy was enough. Clara shut down the thoughts that whispered that it only felt right when Missy did it, that only the Time Lady was allowed, and sighed.

"Whatever but I want it back."

"Don't worry, you'll get it back if you win." Clara noted the pessimism in his words as he placed her jacket on the nearest table. If. If she won. Clara swallowed. Quaxo turned back to her before she could properly start to worry again.

"Roll up your sleeves." Clara began to do so as the Quarter Master walked over to the armour rack. Clara was thankful in that moment that she'd chosen to wear a shirt and jeans today.

"Arms out," Quaxo said once Clara was done. She did as he asked before the Quarter Master began to fasten a pair of simple leather vambrace to her forearms.

"Every newcomer is given the same set for the Proving," he explained as he tightened the straps properly. "Vambrace for support, shield for defence and a sword for offence. What your opponent has is up to them."

"Who is my opponent?" Clara asked as Quaxo moved back to the rack. She looked down at the leather now surrounding her arms, flexing her fingers to get a feel.

"Randomly chosen," the Quarter Master answered, pulling a plain wooden shield from the rack and bringing it over. "Left or right handed?"

"Right," Clara responded. Quaxo grunted and nodded towards her left arm. Clara lifted it and let him turn it so he could strap the shield to her arm. When he let go Clara's arm dipped slightly with the new weight but she recovered quickly, adjusting her stance accordingly. Quaxo raised an eyebrow but said nothing.

"You're short," he stated suddenly, causing Clara to whip her head around to glare at him. "What five one?"

"Five two," was Clara's curt reply as she narrowed her eyes. Quaxo smiled, a genuine smile behind his angry mask, before he went over to an array of swords. He ran his hand along a few before pulling one free. It was again simple, silver hilt with a silver blade. He nodded and returned to Clara, holding the hilt towards her. Clara hesitated for a moment before taking a deep breath and grasping the metal.

Quaxo watched as her eyes seemed to close in pain for a few seconds, jaw clenching, before she opened them again. He noted a slight hardness in them that hadn't been there before but didn't push. Instead he grunted approvingly at her grip and stance.

"A natural warrior," he said nodding, missing the haunted look that flitted across Clara's face at his words. "That should increase your chances. Now we don't have much time so I'll have to give you the usual pep talk on the way to the arena. Right now Vim over there will take you to the Preparation Room for your Last Rights."

Clara looked over to where he'd gestured to see a reptilian male. 'Definitely Silurian,' thought Clara. Finally a species she recognised for sure. He stood from where he had been leaning against the wall and gave the human a jut of his chin. Clara nodded to him before she repeated the move in thanks to Quaxo. She walked quickly over to Vim who lead her out of another door and up yet another flight of stairs.

---

Clara followed Vim down another torchlit corridor in silence. She fidgeted, still adjusting to the heavy weights of the shield on her arm and sword in her hand, as she stared at the walls. Portraits covered the walls all depicting what Clara assumed to be past warriors. Whether they had died in the arena or battle Clara didn't know. Eventually the silence became too deafening.

"So, what are these Last Rights?" She asked Vim. The reptile sniffed but didn't turn to face her.

"They are given to all Proving participants. Essentially it is their chance to say goodbye to their families. Their children and lovers. 'Everyone has the right to a last goodbye' as our Queen says." Clara swallowed as they finally reached a small wooden door at the end of the corridor.

Vim stopped in front of it, hand on the door knob, and eyed Clara, moonlight shining off his scales from the window set in the end wall of the corridor.

"You'll have five minutes. I suggest you use them wisely since I highly doubt you're going to make it through the other side," Vim sneered before he turned the knob and opened the door, stepping back. Clara moved in front of him, her back to the open door, frowning.

"To do what?" Vim smirked smugly.

"To say goodbye to your lady friend." Clara rolled her eyes.

"She's not -" was all she got out before Vim grabbed the front of her shirt and shoved her roughly inside before slamming the door. Clara stumbled but remained upright despite the extra weight attached to her. She straightened and glared at the closed door.

Clara quickly took in the room as she turned around. It was warm and inviting with peaceful tapestries of woodland and forest scenes adorning the walls. Padded chairs and sofas were set up in the centre of the room next to a fireplace. Another door was set into the opposite wall.

And there sat in one of the chairs by the glowing fire was Missy.

Surprising relief washed over Clara at seeing the Time Lady alive and well, and seemingly unharmed.

"Hello poppet," Missy said, eyes watching Clara intently, as she had since Clara was unceremoniously shoved inside (she'd have to have a word with that reptile), trying to suppress a smirk having heard the conversation outside.

At Missy's amused expression Clara remembered it was the Time Lady's fault she was in the mess. Her anger flared again.

"Missy!" she said, the fury behind her voice making the Time Lady pause, "Why did you bring me here? Was this your plan? Kidnap me and get me killed on some remote planet while you watch?"

"Heavens no," Missy said in mock shock, hand clutching at her chest where her heart would be were she human. "Honestly a girl tries to do something nice." Missy rested her cheek on her hand as she leant her elbow on the arm of the chair. "I thought I'd surprise you and take you out for a little girl's night. You know after that whole ugly business on Skaro."

"You mean you trying to kill me?" Missy waved her free hand, as if Clara had just accused Missy of something as small and stealing a chip off her plate.

"Water under the bridge dearie. I thought a nice little night out. A bit of violence. Some drinking. Maybe some dancing. Some harmless fun." Missy's eyes twinkled at her last sentence. Clara felt a distant tug of something but her anger was too great to focus on what it was right now.

"Besides," Missy leaned forward, her smile wide and predatory, eyes hungry, "as much fun as it would be to watch you die, I'd much rather be the one to kill you. And this setting would be a little grandiose for me for something as important as that. No if that were my plan the situation would be much more..." Missy shifted her shoulders, her smile becoming a knowing smirk. "Intimate."

Clara felt that tug again stronger but her anger pushed through Missy's innuendo as she stepped forward.

"Then why throw me to the wolves? Why don't you get in there and fight since you got us into this." Clara was yelling now, all unbridled fury that made Missy lean back slightly. "Hell you didn't even know if I could wield a sword before you lumped me in this did you!?" Missy raised a brow, having already ascertained that given how Clara held and handled the sword in her hand that it was highly likely the human could wield it. Instead of voicing that she sighed.

"Can you wield a sword?" the Time Lady asked condescendingly.

"I... Yes but -"

"Then it's a moot point poppet." Clara growled in frustration.

" Missy -"

"Anyway you are much more appropriately dressed for a sword fight that it made far more sense," Missy interrupted.

Clara stalled taking in Missy's purple Edwardian getup complete with heels and cameo brooch, before looking down at her own blue and black checked shirt, black jeans and Vans combo. Missy had a point and Clara couldn't fault her logic.

"Fighting in a corset is murder dear," Missy drawled. Clara doubted the Time Lady wouldn't be able to do it if she actually wanted to. The human looked back up at the still smiling Missy jaw set and a mask of anger still firmly in place, her grip white on the sword in her hand.

Clara stalked over to Missy and stood over the Time Lady, for once being taller than her. Clara's shadow fell over Missy and as the Time Lady took in the human's rage filled eyes her smile dropped.

"Missy. Did you do this deliberately?" Missy faltered at the venom in Clara's voice.

"Clara. I promise, from the bottom of my hearts, this was not my intention."

They stayed like that for a moment as Clara studied Missy's eyes for lies. When she ascertained that, for once, the Time Lady was being genuine, she deflated as the anger left and took a step back.

"Sorry," Clara sighed.

"Don't worry," Missy said with a small genuine smile, "I understand why you'd jump to those conclusions."

Clara sighed again resisting the urge to pace. Adrenaline was already pumping through her veins making her restless. Her senses and instincts on high alert. Whisperings of the fight to come pushed at her brain. She didn't want to sit let alone let go of the sword like she'd expect she should want to. Instead Clara turned back to Missy who was looking at her curiously.

"So how do we get out of this?" Missy paused frowning.

"We don't."

"What!? You mean the great Mistress doesn't have an escape plan?"

"Don't be silly. I expect by the time this fight is done the Vortex Manipulator will be recharged."

"Oh so you do have one, it just probably doesn't involve me 'cause I'll be dead? Great," Clara said sardonically. Missy frowned again and stood, walking slowly up to the human.

"What's with all this pessimism? Remember." Missy placed her hands on Clara's shoulders and giving them a squeeze. "We always assume we're gonna win." Clara smiled faintly at Missy repeating her own words from what felt like an age ago back at her. Missy smiled and let go backing away. "You certainly look the part anyway. Very Prince Charming." Clara snorted.

"What does that make you? The Damsel in Distress?" Missy narrowed her eyes playfully but before she could deliver a comeback there was a hard knock at the second door to the room behind the Time Lady. Both watched as Quaxo poked his head in.

"Time's up. Let's go cub." Missy glared at him. Only she could say something like that to her puppy. Clara sighed and began to walk over to the door.

"Kiss from the Lady for good luck," Clara smirked as she passed Missy. Missy smirked in return.

"Maybe when you get back." Clara blinked and turned back to Missy. There was that damned tug in her stomach again. She swallowed and went a different route.

"When? I didn't think you'd have that much faith in me."

"Positive thinking does wonders for your silly species," Missy responded with a shrug. Clara smiled unconvinced that was the reason but let it lie and turned back to leave. She was stopped suddenly when Missy grabbed her upper arm and stepped in close.

"Don't be afraid to fight dirty puppy," Missy said low in her ear, breathe hot against the human's face again. "You have claws, use them." Then Missy gave Clara a quick peck on the cheek and stepped back, letting go of the human's arm. Clara turned away quickly hoping to hide her blush and wide eyes. Her mouth was dry all of a sudden so she couldn't form a reply. Instead she nodded, hoping Missy got that from the back of her head, and headed over to a very amused looking Quaxo.

"Not a word," she hissed at the Quarter Master before leaving the room. Quaxo glanced back at Missy, who was staring at the fire worry etched across her face, before he gently closed the door.

---

'How many staircases does this bloody place have!?' Clara thought as Quaxo lead her down another set of stairs. At least instead of silence, this time she was getting Quaxo's debrief of what was to come.

"The arena is at the back of the castle in the grounds," he explained, "Typical setting. Wooden stands full of people circling a big patch of dirt. You'll be going on first. Usually happens but since it's the Warriors Celebration they'll be making much more of a fuss."

"What is the Warriors Celebration?" Clara interrupted, curious.

"Self-explanatory really," Quaxo replied with a shrug, "An annual celebration for our warriors. The day is filled with battles in the arena. Some random matches, some old standing rivalries and such. The night means the big feast with lots of food and drinking and dancing. You never know, if you do well today they might name the feast in your honour." He chuckled and gave her a small nudge. Clara gave him a weak smile in return. Yeah if she did well.

"Now," Quaxo said, sobering up, "I assume you know how to use that sword?"

Clara simply nodded not wanting to elaborate further. She didn't really want to get into that loaded question with the Quarter Master. How she'd first grabbed a sword when she was separated from the Doctor on a hostile alien planet and forced to defend herself until she, literally, ran into the Time Lord again. How even though she'd never held a sword before that, she knew exactly what to do because when she'd grasped the metal she'd been assaulted by visions, memories, of others with her face who knew how to wield the weapon. How when she'd grabbed onto the sword currently in her hand they'd came back again. Flashes of warriors and knights wielding a blade. In different time periods and planets. Some for fun, some for survival. All in the blink of an eye. How they were still whispering to her now on the best way to place her feet, the best way to parry a swing, the best way to rend the head from someone's shoulders.

"Good," Quaxo said accepting her nod. "Now most of our warriors are brutes. Built big and strong and will use their strength most of all. You're small, probably quick too. So you're best chance is to use that. Dodge out of their range and behind their defences. Make them swing. Tire them out. Then when their exhausted go in for the kill." Clara swallowed at his last word. She'd prefer not to take that route.

Clara started to hear chanting and cheering bleeding through the walls that only got louder the further they went down.

Soon enough they exited a small doorway into a dirt covered corridor. Struts and supports went as far as she could see on either side. Above was more wood to what looked like the base of a stand. In front of her was a gap in the stands surrounded by torches that made the air hazy and difficult to see the other side. The cacophony of noise was nearly deafening.

Clara suddenly heard her own name and a large cheer. Quaxo tugged on her shirt. She turned to face him before he beckoned her to lean down. She did so and was surprised when the man grabbed the sides of her head in both hands.

"Remember cub," he said, half-blind gaze boring into hers, "Don't give them a chance to hit you."

Clara swallowed and nodded. Quaxo nodded back with a surprising smile before he let go of Clara's face and gave her a small nudge towards the opening.

Clara turned and stared out trying to see past the haze but could only hear the cheering. She took a deep breath and squared her shoulders, trying to exude confidence and maybe a bit of anger to seem bigger than she felt, and marched out.

As she stepped through the torchlit gateway she was blinded by the sun, but could hear the cheering grow even louder if possible hurting her ears. She blinked a few times before her eyes adjusted and she was able to take in the arena. It looked just like the one the Doctor had entered in on a tank in Essex not that long ago, except more colourful and much bigger. Men, women and children of all ages and species lined the stands cheering and hollering as Clara walked towards the middle. There was also an inner fence separating a strip of dirt from the stands and the arena, inside of which stood various combatants already itching to get into the circle and fight.

Once she'd reached the centre she turned around scanning the crowd. There in the front row was Eddard and Sophie in much more decorative and elaborate chairs than the rest, and next to them sat Missy. She locked eyes with the Time Lady, finally not feeling so alone out in the dirt ring. She was sure Missy could see the fear under the mask because for half a second it was reflected back at her before the Time Lady straightened in her chair and took a deep breath. Clara understood and copied the movement, feeling calmer already, as Eddard began to quiet down the crowd so he could speak. Clara tore her eyes from Missy's to watch him.

"Citizens," the King called, his voice booming and echoing throughout the arena, "Today is a special day. Today is the annual Warrior Celebrations!" He paused, letting the crowd cheer and stomp in excitement, before he held up his hands for quiet again. "Not only that, but for the first time in five years on this day there will be a Proving." More cheers filtered from the crowd.

The King waited until hush fell once again before he continued, his voice softer, filled with emotion but carrying across the arena no less.

"These events are important to us as a people, and it is a great honour to preside over them as your King." Eddard held up a hand briefly to pre-emptively stall any noise. "I am blessed to lead such a glorious community, as well as join you as brother and warrior. As father and lover." He turned and clasped his wife's hand in his own for a moment, sharing a smile with his Queen before he looked back out to the stands filled with people. "Now enough of this mushy stuff. Let the celebration begin!"

The cheering began anew and instead of calling for quiet, Eddard simply shouted over the noise.

"I present the warrior participating in this very special Proving. Ser Clara Oswald!"

The crowd went crazy and Clara couldn't help but smile a little, taking in the sight and sound of so many people cheering and hollering for her. She raised her sword and arm in a small wave, a motion that caused the crowd to get even louder. Eddard beckoned to Tiberius who walked over to his King with a large box in his hands. He whistled at the crowd who quietened their noise to a more acceptable level, but too enthusiastic to be silent any longer. The man turned to Missy.

"Lady Missy, as you warrior's sponsor it is your responsibility to choose their opponent." He motioned to Tiberius who bent forward, holding out the large box to Missy. The King looked to the Time Lady with sudden seriousness. "For both your sakes, I hope you choose wisely." Any other person would have swallowed nervously under the man's gaze, but Missy simply tilted her head slightly before she reached into the box with a careful hand.

After a moment Missy pulled out a rolled up scroll. Tiberius backed up taking the box away, whilst the King held out his hand to take the scroll. Missy gave it to him and everyone watched with baited breath as the man unfurled the piece of parchment. Eddard read the words on the page and his face broke out in a large grin.

"Citizens! The opponent for this Proving shall be none other than my own son, Aaren!"

The crowd's volume rose once more, but a deep male voice punctured over it all with a loud battle cry. Clara couldn't pin point where it had come from but she didn't need to as a second later the cry came again from the same entrance she had walked through, echoed louder by the crowd. Clara turned and saw a tall, well-built young, possibly early twenty's, man with a head of bright red hair. He drank in the cheers, his arms outstretched welcoming in their adoration, and a large smile on his face. Clara could definitely see the family resemblance. What gave her pause was the fact he was at least a foot taller than her and held up a large broadsword in one hand as if it were a butter knife. She was sure the colour must have drained from her face.

The King's son strode towards the centre of the arena, stopping a couple of metres away from Clara. He looked her over before locking green eyes with her brown ones, giving her a nod. Clara swallowed and licked her lips, fidgeting with the grip on her sword, then nodded in return. Aaren looked over to his father and Clara followed his gaze.

"Warriors," he called, giving both combatants a nod, "Fight strong and fight well." He paused, purely for dramatic effect as the crowd waited. He smiled before lifting his hands into the air. "Begin!"

Clara filtered out the noise of the mass of onlookers as they went berserk, and faced her opponent. Aaren smiled at her, a glint in his eye of a warrior ready for a fight. A hunter ready to take on its pray. But Clara wasn't going to go down so easy.

Aaren took a step and pushed his body forward slightly, and Clara, much to her own disappointment fell for the maneuverer, took a step back, alarm spiking through her body. Aaren chuckled and shook his head slightly. Clearly he didn't think much of her already, and her display just then hadn't helped. Clara glared at him before she took a deep breath, clearing her mind and letting adrenaline begin to pump through her veins. Allowing the whisperings to bleed a little further than she normally did. Falling back on instinct and intuition. Her grip on the sword tightened but otherwise she remained loose, allowing Aaren to make the first move.

She didn't have to wait long. Aaren raised his sword and brought it down in a lazy swing to her right side. Clara merely moved her shoulder back, easily dodging the blade. He repeated the move to her left and she did the same. He was teasing her now. Testing the waters. Still not expecting much of the small human. Clara decided if he wasn't going to take this seriously, she'd just have to make him.

Clara planted her feet firmly on the ground, digging the soles of her shoes into the dirt, before grasping the hilt of her sword tight and swinging quickly it towards the red head with as much strength as she could. Aaren's eyes widened at the movement, the young man bringing his own sword up quickly in both hands to block the strike. He still didn't expect the force behind the swing, so when their swords clashed Aaren staggered back slightly. The King's son straightened and tilted his head slightly with a smile, a new look in his eyes. One that said he was impressed.

"That's more like it," Aaren said, his voice not quite as rough as his father, still young, but with the same warmth. He swung his sword in a circle before holding it and himself in a defensive stance. Clara returned his smile with a smirk of her own, twirling her own sword, before raising the weapon and her shield in parallel. The fight truly on now.

The red haired Prince let out a battle cry and surged forward. Clara dodged backwards out of range, bringing her sword up to parry his subsequent swing. Aaren heaved his sword high in both hands and brought it curving down towards Clara's head. There was no way for her to dodge, so the brunette hefted her shield up to block. The Prince's sword came down on the top of the wooden shield, splintering the wood slightly and causing the blade to get stuck in the crevice. Clara gritted her teeth as the blow sent shockwaves down her arm.

Aaren grunted as he pulled and tried to free his weapon from Clara's shield. The small human held on tight as the movement tugged her forward. She frowned in thought, an idea coming to her. When the red head pulled again she used the momentum to continue forward and drive her shield up with his movement, the hilt of his own weapon slamming into his face. Aaren's head snapped back, the hit enough to dislodge his sword from her shield. The Prince took a step back, his sword dropping as one hand came up to his jaw rubbing it. He licked at the blood beginning to trickle from his now split lip and grinned wide.

Clara ducked his next swing before surging forward and driving her shield into the red head's stomach, pushing him to the ground. The brunette didn't get a chance to take advantage of the situation, as the instant Aaren hit the ground he grabbed a handful of the dirt and hurled it into Clara's face. The human yelped and brought her sword arm to eyes to rub at them, instinctively taking a step back. With her sight compromised Clara had to rely on her other senses, her ears picking up the Prince's movements in his swift attempt to get back up. Clara continued her backwards trajectory should Aaren decide to attack - which he did, swinging his sword sloppily towards the brunette as he tried to rise - but her attempt to dodge the strike completely failed, the metal biting into her right thigh.

Clara stifled a cry of pain as her right leg bowed slightly, fighting to keep the rest of her upright. The point of her sword sank into the ground slightly as she leaned on the weapon, using it like a cane to steady her body. She managed to clear her eyes of the dirt in time to see Aaren finally get to his feet and lash out with a foot, the sole of his shoe connecting with her stomach sending her to the ground, much like she had to him. Clara landed on her back with a soft 'oof', her sword falling from her grasp. Before she could make an effort to get back up, Aaren appeared above her and planted his foot on the edge of her shield, pinning her arm to the ground. Clara grunted as the sudden weight caused the straps to dig into her arm, surely enough to end up giving her bruises.

Aaren hefted his sword high again with the intent in bringing it down on Clara's arm, clearly planning to slice the limb in two. The brunette's eyes widened and as Aaren brought the sword down Clara used all her strength to pull her arm out of the shield's straps as quickly as possible, freeing herself just in time as the blade ended up cleaving a groove in the soft dirt instead of soft flesh. Clara rolled over and hastily retrieved her sword, staggering to her feet and turning to face the red head once more.

Missy watched the spectacle intently, her jaw tight as Clara continued to dodge and deflect her opponent's attacks. The sound of the crowd's continuing cheers and gasps grated in her ears. One hand had curled itself around the edge of her arm rest, knuckles white from the force of her grip. The other clung to her jacket at the opposite arm, fingernails digging into the purple fabric. Despite her worry that her puppy was being damaged, she couldn't help but be impressed by the human's display. The ferocity. The skill. The power. The finesse. In spite of all she'd seen of the small brunette before she had to admit she didn't think the puppy had it in her. A small part of her couldn't deny it was rather arousing. However the majority of her being was more concerned with whether Clara would make it out of this bout in one piece.

Aaren swung his blade again, Clara bringing her own sword up to block. The two weapons clashed together with a loud clang. The warriors struggled in their lock, pushing against each other. Aaren shoved forward hard, causing Clara's feet to slide back slightly in the soft dirt. The brunette gritted her teeth and dug her feet into the earth, pushing back against the Prince, refusing the give up any more ground if she could help it.

A small furrowing of the Prince's brow was the only warning Clara received before Aaren let go of his sword with one hand, still easily able to hold the small brunette at bay with a single hand on his blade, and used it to grab Clara's shirt at her shoulder. Confusion spread across Clara's face for a split second, not having enough time to process the move or enact a counter measure or even try to pull away, before Aaren's fist tightened on the fabric and dragged the human towards him. He met her halfway, slamming his forehead into her nose in the space between their crossed swords. Clara heard the crack loudly in her ears as pain swiftly bloomed across her face, the strength behind her sword significantly diminished with the shock. She barely had time to register the sensation before Aaren used the opportunity of Clara's distraction to yank on the brunette's shirt again and drag her around, throwing her behind him.

Clara flew through the air for a second then landed hard on her left side, her hip and ribs hitting the ground with bruising force. She rolled across the dirt, her sword sliding from her grip once again and skidding away from her. Clara's short journey ended as she finally came to rest on all fours, winded, spitting out blood that had made its way down from her surely broken nose.

The human looked up as she heard Aaren approach, the Prince twirling his sword in his hand nimbly before he swung it at her in a horizontal arc. Clara forced her body to move, and hurriedly pushed herself to her feet while simultaneously jumping backwards in an attempt to escape the blade. She managed to avoid the worst of the weapon, but not all as the point of the blade slid shallowly into the flesh of her stomach and ripping through the fabric of her shirt.

As Clara landed her injured and still bleeding right leg slid out from under her forcing her left knee to the dirt, as her left hand came up to stem the trickle of red liquid from her new abdominal wound while her right hand went to the ground to help keep her balance. The brunette let out a barely audible groan, closing her eyes for a moment against the pain, swallowing heavily, the iron taste of blood mingling with saliva. She was quickly succumbing to fatigue. If she was to defeat the Prince she'd have to do so soon. But given she'd lost her weapon it was going to be much more difficult than just saying so. Fight dirty is what Missy said. But how was she supposed to do that?

Clara internally let out a scream of frustration. She would much rather have the TARDIS drop her in the swimming pool again right now. Hell she'd take an entire weekend of marking essay after essay from her classes. You would think being an English teacher, one of the umpteen books she'd read would be able to help her in this moment.

Clara's eyes widened slightly as an idea came to her. She looked up to see Aaren very slowly making his way towards her, more intent on showing off to the still cheering crowd. Clara tried to rise on her feet and back away from him. She managed only a few heavily limping steps before her right leg buckled under her, forcing her back to her knees. Aaren reached her and brought his sword up, placing the blade lightly against her neck. Clara's eyes slid to the blade briefly before dragging them back up he red head's face.

"Good show cub," Aaren said with a smile that showed he was still impressed. "But the game ends here. Any last words?" Clara smirked at him under the drying blood.

"Never judge a book by its cover." Clara didn't care that it was a cheesy line, it distracted the Prince enough that when he frowned in confusion Clara's left hand shot out and grabbed his forearm, pushing it and his weapon away from her, off her skin letting her breathe a little easier. Rage began to blend with the confusion on the red head's face but Clara didn't let him process the situation before her right hand reached up and seized a fistful of his tunic. The brunette braced her right leg against the ground, digging her foot into the dirt. She used her hold on the Prince the pull herself up and drive her left knee in between his legs.

Aaren howled in pain, his sword clattering dully to the ground as he released his weapon in order to bring his hands to cup the injured area, promptly dropping to his knees. Clara pulled back her right fist and brought it towards the Prince's face, punching with all the power she could muster. Aaren's head snapped to the side, his body following as he slumped to the ground with a hoarse groan of pain. Clara let out a soft curse as she flexed her hand, her knuckles beginning to throb as yet more blood oozed out of small cuts and scrapes now adorning her skin. She stumbled slightly over to the red head's abandoned weapon and lifted the heavy blade into her own hands.

The Prince grunted in pain again as he rolled over slowly onto his back, blinking up at the blue sky. A shadow fell over him and he lifted his head to look at the source. Clara stood above him, a leg on either side of his torso, his own sword in her hands, pointed at his neck. Aaren slowly raised his hands as if in surrender. However Clara could see the calculating look in his eye as he searched for some way to stop or disarm her, the cogs in his brain still working to continue the fight. Clara had to end it and end it now.

Clara bared her teeth and heaved the weapon up in her hands, her arms trembling above her head with the weight. The brunette let out an animalistic cry and brought the sword down towards the Prince's head. Aaren clamped his eyes shut waiting for the inevitable, but her only heard the whistling of air and a dull thud next to his right ear. The arena was deathly silent in that moment, the crowd having ceased their previous jubilant din. The red head cracked his eyes open and peeked to the right, seeing his sword embedded in the dirt millimetres from him still wobbling slightly. His eyes widened before he snapped them back up to look at Clara, who was staring down at him stoically breathing heavily. Aaren knew at this point the fight was over. The Prince swallowed and closed his eyes in resigned defeat, letting his head fall back into the dirt.

The crowd broke the silence and erupted into cheers. Clara didn't hear the uproar however, her heart still pounding in her ears as she staggered back away from her fallen opponent. Clara brought up her uninjured left hand to wipe at the blood around her mouth with the back of it, before her arm fell limply to her side like her other, muscles screaming and shaking, exhausted from having to lift the Prince's sword. The blade definitely was built to be wielded by someone of her stature.

Cheering and chanting finally hit her in a sudden crashing wave, as if she were coming up from under water, just as she felt people surround her, hands latching onto her back and thighs. Clara yelped in surprise as she was lifted high into the air, her body complaining in pain as she was jostled about, eventually being settled on a couple of people's shoulders. The human looked around at the cheering mass of mostly warrior's, and a few regular citizens who had snuck into the fray (she was sure she could see a mother chasing a young boy near the back and trying to heard him back to the stands), who were all smiling and celebrating her triumph. Clara couldn't help but smile too as the mob carried her over to the Royal Stand.

As they reached the fence, the still cheering mass deposited Clara over the wooden structure. The human landed on her back with a heavy 'oof' and a soft groan, her legs propped upright against the barrier as she stared up at the sky, still winded and trying to get her breath back as the sun blinded her momentarily. The bright light was unexpectedly blocked by a silhouette of someone, the sun casting a halo around them. Clara blinked a few times until Missy's exasperated face came into view. The human gave the Time Lady above her a tired and pained smile, but a smile none the less that reduced the worry buried in Missy's normally cold eyes.

"Hey nutjob," Clara croaked out, lifting her hand in a small wave. The psychotic alien rolled her eyes at the small human, before she bent down and gently grasped Clara's raised hand at the wrist with one hand. She then gripped the brunette's connecting shoulder with her other hand and began to heave them human up, helping Clara lumber to her feet like a baby deer.

Once upright Clara swayed slightly, leading Missy to try and pull Clara into her side so the brunette could lean against her. Hurt flashed across Missy's face when Clara leaned away, extracting her arm out of Missy's light hold, and using the fence to prop herself up instead of the Time Lady. Clara lazily gazed up and saw the look pass over Missy's face. The human's eyes widened and she frantically shook her head, grunting lightly when the move caused a spike of pain to rush through her face and nose, as she held up her free hand.

"No. That's not…" She swallowed and blinked trying to get her words to come out of her mouth. She caught Missy's confused gaze and managed to point at the Time Lady, vaguely in the direction of her torso. "Don't wanna get… blood… on you," Clara managed to stutter out between heavy breathing. Missy huffed a laugh and rolled her eyes, though this time fondly, before giving Clara an uncharacteristic soft smile. The Time Lady opened her mouth to give a counter argument but was interrupted by the King's booming voice.

"Ser Clara!" he exclaimed, moving out of the still overjoyed crowd that had continued to close in on the pair, his arms outstretched and a wide grin on his face. Queen Sophie followed close behind, also sporting a large smile. "Congratulations young warrior. You have completed and passed the Proving with flying colours." The King clapped Clara on the back, Missy's eyes narrowing slightly when she saw pain flicker across her human's face, before he settled the limb on Clara's shoulder and gave it a squeeze. Clara pushed aside the discomfort and smiled at Eddard.

The crowd parted to their right as Aaren was led through by Vim who had one of the Prince's arms over his shoulder. He had a huge grin on his face despite the bloody lip and black eye. As the pair stopped in front of the King and Clara, Aaren stuck out his free left hand. Clara stared at it briefly before reaching out with her own free left hand. The Prince grabbed onto her forearm and Clara duplicated the action herself.

"That was a glorious bout Clara," Aaren said breathlessly, "I am glad to have fought such a warrior today."

Clara grinned back at the Prince and gave him a strong nod. Aaren returned the nod. He gave Clara's forearm a squeeze and a shake before he let go, being led away by the Silurian. As they headed off the King turned to address the crowd.

"Citizens! Tonight's feast will be named in this great warrior's honour! In the meantime we shall continue with this splendid day of celebration!" The crowd let out an ecstatic cheer complete with applause. As the crowd returned to their seats or allocated viewing area Eddard focused back on Clara. "As for you warrior, you may retire to a room I've had made up for you to rest up before tonight's banquet. Medical supplies have been provided, so you can tend to your injuries, as will appropriate attire for this evening later. Baldo will take you and Lady Missy there now." The King beckoned over the bull that had escorted them earlier. "You did fight well today Ser Clara. Thank you for your show on this special day. Now rest up. I expect to see some dancing from you tonight."

Eddard gave one last smile and a squeeze to Clara's shoulder before he headed back to his seat. The Queen gave Clara a nod and smile of her own before joining her husband. Baldo moved forward and held a hand out as if to help Clara. However Missy moved up to Clara's side and swatted the bull's hand away, giving him an icy glare and slight bare of her teeth, clearly still not forgiving him for the shove he had given Clara earlier. Baldo shrank back and swallowed before he coughed and grumbled, beginning to walk slowly towards the castle doors.

Missy softly gripped Clara's arm and gently put it around her shoulder, pulling Clara into her side. The brunette tried to protest again with a soft whine and shake of her head, attempting to move away from Missy and stand on her own.

"Don't be silly poppet," Missy scolded lightly, moving her other hand to Clara's waist and mildly manhandling her into a better position so the human could put more weight onto the Time Lady. "Come on then puppy, let's get you cleaned up." Missy began to follow the bull leisurely while leading and supporting the limping and weary Clara.

---

Inside the castle, Baldo lead the two women to a wooden door that he opened for them. Missy guided Clara into the room, side eyeing the bull as they passed, who purposefully avoided her gaze and subtly leaned away from Clara as they went inside. He really didn't want to make the Time Lady mad if he could help it.

As they entered Missy took in the quarters they'd been gifted. It was rather spacious with the usual stone walls, hanging tapestries, rugs and a fireplace like she'd seen in most rooms. A large, double, four poster bed sat at the centre of the far wall. To their left was a couple of chairs and a small table by the fire place, Missy noting that Clara's leather jacket was draped over the back of one of the chairs. To their right was a wardrobe and dresser, on top of the latter lay the previously mentioned medical supplies.

Missy heard Baldo mumble something about 'bringing clothing later for the feast' and 'if you need anything you can call', she wasn't really listening to him, before she heard him close the door. Missy sighed quietly. Readjusting her hold on Clara she steered the human over to the bed before depositing her gently on the end of it. Clara sat carefully on the mattress, trying to arrange herself into a comfortable position as painlessly as possible, eventually settling slightly hunched over with her hands resting on the sheets either side of her, eyes closed. Missy's hands hovered around Clara but once she'd ascertained the human wasn't going to fall over, she stood.

"Right." Missy clapped her hands together and looked around the room again, formulating a plan. She spotted a small stool by the dresser. She retrieved the stool and placed it in front of Clara, slightly to the right of the human. Missy then walked over to the chairs by the fire, removing her purple jacket and draping it next to Clara's leather one. She rolled up her shirt sleeves before grabbing the small table, bringing it over and placing it on the rug next to the stool.

The Time Lady then marched over to the dresser and examined the medical supplies more closely. Some bandages and some gauze. A knife, a thin needle and some thread. A cotton cloth and a small basin warm water. Standard it seemed but still fairly medieval. Missy sighed again. She'd just have to make do. She moved the cloth and basin over to the table before she finally sat down on the stool.

Missy moved the stool closer to Clara, making sure her knee bumped into Clara's so the human knew she was there and wouldn't get a fright. Clara opened her eyes when she felt the light knock of their knees and looked up at Missy.

"Let's get started then, eh puppy?" Missy reached out towards Clara's face and gently began to prod around the human's nose, not caring about the still sticky blood and bruising. Despite Missy's careful touch, Clara still hissed. Missy clicked her tongue. "Yep, definitely broken." The Time Lady sighed in fake irritation. "You will play with the bigger dogs poppet. I'm going to have to set this." Clara's eyes widened.

"Wait. You're going to do it!?" The human's voice was muffled slightly by Missy's hands.

"Who else? Would you rather I get one of those brutes instead?" Clara frowned and averted her gaze which gave Missy her answer. "I thought not." Missy positioned her hands delicately around Clara's nose preparing to push the bone back where it should be, her thumbs on the bridge near the break while her fingers lightly gripping the sides of Clara's head. "On the count of three then poppet. One…"

Missy suddenly moved her hands deftly, pressing them forward, quickly and firm, against Clara's nose. There was a loud crack. Missy swiftly removed her hands from Clara's face, holding them up as if surrendering, just as Clara brought her own up to cup around her nose, the act stifling the cry of pain that flew out of her mouth. Clara bent forward, pressing her forehead to her knees as she moaned.

"There we are. All better." Missy stood and made her way over to her jacket. As she rummaged in the very deep pockets she heard Clara mumble what sounded like 'you didn't count to three' and a few choice curse words. Missy smirked. "Language there sailor," she teased, positive she heard Clara growl in response, "It's back in place now isn't it? Honestly stop being such a baby, puppy."

Missy shouted in triumph as she finally closed her fingers around the object she'd been searching for. She pulled her hand out of the pocket of her jacket and strode back over to her human, who was still curled over rocking slightly. Missy stood over Clara and placed a hand on the back of her head. The Time Lady tugged slightly on the hair under her palm to get the other brunette to lift her head. Clara sat back up slowly, leaving her bloody hands in her lap, and glared up at the other woman, opening her mouth to speak.

"Take this," Missy said, using the fortune of Clara's open mouth to pop the small white pill she'd hunted for in. Clara closed her mouth in shock and Missy once again took the opportunity given and placed her palm solidly over the human's blood covered maw to force her to swallow. Clara did so and gagged at the horrid taste as soon as Missy removed her hand.

"What was that?" Clara asked, coughing and spluttering, as Missy moved to the basin, dipping the cloth in the warm water.

"Handy little thing from the Space Pharmacy just off the Milky Way. Stops any unnecessary swelling. So at least your nose won't blow up like an orange. Unfortunately it doesn't have much in terms of painkiller in it. It'll take the worst away but you're still gonna ache at the very least." Missy lifted the cloth out of the water and proceeded to ring it out, shaking little droplets of water back into the basin. She paused and looked thoughtful for a second. "Although I hope I didn't get it mixed up with the rat poison in the same pocket." Behind her Clara blanched, eyes widening. Missy just shrugged, oblivious to her human's reaction, and stood, returning to Clara, cloth in hand.

Missy sat back on the stool and lightly placed her free left hand on one of Clara's knees, before she brought the damp cloth up to the human's face and began to tenderly wipe away at the blood. Clara scrunched up her face on instinct, grimacing as the move caused dull pain to shoot through her. Eventually Clara's face relaxed as the warmth of the cloth soothed her skin and began to wipe away the unpleasant grime from her features. She attempted to ignore the stinging from the cut on the bridge of her nose every time the cloth glance over it.

After a minute Clara's brow furrowed slightly in confusion. It was strange for Missy to be so caring. If it wasn't for her jibes and quips she would have thought something was seriously wrong.

Once Clara's face was free of blood and spots of dirt Missy pulled back and examined her handiwork. Clara opened her eyes and ended up tilting her head slightly, silently questioning Missy if all was well now. Missy caught the action and supressed a snicker, instead locking gazes with Clara and smiling.

"There we go. All nice and clean." Missy went back to the basin and cleaned the cloth. "Though we will have to get you in a proper bath at some point puppy." Missy glance back at Clara and gave the human an exaggerated wink, turning around to ring the cloth out again, missing Clara's blush that was, thankfully for the human, mostly hidden under the bruising. Missy spun back around and handed the cloth back to Clara. "For your hands poppet," she said, answering Clara's unasked question, before pointing at Clara's right hand, the knuckles of which were still covered in blood. Clara blinked before starting to carefully wash off the dried blood from both hands, while Missy went to the dresser to collect the bandages and gauze, bringing them to the table, moving the basin to the floor.

"Right," Missy said, turning back to Clara with her hands on her hips, "Let's take a look at that leg first shall we." Clara looked up from the cloth and glanced at Missy, who was staring at the other brunette, is if waiting for her to do something. Clara frowned. Missy tapped her fingers against her dress growing more impatient that her human wasn't catching on. "Well come on then puppy. Trousers off." Clara paled instantly.

"No. No absolutely not." Clara shook her head vehemently to accentuate her point. "There is no way in hell I'm taking my trousers off in front of you."

"Really poppet. You'd rather bleed to death or get an infection just because you're embarrassed?" Missy gave Clara a teasing smile. "Or are you worried you won't be able to control yourself with me if you do?" Clara glared at the Time Lady but Missy could see the tips of the human's ears turn pink. She smirked, victory glinting briefly in her eye.

"Missy."

"Oh fine, fine, very well," Missy sighed, throwing up her hands, "You human's and your modesty. Keep your trousers on, we'll do it the hard way." Missy made her way back over to the dresser and grabbed the knife, turning back to Clara and holding the blade towards the human. Clara's eyes fixated on the weapon that glinted in the firelight, body already leaning back and fear pooling in her gut.

"Missy wait," Clara said, panic creeping its way into her voice as she held a hand up as if to ward off the Time Lady, "You don't have to-"

"Oh don't be silly poppet," Missy interrupted, "Do you really think after everything that's happened today and what I've done for you so far that I'd really kill you now?" Clara raised an eyebrow. Missy blinked, mouth open slightly. "Well alright, true, I might. But I'm not. " Missy exhaled exasperatedly and walked slowly towards Clara, making sure to keep the blade pointed at the floor. "Despite our… differences, in the past you really impressed me today and it just wouldn't sit right to kill you after that display out there. It was rather…" Missy looked thoughtful and, deliberately, licked her bottom lip. She looked back at Clara with a leer. "Exciting." Clara looked down at the cloth still in her hands trying to hide her further blush. "And besides what fun would it be to kill you when you're broken and weak. Not fun at all is what."

Missy made it to Clara and bent down to her knees in front of the young woman. She reached out and took the cloth from Clara's grasp and laid it on the stool next to them. She lifted the knife and then paused, glancing at Clara.

"Now hold still."

Once Clara had nodded Missy moved forward with the knife and carefully slipped the blade between the fabric of Clara's jeans and her skin. Clara grimaced as Missy began to peel the blood stained material away from flesh before cutting around Clara's thigh. After Missy had made it all the way around she pulled the now ruined fabric away from the wound and over Clara's knee, leaving it there, and then folding the other edge of the frayed material up, finally exposing the gash fully to Missy's gaze. The Time Lady reached over and grabbed the still damp cloth, wiping away both the dried and still oozing blood to see the injury better. Missy studied it for a moment before her face morphed into one of displeasure.

"It's definitely going to need stiches. You really have to do everything the hard way puppy." Missy stood back up and went to retrieve the needle and thread. She brought them back over and began to try and thread the needle.

"Wait, you're going to do that to?" Missy rolled her eyes.

"There's no one better in this whole place poppet. You're going to have to accept that." Missy continued to fiddle with the needle. "Your options are me, someone with at least a vague amount of medical knowledge and a delicate hand when I want. Or one of a bunch of thugs, who are probably all paws and hooves, and would be no help in this situation." Missy didn't even both looking at Clara, instead smiling as she succeeded with the needle. "Besides I should be the only one to hurt my puppy. Bad enough that oaf already stepped on my role today."

Missy knelt back down in front of Clara, wiping away a few more thin rivulets of blood that had seeped out of the wound, and leant forward with the needle poised delicately in her fingers towards one end of the cut. She gently pressed the two edges of the gash together, noting Clara's faint and sharp intake of breath, before hesitating and looking up at the human who was leaning back slightly on her hands to give Missy better access to the injury.

"I know you're smart puppy but I'll say it again. Hold still."

Missy smoothly inserted the needle into Clara's skin, stopping for a moment as Clara tensed before continuing forward and beginning to slowly stitch the wound together. Every so often Clara would wince or gasp, eventually prompting Missy to roll her eyes.

"Come now poppet, it's really not that bad."

"Easy for you to say. You're not the one with a needle in your leg." Clara sighed and looked up at the ceiling for a moment. "You know you could be a little nicer and ease off the little jibes when I just saved your life."

"Our lives were never in danger," Missy said nonchalantly as her eyes never strayed from her work. Clara's head snapped back down to stare incredulously at the top of Missy's head.

"I'm sorry what?" Missy finally looked up and met Clara's adorably confused expression, mouth agape.

"Our lives were never in danger poppet," Missy repeated, slowly to get the point across to which Clara scowled, "If it looked like you were to die, the King would have stopped the bout. Your wounds would have been tended to but then we would have been asked to leave the planet since you'd failed."

Missy went back to stitching the wound while Clara blinked and gaped in disbelief, mouth opening and closing a few times like a fish. After a few seconds a mask of anger fell over Clara's face.

"Are you kidding me!?" the human yelled, nearly shaking with rage as Missy just continued her work, "We were in no danger of dying and you didn't think to tell me!? I just fought a man a foot taller than me and twice my size, with a sword, garnering a few injuries along the way, all because I thought we could both die! I thought that I was responsible for your life Missy! You didn't think for one second to turn to me and say that 'hey by the way, you won't actually die'. Do you honestly not think of anyone else that you couldn't – OW!"

Clara cried out as the needle jabbed harshly into her flesh by pure accident. Missy looked up as Clara hissed, eyeing her puppy with annoyance.

"I said. Hold. Still." Clara glowered at Missy but kept her mouth shut. The Time Lady went back to stitching. "I didn't tell you because there wasn't any point. We had to go through with this fight and if you didn't think we were going to die, you wouldn't have performed nearly as well. And then we wouldn't be getting a giant party in our honour would we. You'd be bloody and beaten for no reason." Missy tutted. "Such a waste."

"I could have lost an arm Missy," Clara countered, recalling the fight.

"Easily fixed," Missy rebuttled, "I know a lovely seller from that market on Akhaten who would give me a great deal on a new arm. Maybe a metal one hmm?" Clara snarled in frustration before breathing out, body sagging in defeat, too tired to really fight Missy anymore on this. Silence hung over them for a brief moment before Clara frowned.

"I could have killed his son though," Clara said quietly. Missy's movement stuttered slightly but she picked back up easily and carried on still listening. "I didn't know that no one was going to die. I nearly killed his son. So why didn't Eddard stop the match?"

"I told him not to." Missy looked up to meet the human's stunned gaze.

"Why?"

"Because poppet, do you really think after all this time I wouldn't know if my puppy was about to murder someone." Missy beamed. "I've trained you far too well for that." Clara rolled her eyes but was stopped from a comeback when Missy continued. "There we go." Clara looked down to see Missy tying off the thread. The Time Lady leaned down and picked up the knife, cutting away the excess. "Not bad given it's been a while since I've had to sew something and the conditions aren't ideal," Missy commented admiring her work. Clara nodded in agreement as the older woman grabbed the cloth and gave one last wipe of the area.

Missy stood and deposited the cloth back into the basin of now dirty water. She placed the needle, thread and knife on the table and retrieved instead a patch of gauze and a strip of bandage. She returned to Clara and placed the piece of gauze over the now stitched wound before wrapping the bandage around Clara's thigh, tying it off once finished.

Missy got back to her feet and crossed her arms, studying the human before her for a moment. Clara blinked a few times, waiting, eyes wide and searching, before looking around as if that would help her see what she was apparently missing. She locked back on Missy when the Time Lady suddenly sighed, seemingly irritated at something Clara couldn't fathom, and dropped her arms.

"I'm sorry puppy, we just don't have time for your idiotic human hang ups."

Clara's eyes widened as Missy moved towards her rapidly, yelping as hands shot out and pushed at both her shoulders causing her to flop back onto the bed. She didn't have time to process or do anything other than squeak when Missy grabbed her shirt and ripped it open, scattering a few buttons across the room. Missy resisted the urge to straddle the poor girl just to see her reaction, instead sitting right next to her on the bed and beginning to probe at the wound on the human's stomach.

Long but thin laceration. Mostly on the right side of the stomach. Trailing a little over the middle and side, but not by much. Across the area about an inch above the belly button. Not deep at all. No stitches required.

It only took her a few seconds to examine the cut and, seeing it wasn't very serious, decided to use the extra time to study Clara's reactions. There was definitely a deep blush trying to hide under the bruising on the brunette's cheeks. Her eyes were fixed intendedly on a spot on the ceiling above. Her chest heaved with slightly shaky breathes, under a delicious black bra that Missy found positively tempting. Her puppy's body was wound tight and tense beyond belief, hands clutching fistfuls of the bedsheets with white knuckles, but Missy felt the muscles of the human's stomach quiver whenever her inspecting, though by this point it was much more like wandering, fingers brushed over them. A mischievous glint appeared in the Time Lady's eyes and she purposefully dragged a fingernail lightly over toned skin, savouring the shudder than ran through the brunette.

A sly grin crossed Missy's face (which Clara missed completely since she was still staring at the ceiling and refusing to look the Time Lady at all) before she licked her lips slightly and leaned back, hands moving away from the damaged area but not removing them from the human's skin completely.

"You're lucky poppet, just a superficial laceration. No stitching needed. But I will clean and dress it, just to be safe."

Missy went to stand, making sure to leave her hands touching some skin until the last possible second. She bypassed the now horribly filthy and probably cold basin of water, and instead went to her jacket, rooting around inside one of the pockets until she found a small packet of first aid kit grade antiseptic wipes. She then retrieved another piece of gauze and bandage, before returning to her spot right next to Clara, hip brushing hip as she sat back down.

She opened the packet and pulled the wipe out, tracing it gently around and over the wound, noting Clara's intake of breath, no doubt over the stinging sensation.

"You know that little stunt you pulled at the end, with the limp and all," Missy said, succumbing to one human hang up and trying small talk, "Was rather ingenious. Where did you learn that naughty little trick?" As Missy finished with the wipe she moved to dispose of it and retrieve the gauze, fingernails scratching softly over muscle and belly button. No doubt on purpose. Clara swallowed heavily, mouth getting even dryer if possible, hands clenching tighter at the bedsheets.

"I read it in a book," she managed to croak out, as Missy moved back with the gauze.

"I said my puppy was smart," Missy said with a grin, as she placed the gauze over the cut for padding. She then wound the bandage around the area to keep it in place, having to manoeuvre under then human who was still frozen in place. Once she was finished she patted the human's tummy and smiled. "There we are. All patched up and raring to go again. Nurse Missy to the rescue."

Clara laughed softly and Missy lighted at the sound for a moment.

"Nurse Ratched more like."

Missy rolled her eyes and leaned over to help her puppy up. One hand reached for wrist while the other went for shoulder, pulling gently to ease Clara back into a sitting position. Once upright Clara quickly moved to two halves of her shirt to cover herself, crossing her arms to keep them in place, which caused Missy to pout. Clara paused for a moment before opening her mouth again.

"Thank you though Missy," Clara said, looking down at her knees instead of the Time Lady still sitting oh so close next to her. "For doing this."

"Not a problem poppet. Don't get used to it." The Time Lady knew the last sentence was a lie but the human definitely didn't need to know that.

Missy's red painted lips turned up in a smirk when she saw the opportunity she'd been waiting so very long for appear before her eyes. She reached out with her right hand and tucked a wayward strand of hair behind the brunette's ear, letting her fingers follow the curve before resting her palm on the young woman's cheek.

"You know poppet," she said, voice low, with a hint of seduction. Her left hand moved up and placed a crooked finger under Clara's chin, gently forcing her puppy to look at her. "I believe I said something," Missy said slowly, as her left hand traced the line of the human's jaw before curling around the side of Clara's neck, fingers brushing against the hair at the brunette's nape, "About giving you a kiss when you came back."

Clara's brow furrowed slightly, but that was all she managed before Missy moved forward, capturing the younger brunette's lips with her own. Clara sat shocked and wide eyed for a moment, before instinct took over and she kissed Missy back, closing her eyes as her arms uncrossed, ripped shirt falling back open, and hands gripped at the fabric of Missy's blouse.

The kiss was strange in a way. Sweet. Nothing like how Clara thought it would be kissing Missy. And oh how she'd thought about it. After being pressed against the wall of a Dalek sewer on Skaro by the psychotic alien it was difficult to think of anything else at times. Different to expectations or not, the fact that she was currently being kissed by the Time Lady made her head swim.

Missy's left hand slowly moved from Clara's neck to trail feather light down, glancing lightly over a collar bone. Her palm glided over the younger woman's right breast, thumb running over hardening nipple, the Time Lady revelling in the barely audible whimper the action elicited. Her hand continued down, nails dragging across bandage and skin, feeling muscle move under her touch, before she ultimately reached the top of black jeans. Her fingers ducked under the fabric before skimming teasingly at the waistband of Clara's underwear.

Clara gasped, the action allowing her to break the kiss to breathe, leaning back slightly as her hands pushed faintly against Missy's chest to give the illusion of more room. Her breathing was coming fast and hard already as she tried to pull together some semblance of thought.

"Missy? What are you -"

"Hush poppet," Missy drawled, removing her right hand from Clara's cheek to place her index finger on lips, silencing the human's question. "I know you've wanted this. You can't hide that from me."

She smiled and ran her thumb over her puppy's lips before her hand slid around the brunette's head to bury it in a mass of hair. As she did this she took stock of the human's state. Slight sheen of sweat across her skin. Body subtly shaking. Eyes blown wide. Eyes that were gazing at the Time Lady's lips more than anything else. Her smile turned to a smirk as she seized a handful of hair and held it just tight enough to causing a stinging pain, hearing Clara give a soft gasp she was sure was of pleasure, using the hold to pull Clara closer so their lips brushed ever so slightly.

"Clara. My Clara. This is a time sensitive offer. So I suggest you be a good girl, and take the treat your Mistress is offering."

Silence bar heavy fell thick between the two.

Time seemed to stretch for an eternity.

Then Clara's walls broke and she surged forward the last few millimetres and kissed Missy forcefully, clutching the woman's blouse as if her life depended on it, using her grip to pull the Time Lady as close as she possibly could. Missy grinned triumphantly into the kiss before pushing back and taking control. The kiss turned quickly. One of pure lust. With a lot more teeth and tongue, and bordering on possessive. Much more like what Clara has expected. After a moment Missy's idle fingers finally, finally, broke the last barrier and dipped under the waistband.

Later that night at the celebration feast – Clara sporting a blue tunic with white sleeves and black breeches, accented with a red and gold sash around her waist that matched the King's, a gift from the royal family for her victory to show her favour and that this was for her; Missy clad in a stunning purple dress that seemed to make her float along the floor when she moved, with a beautiful blue corsage of exotic flowers to a match Clara's outfit – if anyone asked her why she was tired or limping slightly, she decided to just blame it on the duel from earlier. No sense in letting anyone privy to the real reason being a much different duel between her and Missy.

No. She'd keep that to herself.