Chapter 5

The following night Clara was haunted by dreams. She dreamt about aliens that looked almost like a human being except they had tiny heads and cords woven around their bodies. There was a liquid flowing in those cords. They had taken her captive and things were being hooked to her head. There was no Doctor to save her. Not this time. She was all alone and she was scared.

The next thing she knew she was being carried and golden light surrounded her head. Then everything went black.

She was woken up by the ring of the doorbell. Clara only now realized she had fallen asleep in her clothes. Well, at least she didn't have to get dressed to answer the door.

"Good morning," Henry said cheerfully until he took a good long look at her, "Clara is everything okay?"

"Why?"

"You look like hell," he said.

Clara looked over to the mirror and yes, Henry was right. The aftermath of her last adventure with the Doctor was still visible on her face. She had dark shadows under her eyes. Oh, her eyes, they still felt like they were burning. She closed them but didn't see the anticipated blackness. Instead there was again the golden glow she had seen in her dream.

"Clara?"

"I'm not feeling so well. I think I'm coming down with a migraine," she said and felt like it was true.

"That's too bad. I was thinking we start celebrating the holidays with a little breakfast."

"Oh, come in already. I could use some coffee. Do you mind if I take a shower first?"

"Not at all. I'll set the table," Henry said and Clara walked off to the bathroom.

Clara felt no better when the hot water rained down on her head. She could still see the golden glow when she closed her eyes. She also noticed that there were things in her head, things she couldn't place. They looked similar to the engravings that were all over the TARDIS, Gallifreyish symbols, but how they ended up in her head Clara didn't know.

Time Lord trick, the Doctor had said. It's got to be related to that. But whatever he had done to save her, her body was not entirely okay with it. She suddenly felt nauseous.

She wished the Doctor was here now. Not the madman who had thrown her out of the TARDIS last night but the calm part of his odd personality that she had talked to before they had gone on this adventure. She wanted to know what Time Lord trick he had used on her and what the possible side effects could be.

Clara stepped outside the shower and slipped into her bathrobe. She was about to reach for the blow dryer when her arm suddenly started to feel weird. There was a prickling all over her body and the room began to move and merge into golden light. Right before she fainted she could've sworn she saw the Doctor's face leaning over her.

Waking up was hard. Every time Clara thought she was back she slipped back into the glow. It felt like her whole body was on fire, fighting something that just did not belong there. Where was the Doctor?

"Doctor," she whispered, although she was not sure whether she actually said it or it was only imaginary.

"I told you we need to call an ambulance," she heard a male voice say. Henry. Yes.

"Oh shut up," another male voice said, "Why are you still here, anyway? I told you I'd take care of her."

"Doctor?" Clara asked weakly. Was it really him? She wasn't sure. It could still be a dream. The she finally managed to open her eyes.

Henry was sitting on her bed, right next to her, holding her hand. The Doctor was sitting at safe distance on a chair, staring at the whole scenario. Looking rather cross.

"Hi Clara," Henry said softly as he realized she had woken up, "How are you feeling."

"Thirsty," she replied, only now realizing this.

"Well, you've heard the girl. Go make her some tea," she heard the Doctor say angrily from out of his corner.

Henry did not protest. He left for the kitchen.

"Doctor," Clara said when they were alone, "What did you do to me?"

"I told you. It was a Time Lord trick. These are the side effects. They will go away," he explained without looking at her, "What do you remember?"

"Barely anything. I remember light. It's burning."

"That is regeneration energy. I put some of it in your head, but you're human. Takes a while to process it. Still better than being a slave though."

"But I won't change my face, will I?" Clara suddenly thought about that.

"No, you're still only human. That's why I should never have left you. I'm sorry," the Doctor said although it did not really sound like he meant it. It was like he was mad about something that had happened, but it wasn't her fault, right?

"How?"

"How what?"

"Regeneration energy. My head. How?" Clara asked.

The Doctor stood up abruptly and looked even madder and more uncomfortable than ever. "Well, since boyfriend is here and you are awake again I see no more of hanging around any further. See you next Wednesday."

"Nope, you're not pulling the see-you-next-Wednesday on me again," Clara jumped out of bed and regretted it immediately. She wasn't feeling well enough for this, she knew it. "Something's happened and you're not telling me. This new you is really starting to tick me off."

The Doctor who was already almost out of her bedroom door turned around and looked in her direction angrily. Clara wished he would just look at her, not stare right past her and out of the window.

"You know what? Maybe this new me is really ticked off by you, too," the Doctor replied.

"Okay, then tell me what I did to make you mad. Go on, tell me," she was being snippy but she didn't care, "Are you sure you're not mad at yourself?"

The Doctor laughed. "And why exactly should I be mad at myself?"

"I don't know, but let me think for a second. Mhhh, grey hair, wrinkles and I don't know what it looks like under those new pants of yours – but maybe you're mad about that."

The Doctor had started pacing while she yelled at him but at her last comment he walked up to her, waving his hand, saying: "Ohhh, clever Clara, but I have no problem with my new look at all."

He was about to turn away from her again but stopped mid-spin to face her. "And just so you know. What's underneath my pants is absolutely no reason to be mad."

"Uhm, guys?" they both heard a voice from outside the bedroom, "I have no idea what you're both fighting about but the tea is done and I don't really want to listen to this any further."

Clara shot another threatening look at the Doctor before she walked past him to open the door for Henry.

"I'm sorry you had to listen to this. My uncle can be a bit of a prick. Oh wait, I'm understating here," Clara said.

"And I better go before your boyfriend decides to leave you over how you're treating dear family members," the Doctor said, walked past them both and slammed the front door.