Clara woke up the next morning, or at least what seemed to be morning in the TARDIS, feeling surprisingly refreshed. She had been convinced that the Weeping Angels would plague her in her dreams, but apparently not.
She lay in bed for a few minutes after waking up, mulling over her "conversation" with the Doctor. So, he had freed the Master, along with a bunch of other nasty stuff; the Weeping Angels being one of them. And now they were probably chasing them. She wouldn't admit it completely, but those things terrified her. At least the Doctor was coming, chased by Time Lords or not.
She sat up as her stomach gave a loud rumble. Food. That's what she needed. She started to go to the kitchen, but somehow ended up in the control room instead thanks to the TARDIS' ever-changing corridors.
As she entered, she noticed the Master splayed out on one of the benches that were around the room. His limbs were spread out in every direction imaginable, but his face looked peaceful enough. He had not changed out of his clothes from the previous day, and his hair was a complete mess.
Clara stepped closer, trying to be quiet. She had never seen him sleep before, but it looked like he needed it, judging by the dark rings under his eyes. Next thing she knew, she was next to him. It was strange to see him so peaceful.
She started when he mumbled: "I still say you like what you see."
Clara left the room as fast as she could. She was embarrassed at being caught, and the Master's low chuckling behind her did not help.
Finally, she found the kitchen. The book she had been reading two days ago was still open to the same spot on the counter, though everything else had been put away. She figured that now would be a great time to practice making soufflés.
The Master looked up from the TARDIS console. He recognized that stench. Smoke.
Wait a minute.
Smoke?
He ran into the corridors of the TARDIS. "Clara?" He followed the acrid smell toward the kitchen, the smell growing stronger as he progressed. He burst into the kitchen and found himself staring at Clara, who was hitting at a smoking pan with a dish towel.
"Clara!" He shouted. "What are you doing?"
"What does it look like I'm doing?" She yelled back. "I'm trying to put this out!"
The Master ran to the fridge and jerked it open, grabbing the nearest item to hand: a pitcher of water. He threw it over the burning pan, successfully putting out the blaze with a loud sizzle. He turned to face Clara. "What was that?"
"I was trying to make a souffle!"
"A soufflé." The Master looked at her incredulously. "Why?"
"My mum always made the best soufflés, but then she died. I always wanted to try and make the perfect soufflé, but I never could quite get the hang of it."
The Master looked down at the charred, smoking mess in the pan. "Obviously."
Clara cocked her head. "I'd like to see you try."
He snorted. "I don't cook."
"Well then what do you eat?"
"I don't."
Clara smacked him lightly in the shoulder. "Oi! That's not good for you, Time Lord or not." She walked over to the fridge and started pulling ingredients out. "I'll make something for you."
The Master started to protest. "But I'm not—"
"I don't care!" Clara interrupted. "I doesn't matter if you're 'the lord and master' or whatever. Boys need to eat."
The Master smiled crookedly at her, amused with her no-nonsense attitude.
"So," Clara said as she started preparing the food. "Where are we?"
"We're in London. I parked over top of a time crack so the TARDIS can regain energy."
"We're sitting over a crack?"
"It's not visible to anyone, but it's there. It's sort of like a small tear in the universe. I would suggest going out, but I don't know if the Weeping Angels are coming after us or not."
"That's probably good." She turned around and handed him a plate with a sandwich. "Here."
The Master looked it over. "Is it better than your soufflés?"
Clara scoffed. "I hope so. Also, go take a shower, or something." She gestured to his dirty appearance. "You're absolutely filthy!"
"But I don't want to!" The Master whined, like a child.
"Too bad!" Clara grabbed him by his shoulders and pushed him out the door. "Don't let me see you again until you're clean!" She smiled as she heard his grumbling recede into the distance. She sighed, and picked up Pride and Prejudice. Might as well catch up on some reading while waiting for him.
Clara retreated to the library, as it was probably the calmest place in the TARDIS. She had sat there for a good while, wrapped up in her book.
She started as she heard a metallic bang echo through the library. Sitting up, she called out: "Master?"
No response. She waited for a few seconds, but the noise did not come again. She settled back down, thinking nothing of it.
BANG.
Clara stood up this time. "Master?" She laid her book on the table. It sounded like somebody was opening doors with great force. "Master, is that you?" She walked toward the door and opened it slowly, peering into the corridor.
BANG. The sound was closer this time.
She jumped back from the door. It probably wasn't the Master. She ran around the corner and hid, peering around the corner of a bookshelf at the door.
A metallic whirring was heard faintly at first, and it grew louder as something came closer. Clara's eyes widened as she saw the thing draw near to the door.
"FEMALE LIFE FORM DETECTED."
(A/N: For this, I'm using the Woman from the End Of Time, and that's the way I perceive her, as the Doctor's mother.)
"What?" The Doctor stepped back in shock. "What? How? I…"
The Woman stepped towards him, smiling, her eyes brimming with tears. "My Great Physician." They embraced.
"I never thought I'd see you again." The Doctor murmured, now holding her at arm's length. "How did you get here?"
"I escaped the time crack with the other Time Lords that came looking for you. Rassilon doesn't know that I left."
"Of course he doesn't." The Doctor muttered. "But how did you get here? I'm sitting in the middle of the Sahara Desert."
The Woman smiled. "I met someone who could help me." She turned aside to reveal a figure that the Doctor had not noticed before.
"Hello sweetie."
