~Versailles Palace~
"I have made my decision", Reinette said turning to the robots "and my decision is 'no', I shall not be going with you today. I have seen your world and I have no desire to set foot there again".
"We do not require your feet", one of the clockwork robots said.
Two robots come up on either side of Reinette and pushed her to her knees. They point their maiming instruments at her neck. The chief robot approaches her and also pointed his weapon at her. Reinette looked up at him. "You think I fear you, but I do not fear you even now. You are merely the nightmare of my childhood. The monster from under my bed. And if my nightmare can return to plague me, then rest assured" Reinette lowered her voice to a whisper "so will yours".
They all heard a sound of a horse whinnying and they looked around for it. Suddenly a white horse leapt through the large mirror. Reinette's mouth dropped open when she saw who was on the horse's back. It was the Doctor and Melanie! "Madame de Pompadour. You look younger every day", the Doctor said dismounting Arthur "stay up there", he said to Melanie who nodded.
"What the hell is going on?" Louis demanded.
"Oh. This is my lover, the King of France", Reinette said introducing him.
"Yeah? Well, I'm the Lord of Time", the Doctor approached the chief robot "and I'm here to fix the clock". He removed its mask and the robot pointed its blade at his throat.
"Forget it. It's over", the Doctor said glancing up at the broken mirror. There is only a brick wall behind it "Talk about seven year's bad luck. Try three thousand…"
Back on the ship Mickey and Rose looked at the broken time window. "What happened? Where did the time window go? How are they going to going to get back?" Mickey asked.
Rose didn't answer him. She just stared at the broken Time Window, a single tear rolls down her cheek.
~Versailles Palace~
The robot repeatedly tried to use its teleport but to no avail. It turns to the Doctor.
"The link with the ship is broken. No way back. You don't have the parts. How many ticks left in that clockwork heart, huh? A day? An hour? It's over. Accept that. I'm not winding you up", he said. The Doctor watched as the clockwork in the robot winded down and it goes dead. The other robots follow suit and slump forwards. One of them falls backwards causing the clockwork to smash all over the floor. The guests whisper among themselves as the Doctor helped Reinette to her feet.
"You all right?" he asked her.
"What's happened to them?" Reinette asked.
"They've stopped. They have no purpose now", the Doctor replied. He went over to Arthur and helped Melanie dismount. As she did so, she glanced at the brick wall where the mirror/time window used to be.
~spaceship~
"We can't fly the TARDIS without him. How's he going to get back?" Mickey questioned.
Rose still doesn't say anything. Her face was a mix of both anger and sadness. She was sad because she wasn't going to see the Doctor again and she was angry at Melanie for it. It was that damn girl's fault! If she hadn't have come with them…none of this would have happened. The Doctor would have found another way to save Reinette, she was sure of it.
~Versailles Palace: later~
The Doctor stood by the window, looking up at the stars. Melanie stood beside him, her gloved fingers intertwined with his bare ones. She glanced behind her when she heard someone approach. It was Reinette. She came to stand on the other side of the Doctor, a glass of wine in her hand. "You know all their names, don't you?" she asked.
"What's in a name? Names are just titles. Titles don't tell you anything", the Doctor said.
"I have often wished to see those stars a little closer", Reinette said gazing at the stars "Just as you have, I think".
"From time to time", the Doctor admitted.
"In saving me, you both trapped yourselves. Did you know that would happen?" Reinette asked.
"Mm. Pretty much", the Doctor replied.
"Yet, still you came", Reinette pointed out.
"I made you a promise Reinette, I wasn't about to break it", Melanie said.
"There were many doors between my world and yours", Reinette told them "Can you not use one of the others?"
The Doctor shook his head "When the mirror broke, the shock would have severed all the links with the ship. There'll be a few more broken mirrors and torn tapestries around here, I'm afraid, wherever there was a time window", he explained "I'll…I'll pay for any damage. Um…oh that's a thought, I'm going to need money. I was always a bit vague about money. Where do you get money?"
"Don't worry Doctor, we'll figure it out together", Melanie assured him "on the slow path".
The Doctor smiled "yeah", he said.
"It's a pity. I think I would've enjoyed the slow path", Reinette said after taking a sip of wine.
"Well, neither of us are going anywhere", the Doctor told her.
"Oh, aren't you?" Reinette set down her wine "take my hand". The Doctor took her hand and the blonde woman led him and Melanie to her room. "It's not a copy, it's the original. I had it moved here and was exact in every detail", she explained showing the pair the fireplace that she'd first seen them in all those years ago.
"When did you do this?" the Doctor asked slowly walking forward.
"Many years ago, in the hope that a door once opened, may someday open again. One never quite knows when one needs one's Doctor" they smile at each other "It appears undamaged. Do you think it will still work?"
"You broke the bond with the ship when you moved it, which means it was offline when the mirror broke. That's what saved it. But the link is basically physical, and it's still physically here" he tapped the woodwork "which might just mean, if I'm lucky...if I'm very, very, very, very, very, very lucky…" the Doctor beamed when he found the spot he was looking for. "Ah ha!"
"What?" Reinette asked, hoping that 'ah ha' was a good sign.
"Loose connection", the Doctor replied. He pulls out his sonic screwdriver and holds it to the loose connection "need to get a man in". The Doctor bangs on the fireplace and waits for it to rotate. "Wish us luck!"
"No…" the Doctor's grin fades from his face, but it's too late the fireplace had already started to revolve. As soon as they're on the other side, the Doctor and Melanie crouched down.
"Madame de Pompadour!" the Doctor called through the flames. Reinette crouched down on the other side "Still want to see those stars?"
"More than anything", Reinette replied honestly.
"Give us two minutes. Pack a bag!" the Doctor said.
"Am I going somewhere?" Reinette asked.
"Go to the window. Pick a star, any star", the Doctor replied. He and Melanie stood up and hurried out of the room.
"Why her? Why did they think they could repair the ship with the head of Madame de Pompadour?" Rose questioned as they entered the TARDIS after having a delighted reunion with the Time Lord. The blonde teen had pointedly ignored Melanie but Mickey was pleased to see that she was back.
"We'll probably never know. There was massive damage in the computer memory banks. It probably got confused. The TARDIS can close down the time windows now the robots are gone. Should stop it causing any more trouble" the Doctor taps on the controls acting like nothing was wrong.
"Are you all right?" Rose asked knowing that something was wrong.
"I'm always all right", the Doctor lied. Only Melanie knew that he was lying having been the only other person that spoke to King Louis who told them the bad news of Reinette's passing.
"Come on, Rose. It's time you showed me around the rest of this place", Mickey said getting the feeling that the Time Lord wants to be on his own. Rose was hesitant but she left with Mickey anyway.
Melanie went over to the Doctor and gave him a hug. The Time Lord closed his eyes grateful that he had someone who shared his loss, someone who could give him comfort when he needed it. "Doctor", Melanie said after a moment "there's something I need to tell you".
"What is it?" he asked.
Melanie moved back and tugged off one of her gloves. She held her hand out to the Doctor "I want to form the Bond", she said.
The Doctor looked from her face to her hand and back. Was this really happening? She'd come to a decision already? "Ellie are you sure? Because once we do this…"
"I know", Melanie gently cut in "I want to do this Doctor. Do you?"
"More than anything", the Doctor answered honestly.
"Then what are you waiting for?" Melanie asked. That was all the Doctor needed to reach out and take her hand. The moment their hands touched, they received a shock which made them gasp. The Time Lord stared wide eyed at Melanie as he felt the rush of warmth through his body. The Bond was being formed and it felt fantastic! While learning about the Bond, including how to form it, the Doctor couldn't help but imagine what it would feel like. But his imagination was nothing compared to the actual thing. Melanie stared back at the Doctor, feeling a warmth throughout her body.
Everything just seemed to fade away as the Doctor's brown eyes gazed into Melanie's. He could lose himself in those eyes of hers forever. Slowly Melanie moved forwards, resting her head against his chest and closed her eyes. The Doctor also closed his eyes, his other hand coming up to rest in the small of her back. For the first time in a very long time, he felt at peace.
