"Doctor?"
The Doctor looked up through the darkness, dropping the wires. "Clara?"
"Doctor, are you there?" She paused, like she was looking behind her. He wondered who else was with her. "The door's locked, and my key's not working."
"I was afraid of that," he muttered, feeling his way to the stairs. A faint glimmer of light shone from the door windows, but it was enough to guide him. The Doctor knew the layout of the place like the back of his hand. Better, actually.
He reached the door and pressed his hands to the glass. "Clara, the doors need power to unlock. It's not just the key that keeps them shut."
"Okay… You don't have power? Why?"
"I don't know exactly," he admitted, jaw set, "but I suspect that whoever led you in here has a pretty good idea."
Clara looked back at the King, who stood elegantly in the doorway. Her eyes were wide as she shook her head, protesting her innocence. "I had nothing to do with this, I swear."
"Your Majesty!" the Doctor exclaimed. "Oh, better and better. Go right to the top, I always say. Maybe. Nothing to do with it, eh? As if anyone below you has any autonomy. As if anyone on this planet has ever had a thought that didn't originate with you."
"You're being rude again," Clara cautioned, one hand still on the TARDIS door, but her thoughts were churning. In a society where thoughts could be shared immediately, where the ruler got her throne through mental manipulation… How much of anything she'd seen had been genuine? More than that, how much had been true?
"Clara, please believe me," the King said earnestly, stepping forward and placing a gentle hand on Clara's shoulder. "We're on the same side here, remember? My niece, your machine, it's all connected. We're all victims here."
That little girl… Clara could hardly remember her name. Rhaegan? Her powers stripped away by some mysterious power. Suddenly it felt very convenient.
"I need to get you inside here," the Doctor said, dashing to the console. "I'll try to divert whatever power we have left to trigger the lock mechanism. If-"
"No need, actually." He turned around to see Clara holding a bent bobby pin and wearing a nervous grin. "A lock without power is just a lock, I think."
"Oh. Well." Both bushy eyebrows went up. "Hairpins are highly underrated, apparently. Come on, come on."
Clara stepped inside, quickly shutting the door behind her and trying not to look back at Clarys behind her, one hand still outstretched. The TARDIS console, she noticed suddenly, was glowing slightly. "Hold on, I thought you didn't have any power."
He held a finger to his lips, beckoning her further inside and pointing to the door. "No power means no soundproofing."
"I wish you weren't so suspicious all the time," she said with a sigh.
"Being suspicious is why I'm still alive." The Doctor paused, glancing over his shoulder at her suspiciously. "What did she want to talk to you about anyway?"
One hand flew to her face. Clara tried to force the blush from her face. "Oh, nothing really," she said with an attempt at an easy grin. "Just girl stuff, basically."
The Doctor stared at her a moment longer, then turned away with a shrug. "And here's me thinking she was offering you a spot at her side and power over the entire planet. Ah well."
"So what's the situation?" Clara asked, happy to move the conversation along. "And really, because you've obviously got some power." She nodded towards the quietly blinking console.
"Only the tiniest bit, but the TARDIS is clever. She can recharge just so long as there's a little. We just have to fend them off until she does."
Clara stared. "Fend them off? Who's them?"
"Who do you think?" The Doctor held up the pair of pliers. "I'm not slicing bits of the TARDIS for my health. Clara, there's an entire planet out there with mind-controlling powers, and until the TARDIS can get powered up properly, we don't have any way to keep them out."
"Okay." She took a minute to process that. "Then we have to… what?"
In answer, the Doctor tossed aside the pliers and grabbed her hand, holding on tightly. "Don't let go," he instructed. "It'll make it harder for them to split us up."
"Split us up?" Clara repeated, eyes wide. "Why? Is that important?"
"It's their biggest strategy," he said, busily setting TARDIS controls with his free hand. "Stronger together means weaker alone. Now. Ground rules:" He turned to face her, expression serious. "Don't ever leave my sight, and always stay where you can see me. Don't leave the console room until we're off the planet. Anything you remember twice, ignore both ways. They can't erase memories you already have, but they can make you doubt them."
"Is that likely?" she asked, somewhat apprehensively.
"No idea." The Doctor started to go back to the controls, but stopped abruptly, turning back. "Remember, they don't know me like you do. All they have is the time we've spent there and the stories they've heard from the Time War."
"I thought they fought in the Time War. Couldn't some have seen you then?"
He shrugged. "Maybe. But that's a different face. Much grumpier. Nothing like I am now."
"Really?" Clara grinned in spite of the situation. "If you say so."
"Shut up. The point is, the memories they try to implant might not be very accurate. If you have to choose between two versions of events, pick the one that feels more like what I would do."
"I never know what you're going to do until you've done it."
"Make your best guess, then." The Doctor took off around the console, dragging Clara behind him. "I'm going to try to take off. Might have to close down some extra hallways and possibly the swimming pool, but we should have enough power by now."
Unless you're remembering something wrong, Clara thought, but she kept the thought to herself.
The Doctor peered at a dial, then nodded. "Ready? Might be rough one."
"Just do it," she said, glancing towards the door and gritting her teeth. Who knew how many Meanwhiles and Neverweres might be outside them at that very second?
"Right then. Three, two, one, go!" With his free arm, the Doctor grabbed the lever and yanked it down.
For a second, as the engines groaned and the TARDIS began to shake, it looked as though they just might make it. But then came a feeling like wheels spinning in mud, showers of sparks, and then a colossal jerk that knocked them both off their feet. Clara felt her head hit the floor and her hand slip out of the Doctor's, and then she stopped trying to feel anything at all.
A.N: Hi kids, I'm back. Apologies again for the delay. I do wish the Doctor would learn to stick to the plan and stop throwing unnecessary obstacles at himself. Everything would be much easier that way. Does that happen to you, that your characters refuse to go along with your plans? Ah well. We're back on track now. And I think he'll like the plan. Or actually, he really will not like the plan. But that's okay.
Thank you all so much for reading, and to those of you who read even when I don't update. I love to see my view graph not dropping to zero immediately after I post a new chapter, and I'm so glad I have a dedicated fan base that's willing to make that happen. Thanks to you so very much!
I will be traveling to see my dad's family for the holidays, so goodness knows when the next chapter will be up, but I am really excited to write it, so that's a motivator. And, of course, your reviews are highly motivating as well. You know that.
-Forever the Optimist
