Sorry this took a while. Class and Miss Quill have taken over my life, oops. Enjoy some teen!Charlie and lowkey horrified Twelve and Clara!
"Oh my god, you really are," Clara breathed. "You're Charlie."
Charlie, an older version who they definitely weren't supposed to be meeting, grinned at them. "The one and only."
For a moment, there was just silence. Then the Doctor surged forward and wrapped Charlie in a stiff, but bone-crushing hug. It was the first time Clara could remember him hugging anyone, but then he hadn't seen his daughter since he had spent a several seconds thinking that she was dead.
Charlie's arms had automatically gone around his waist, but she was as stiff as he was, alarm all over her face.
"Okay, I swear you didn't start doing the hugging thing until way later than this," Charlie said with great unease. "Is there something I'm missing? How old was I when you last saw me?"
"Eight," Clara said, as the Doctor finally let go of Charlie and ducked his head, embarrassed and moving to fiddle with the console.
Charlie's eyes widened. "Oh." She approached her father, and put her hand on his shoulder. "I'm...sorry about that, Dad."
"Wasn't your fault," he muttered.
"It wasn't anyone's fault, that doesn't mean it wasn't utterly shit," Charlie said. "Just remember whose kid I am. I always make it, just like you."
The Doctor nodded, his expression finally softening. His eyebrows went up as he regarded her, lingering on the unruly hair, leather jacket, and the Bowie shirt. "So, this is...you."
Charlie cocked an eyebrow and grinned. "Can't tell if that's disapproval or not."
He shrugged. "It's as good as anything." An odd look crossed his face. "What's in that bag of yours, by the way? It felt round. You got a ball in there?"
His daughter smiled, in a way that made her look so eerily like Missy that Clara nearly shivered. "Uh, best you don't know. Because….foreknowledge. You know."They frowned at her, and she ignored it and took the backpack off her back, setting it down near the door gingerly enough to only make them more curious as to its contents. "So, I don't suppose you could drop me back to Mum? As funny as this is, probably not best for me to hang around.
"No, but you could stay for a little while, surely," the Doctor said, "Just a day or so." When she looked unsure, he reached out and put his hand on her shoulder. "Please, kit, I get to see you so rarely, and after last time-"
The girl's eyes softened, and she swallowed hard. "Yeah. Okay."
"So how old are you now?" Clara asked her.
"Fifteen," Charlie said, while she took out a phone and checked it, barely glancing at the schoolteacher as she did so.
"And like all teenagers, attached to your phone," Clara said, grinning.
"Sounding dangerously close to wah wah technology bad there, Oswald," Charlie replied, smirking until whatever she saw on the phone screen made her smile more genuinely. She tapped out a reply before putting the phone back in her pocket. "So, what did you guys want to do? Rob a bank? Go for a picnic? Watch the final night of the original cast of Hamilton? I'm open to suggestions."
"Rob a lot of banks, do you?" Her father asked.
She grinned. "I know you've hit a few in your time."
"Fair point," Clara laughed. "But why do I get the feeling when it's more something you tend to do with Missy than with us?"
"First time for everything." Charlie's eyes lit up. "Can we go to a live chess tournament?"
Clara blinked. "Seriously? That's your idea of fun? Watching a chess match? I don't know if I'm disappointed or relieved."
"Uh, yeah, I get to eat Gamma tofu burritos while watching people get electrocuted for fucking up their chess strategy, it's great," Charlie said seriously.
"Live chess, Clara," the Doctor said with a sigh, shooting a disapproving look at his daughter.
"Oh," the human replied, alarmed by the thought. "Weird."
"Seriously, I really want one of those burritos, those guys back there were trying to starve me out," Charlie told them, "I haven't eaten in at least twenty hours. Besides, Clara's obviously never seen a live chess match. It'll be an experience. The tournament on Mona is pretty much continuous. Come on, Dad. Please?"
"You just told me you find it amusing to watch people get electrocuted," he said, frowning at her, "Do you expect me to support that pastime?"
"I only meant the gross arrogant ones," she said, shrugging, "I mostly like the food and the chess."
The Doctor regarded her curiously for a few moments, before giving her a funny smile of relief. "Well, thank goodness for that. You were sounding far too much like your mother." He didn't see Charlie wince a little as he turned back to the console, but Clara did. "If Clara's interested in seeing a chess match, I don't see why we couldn't go."
Charlie turned a hopeful look on Clara, who knew instantly she wouldn't be able to say no to her.
"Sure, it'll be...interesting, I guess," she said, "Chess with electricity, only sounds a little bit terrifying."
Clara wasn't sure what she had expected the live chess arena to look like, but the place was like an underground fighting pit. She half-expected to see battling robots or gladiators down on the ground instead of the large chess board and chairs that took up the center of the space.
The people wouldn't have looked out of place at an 80's punk concert (the human ones, at least). They leaned over the arena railings with their cups of mud-coloured alcohol and shouted various taunts at the duo currently playing.
It was dirty and sleazy and the fact that Charlie seemed completely at ease was incredibly disturbing.
"Masters, hey!" An alien who looked like a blowfish approached them, grinning at Charlie and bumping her fist. "It's been a while. Who are the stiffs?"
"Sid, this is my dad, the Doctor, and his friend Clara," Charlie told him, "Clara's never watched a match before. Thought we'd give her a taste."
"Wicked," Sid said, nodding with approval, "Well, enjoy!"
"Thanks," Clara replied.
As Sid moved off through the crowd, the Doctor glowered at his daughter. "You're not seriously using that ridiculous surname your mother came up with, are you?"
"Well, it's better than Smith," Charlie snorted. "Come on, let's find a burrito vendor so we can get a good spot."
Once the teenager had her coveted snack - which didn't look half disgusting in Clara's opinion - the trio found a place along the railing and looked down at the game. There was also a huge screen showing the camera's zoomed in view of the board.
"Ooh, they're both in trouble," Charlie said with a grin, before taking another bite of her burrito.
The Doctor frowned. "You sound far too pleased by that."
Charlie finished chewing and swallowed before replying. "I know them both personally, and they're dickheads. Like, seriously. So obnoxious. The one with the spikes is called Dex the Decimator."
"That's such a bad name," Clara said, wincing.
"So bad. He got really mad when I just laughed the first time he introduced himself to me."
"Do you really come here so often that you know everyone?" The Doctor asked. She just shrugged. "On your own? Or was this your mother's idea?"
"Hell no, she won't come within two parsecs of this place, she can't stand all the dirt," Charlie laughed, "It's my thing."
"You're fifteen. They shouldn't even let minors in here."
"They don't, we have to apply for a special pass to be allowed in without an adult. And we're not allowed the alcohol. Not that it's regulated super well, to be fair, but I don't drink anyway."
"That's good," Clara said, nudging her shoulder and smiling. "Plenty of time for that when you're older."
"Exactly," Charlie agreed, "Besides, my mum murders people for a living, teen rebellion for me tends to be stuff like helping old people cross streets."
"Do you actually do that?" Clara had to laugh.
"Well, yeah, they're old," Charlie said seriously, "I'm psychopath spawn, but I'm not heartless." Another odd laugh escaped Clara, but she sobered quickly as the psychopath spawn part set in. She could see the Doctor looking similarly uncomfortable.
"Don't say that," Clara said, biting her lip.
"Say what?" Charlie only seemed to half be listening, her eyes intent on the match.
"Psychopath spawn. It's not a nice thing to call yourself."
Charlie turned to look at her, something flashing through her eyes that Clara couldn't quite pinpoint. Confusion? Discomfort? It was gone in an instant and a moment later the girl was grinning and bumping her shoulder.
"It was just a joke, Oswald. Lighten up."
One of the men playing chess touched a particularly charged piece and spasmed violently. The crowd cheered, Charlie enthusiastically joining them. He still managed to move the piece, just, but sat back in a daze when he was done.
Five minutes later, he was escorted out on a stretcher and Dex the Decimator was raising his hands with triumph.
"As fun as that was to watch, I was really hoping to see Dex lose," Charlie said with a disappointed sigh. "Oh well."
"This game is barbaric," Clara said, horrified.
"I won one of these once," the Doctor said absently, "Well, actually I lost deliberately to save my opponent from certain death so he'd give me information on the religion hell bent on killing me, but same difference."
"What?" Charlie and Clara asked simultaneously.
Before he could elaborate, an announcer had stepped into the arena, a lanky masculine figure with two heads and pale yellow skin.
"And now, we have the first official match of our newest league member!" He told the crowd, who responded with a mix of cheers and boos. "Please welcome, Miss Charlie Masters!"
"Oh no," the Doctor said.
"Oh yes," Charlie laughed. "Why do you think I wanted you to come? Mum won't come here, I wanted you to be here for my first real match."
The Doctor took her by the shoulders and looked her right in the eye. "Charlie, live chess is dangerous, if you think I will just stand up here and watch you get electrocuted-"
"Dad, it's fine, I've practiced with Mum loads, I'm not in any danger," she told him calmly, "I'm good. Really good. You don't need to worry."
"The last time I saw you, you nearly died, Charlie," the Doctor insisted, "Please try and understand it from my perspective."
"I do," Charlie told him, "Which is why you need to see that I'm a big girl who can take care of herself. Now sit tight, and be ready to be proud." She untied her jacket from her waist and put it on as she headed for the lift that Dex the Decimator was just leaving.
The Doctor and Clara watched her go with dismay. "You don't have to do this to make me proud!" The Doctor shouted after her. She shook her head and smiled as the lift doors closed.
Charlie entered the arena at the same time a hulking red alien came in from the other side. They came to face each other, seizing each other up.
"Little Miss Masters," Charlie's opponent sneered. "It's not too late to back out."
"Oh, I was so hoping it would be you, Offy," Charlie told him with a grin. "I've always wondered what it would be like to see a Dathron cry."
"I feel sick," Clara said as the two players sat down at the reset board.
"She doesn't even have a gauntlet," the Doctor groaned, and Clara had to guess he meant the metal glove covering one of Offy's hands. "I can't do this, Clara. She's fifteen and she's nine, she can't expect me to be okay with this."
"Do you want to hold my hand?" Clara asked. She was only half joking. He snorted and turned his attention back to the match.
To their relief, something quickly became apparent. Charlie wasn't overconfident. She was good. Every single move had Offy looking angrier and more anxious, while Charlie was chewing a piece of bubblegum and popping it like two of her pieces weren't crackling with visible electricity.
"Mate in ten," the Doctor murmured after about fifteen minutes.
"To her?"
"Of course. She's got her mother's skill, that's for sure. And mine."
"And the modesty too, clearly." Clara frowned when he didn't reply and continued to watch the match with tension seizing his shoulders. "Doctor, if she's close to winning, why are the attack eyebrows ready to go?"
"Because she needs to use the kingside rook, and she's already moved it seven times," he told her.
"That's bad, isn't it?"
"Every piece on the board has a 0.1 amplitude, and starts at a quarter of a volt charge," the Doctor explained, "Every time you move it, the voltage quadruples. Which starts off fine, but gets worse every move. Twelve moves means more than four million volts. With that level of current, that voltage could kill anyone, even a Time Lord."
"Seven times is 4,096 volts," Clara said, making a face, "That sounds bad."
"Anything higher than 600 can cause burns."
"Oh god."
When it came to moving the rook as the Doctor had foreseen, Charlie hesitated, and took a deep breath. Her fingertips closed around the piece and her other hand clenched hard as she moved it across the board and let go of it as quickly as she could.
Offy stared at her with amazement as she smiled at him.
Charlie won the game five moves later. The Doctor relaxed mostly as the crowd cheered, at least until Charlie threw her hands up in the air to wave at the crowd, revealing the nasty burn on the hand she had used to move the rook.
"Wait, but-" Clara stared. "She barely flinched, and we can see that from here."
The Doctor's jaw set into a firm line. When Charlie came out of the elevator, beaming, Clara laid a hand on the Doctor's arm when she saw him open his mouth to reprimand her. He glanced at her, confused, and that was when Charlie reached them.
"Did you see that?" She asked, practically bouncing on her toes. "I demolished him, ha!" Her face fell slightly when she took in her father's expression. "Oh come on, seriously? This is about the hand, isn't it? It's fine-"
He grabbed her wrist, turning it until the burn was face up and visible. Clara winced. It was ugly and red and looked immensely painful.
"This is not fine, not for a fifteen year old, not for a father to have to see on his daughter," the Doctor said seriously.
She snatched her hand back. "I'm not a kid, okay, I can make my own dumb decisions. I've had worse than a dumb burn."
"Yeah, not helping," Clara said, frowning at her.
Charlie looked between them incredulously. "I don't know what I expected," she said, scowling, "I just wanted to share this with you guys, wanted you to see how good I was, but obviously I was deluding myself to think you'd ever be proud of me for anything I do."
She pushed past them back in the direction of the TARDIS.
"Wait, Charlie," the Doctor called after her, grabbing Clara's hand and pulling her through the crowd after the teenager. "Where are you going?"
"To fix up my hand, because I don't need you being stupid and overprotective, I can take care of myself," Charlie shouted, and they didn't catch up to her until they reached the TARDIS and followed her into the console room.
"Charlie, I'm your dad, worrying about you is my job," the Doctor told her, sighing.
"I get that, but couldn't you have waited five seconds and just told me well done first?" Charlie asked. "I wanted you to see. How good I was, that I can handle myself. I just...wanted you to be proud of me."
The Doctor's expression softened, and he reached out to take her cheek in his large hand. Her eyes watched him apprehensively. "Charlie, of course I'm proud of you. That was one hell of a match. It was incredible. But dad reflexes mean freaking out about burns first, compliments second."
Charlie smiled widely and hugged him. He took a moment to respond to it but tentatively hugged her back. Clara gave him a thumbs up while Charlie couldn't see.
"See, and now I'll let you fix my hand," Charlie said, grinning.
The three of them headed to the infirmary, where the Doctor dutifully took to cleaning the wound and patching it up. Charlie was back on her phone, texting until it started ringing and she picked up the phone.
"Hey!" She answered, more brightly than she had said anything all day. "Yeah, I won, just like I said I would!"
"Is that your mother?" The Doctor asked, and Charlie glanced at him and shook her head.
"Oh, that's just my dad - yes, he's real and I didn't just make him up. Hang on, I'll put you on speaker." She hit a button on the phone and held it in front of her. "Devan, say hi to Dad and Clara. Dad and Clara, say hi to Devan."
"Nice to make your acquaintance," a masculine voice said on the other end of the line.
"Same here," Clara said at the same time that the Doctor said, "And you."
"Now, tell me truthfully, did she get hurt during the match?" Devan asked. "She'll never tell me, she knows I worry."
"You and me both," the Doctor replied, snorting, "A rook burnt her hand, but it's going to heal just fine. I'm impressed, actually, zero squirming."
"I'm a good patient," Charlie said innocently, smiling at her father, "Which Devan knows, actually. They held my hand this one time that Mum had to dig a bullet out of my arm-"
"What?!" The Doctor and Clara exclaimed with horror.
She rolled her eyes. "It was only a little one, it was fine. Misunderstanding with some Nazis. You know how Mum gets. One minute she's flirting with them, the rest they're firing at us."
"I'm starting to think this body gave itself grey hair just to save time," the Doctor muttered.
"I'm fortunate to not have hair, in this instance, I think," Devan agreed, their voice a mix of exasperated and fond.
"You love me really," Charlie said into the phone, smiling widely.
"Yes, I do. And I miss you. Come see me when you've checked back in with your mother?"
"Of course. Look, I'll call you later, okay?"
"Okay. Hurry back." There was another word after that, an alien one that Clara didn't understand, but whatever it was had the Doctor's eyebrows skyrocketing.
"Love you."
"Love you too."
Charlie hung up, a sappy smile still on her face, before she looked up and saw her father's expression. "What?"
"He just called you-" He said the strange word.
"Yes."
"So the two of you are-"
"Yes," Charlie said, smirking.
"What?" Clara asked, thinking she could guess what they meant but not wanting to assume given that they were aliens.
"Charlie seems to have a-" The Doctor hesitated. "What's a gender neutral word for boyfriend?"
"There isn't one, because English is a stupid language obsessed with binaries," Charlie said with annoyance, rolling her eyes, "I sometimes go for datemate or cuddle buddy, but they both sound a bit ridiculous. Luckily, given that they have six different genders, Devan's language has the appropriate terminology so we usually just use that."
"Ah," the Doctor said, nodding.
"It's really hard to imagine you dating anyone," Clara admitted, "Mainly because you were eight the last time we saw you."
"I'm assuming your mother knows about this?" The Doctor asked.
"Yeah, they get along with her pretty well," Charlie said, "They gang up on me, actually. I'd almost say that Mum likes Devan too much."
"You said you're fifteen, now?"
"Yep."
"So, has your mother talked to you about, well-" The Doctor turned red when Charlie and Clara lifted their eyebrows at him. "You know. Stuff. Stuff that can happen when you're romantically involved with-"
"Oh my god," Charlie exclaimed, eyes widening and an expression that was a hybrid of horror and delight dawning on her face, "Dad, do not try and give me a sex talk. Please. For both our sakes."
"Well, it's important-"
"You don't even know what species Devan is," Charlie pointed out, and then laughed when he started trying to say something about 'basic rules that apply over most humanoids', "Dad. Dad. Dad! Stop. I'm asexual!"
He stopped dead. "Oh. Really?"
"So asexual," she said adamantly, "You don't need to worry about me, okay?" He nodded, and Clara couldn't contain her giggles. Charlie smirked. "Besides, Mum already gave me the sex talk. The several hundred species inclusive version, because you never know what might change with regeneration and I won't have my child unprepared."
The Doctor looked about as horrified as Clara felt. "I hate to think. It couldn't have waited a few years?"
"Apparently not," Charlie said glumly, "She tied me to a chair and put me in front of a projector screen to force me to listen because I kept trying to leave. There were demonstrations. It was incredibly scarring. And somewhat ironic that she was trying to tell me about safe sex when I exist."
Clara found herself laughing, even though really she felt a bit ill.
"Can we talk about something else now," the Doctor said, looking green, "I think that's enough talk about sex for the next twenty years."
"Agreed," Charlie said with distaste, "So, what do you think? Monopoly? Or Risk?"
To be continued next chapter! More shenanigans and lowkey concerning hints about Charlie's future tendencies to be dropped yet. I hope you guys have liked seeing her at a slightly older age, let me know what you thought!
-MayFairy :)