A/N: Okay I just now finally watched the s10 finale and I need something to do in order to not go crazy so I'm gonna post fic and see if that helps.
Rough ages are as follows: Johan at 60, Clara at 41, Lena at 10, Astra and Tara at 8, Sterling at 4, and Maglina at 2. This also takes place partially in the setting of chapter five of the prompt fills.
Chapter Forty-Three: The Common Holiday
It was in the dead of summer, just after the twins' birthday, when a great heatwave descended down upon the City and Earldom of Gallifrey. Activity crawled to a halt as people of all walks of life attempted to stay comfortable. For many, it involved descending into cellars and continually fanning themselves, though for others, it was not as simple.
"Let us take a holiday," the Marchioness said one day over breakfast. They all were eating cold sandwiches for their meals, for the only thing warm anyone could stand was a cup of tea. "We can shut down the castle for a week and have only those who still wish to work manning it; that should give us and the staff a much-needed break."
"Where would we go though, dearest?" the Marquis wondered. "We cannot simply drop in on anyone without warning, and the heat is worse in the south."
"There is a place I have in-mind… one you showed me long ago, before Lena came into our lives," she replied. "I imagine it is cool at night, and there is plenty of shade there. Serdaressa Pond would love to know that her gift is not going to waste."
That caught the children's attention. All but Maglina stared at their parents with wide, curious eyes, knowing that the serdaressa she talked of was a rather particular one whose portrait hung in one of the corridors alongside one of her best friend—their lord grandfather.
"What did Serdaressa Pond gift you, Mama?" Astra asked excitedly.
"Yeah! I thought that she died before you married Papa!" Lena chimed in. "How can you have gotten something from her if she was already in the earth?"
"You are correct, starlet, but the gift from Serdaressa Pond is something I received when I was a young man, and since then I have shared it with your Mama," the Marquis explained. He then glanced over at his wife, who was feeding fruit to their youngest on her lap. "There is not a building around there for miles—where will we stay?"
"…under the moon and stars, or maybe a tent," she supposed. "We can explore the options and decide before luncheon."
"The children have their studies though…"
"…and Daniel would probably enjoy the time off with Martha and Oriana as much as we would with our family." There was no arguing it at this point; she had decided. "Leave in two days and be gone for a week's time? Will that be enough notice for the servants and anyone else that might be impacted by our up and leaving?"
"Yes… that sounds like it will suffice," he agreed. The Marquis saw the excitement in his children's eyes and his hearts swelled in joy. "Lessons for tomorrow are cancelled then, but only if you can behave for Sir Daniel and get your work done today."
"Yes, Papa!" his elder four all said at once. They were all filled to the brim with excitement as their tutor came to fetch them for the day.
They were going to take a family holiday.
Two days passed and early in the morning, when the sky was still pink-violet with twilight and the air warm from the previous day's sun, the Marquis and Marchioness woke their daughters and son to prepare them for the long road ahead. They all dressed in common clothes—rough-spun and undyed fabrics sewn into simple designs—and went down to the stables where a cart was waiting for them. The children nestled down on some blankets in the back for a nap whilst their parents sat in the front to drive the cart. A quick snap of the reins and a whistle from the Marquis's lips and they were on their way, navigating the waking Gallifreyan streets with considerable ease.
The hours passed and the cart moved steadily onwards. Eventually, the children all woke and watched the scenery go by with great curiosity. Where were they going? Would they enjoy their holiday? What sort of plans did Papa and Mama have for them? They watched farms and pastures roll by them, with midday bringing the change that made them curious.
"Noses in the cart—don't want them whipped off now," the Marquis announced. The children stared at their father, not understanding until he directed the horses to go off the road and onto a barely-there path that bounced them around the cart and sent low branches whooshing overhead. Eventually the path opened up onto a clearing, causing the Marquis to bring the horses to a halt.
"Is this our holidaying spot or are we just stopping for now?" Tara wondered.
"This is it," her father said. He helped his wife and children all out of the cart and led the little ones further into the glen. "Serdaressa Pond and your Grandmamma River would often come here to relax and spend time away from the city. When I was a young man, after it was only the serdaressa and me left, she brought me here so that someone would visit after she was gone. Since then I've shared it with your mama and now I share it with you."
The children observed the clearing they found themselves in. Thanks to the shade of the trees and the large hill they stood under, the air was much cooler there than in Gallifrey, where bricks and stone absorbed and let off heat day and night. The cliff carved out of the hillside had a gentle trickle of water that collected into a small pool and the grass was soft beneath their feet. There was something about the place that set it apart from the trees on the castle grounds, and none of them were entirely sure what.
"This was Grandmamma's secret place?" Sterling asked. He clung to his mother's skirts, which made her stroke his hair and chuckle.
"Yes, it was," she replied. "According to Papa, she found it while exploring for her studies. She was a great scholar and archaeologist—did you know that?"
"No," the little boy muttered. He watched his older sisters walk around in order to investigate their new surroundings. "Was Grandmamma River nice?"
"That I do not know," the Marchioness said sadly. She balanced Maglina on her hip with one arm and used her free one to urge her son forwards. He hugged his toy shan leopard and whimpered slightly, unsure of the place.
"Come on, Sterling!" Astra called from underneath a tree. "I found some neat bugs!"
Sterling glanced up at his mama, wanting permission before wandering off. She placed Maglina down on the grass next to him and put her hand in his, nodding in approval. The two siblings then made their way over to Astra, which allowed the Marchioness to begin helping her husband unpack the cart.
"I think this was a good idea," he said, handing her a bundle of blankets. He climbed into the back and began passing her a couple baskets with food, which they would need to secure high in a tree before nightfall brought scavengers to their holiday camp. "The children are having fun—just look at them." While Astra was showing Sterling and Maglina some bugs, Tara was attempting to climb a tree and Lena sat next to the pond, staring down into the water below.
"We have more to give them than titles and riches," she said astutely. "This is the sort of riches smallfolk receive, that they need to know of in order to understand better the ones they will one day govern, and it is worth more than even what His Highness the Prince has in the royal palace."
"Wise words from my most sage and trusted counsel," he nodded. He hopped down and kissed her gently. One hand found her cheek and the other found her hip, caressing his wife in dizzying devotion.
"Mama! Papa! Look at me!" Tara shouted, distracting her parents from one another. She was high up in a tree, giggling at her achievement, especially since she was still in a dress.
"Oh, good, you can help me then," the Marquis laughed. He pulled a rope from the back of the cart and tossed one end up to his middle daughter. "Wind that around the branch once, will you?"
"Sure!"
"Now stay up there until I say so."
He gave his wife a grin as they began to sort through the baskets—they were going to have fun taking their time.
That night, with the horses tied to a nearby tree to feed and rest, and after a fire was made where they heated their dinner, the Marquis and Marchioness put their children to bed. They had used poles and a tarp to cover the cart, turning it into a makeshift shelter. The young ones laid out soft blankets over the wooden floor and snuggled together for warmth in the cool forest air.
"Good night, my starlets," the Marquis hummed lowly as he gave his children kisses goodnight. "Tomorrow will be a fun day, so rest well." A bird rustled a tree branch above them and Maglina sat up straight, pointing dramatically.
"Owl!" she gasped.
"Yes, a guardian to watch over my dearest owlets," her father chuckled. He allowed her an extra kiss to the cheek and bid his sleepy children all goodnight before returning to his wife's side next to the fire.
"Are they all down?" she asked quietly.
"Yes," he said. He settled himself on the yellow-and-black tartan blanket and put an arm around her waist. "How long do you think it will be until they miss Gallifrey's walls?"
"If they have any of your mother's wanderlust in them, then never," she smirked. The Marchioness leaned into her husband and watched the fire before them crackle and pop steadily. "Thank you for agreeing to this."
"Thank you for suggesting it." He nuzzled his whiskers against her neck, eliciting a happy gasp. They then laid down, gazing up at the red night sky—marveling at the rainbow of dust swirling in the heavens and the mighty cosmos they named their issue after.
"Johan…?"
"Yes, Clara…?"
"We should take more holidays like this." She rested her head in the hollow of his shoulder, listening to his heart. "A tour of Kasterborous with the children would be lovely. Don't you agree?"
"I wish I could," he frowned. He kissed the top of her head and held her close, his gaze fixed upon the stars. "There is a reason my sword is in the cart and a pistol and knife in my boots, despite liking none of these things."
"…because you are paranoid?"
"No; it is because I am Lord Marquis, you are Lady Marchioness, and we not only have the Lady Earlessa, but her heirs as well." A hand rested on his chest and he took in his own to kiss. "The moon and stars above us are nothing compared to my wife and children, and I don't want any sort of accident to befall us."
"Paranoid," she decided. Curling into his side, she took in his scent—must from the road, sweat, and campfire—and smiled into his shirt. "Let us be brave, Johan. If we are not brave, then what are we?"
"I… I don't know."
"If we are not brave, then we are little better than the courtiers who hide themselves from the governed high in their towers, the ones who marry their children off before they are weaned from the breast, and act as though being sired by a titled man automatically makes them more worthy of greatness than those who perform truly heroic deeds." She shifted and propped herself up on an elbow, staring down at him with a curtain of her brown hair shielding them from the fire. "We may have been born into the castes and ceremony, but we are not so foolish as to think they are good company. The brave need not rely on such things."
"Even the brave are cut down by those they love," he replied, voice low and somber. "Your dear mother was all those years ago, and I do not want to know if it was merely a fluke or the start of a genetic trend."
"You sound like Papa, I swear," she sighed. She bent to kiss him softly, lips brushing against his and scraping his whiskers. "Stop running, you silly man—you're the Doctor."
"…as are you, my beloved." They laid there kissing and petting, enjoying the sounds of the quiet wood, until a familiar squeak caught their attention. Maglina had climbed out of the cart and made her way over to them, rubbing her eyes and sniffling in order to hold back tears.
"Oh, there now starlet… did you have a bad dream?" the Marquis crooned. His youngest nodded and climbed over him, nestling herself between her parents. "Did you know that, Clara? Our Maglina had a bad dream."
"Poor child," she tutted. The Marchioness stroked the girl's hair and laid down so that her husband could hold the both of them properly. "You can stay with Mama and Papa for tonight, alright?" A nod into her chest in reply. "Afterwards, you have to sleep with your brother and sisters; is that clear?" Another nod and their daughter clung to them, putting a damper on any more activities for the adults that evening.
"Goodnight, my moon and stars," the Marquis murmured in the ceremonial tongue. "You are good, you are loved, and you most certainly are under my protection. Sleep well."
…and they did.