Tooth and Claw
Torchwood Estate, Scotland
1879
They were on a mission. By god, they were on a mission and they will succeed, no matter who stands in their way. A carriage, drawn by horses and led by seven monks, one in the lead and all cloaked in brown robes, grasping wooden staffs, carried the object of their worship across the fields of Scotland, towards their destination: The Torchwood Estate, the house of Sir Robert and Lady Isobel MacLeish. The object of their worship? A rusty steel cage covered with a large brown canvas and containing a silent man covered in a black robe. Despite that, every now and then, he growled with impatience, that caused even the leader to shudder nervously before returning to his steeled gaze. They arrived at the house, moving through the back entrances to greet the workers of the house. The head, Steward Alastair, shook his head with a slight amount of exasperation as the lead monk, Father Angelo, drew back his hood.
"Come now, Father. You should know better. You're not welcome here and especially not today. I've got no time to start old arguments."
Father Angelo squinted his eyes, surveying every detail of the scene as quickly as he could. One man and only five accomplices, untrained and barely armed, only with wooden clubs. They will not win this, so they will only get one chance. He then refocused his gaze upon Alastair. "We want only one thing."
Alastair shrugged. "And what would that be?"
"This house."
Alastair scoffed. "You want the house?"
"We will take the house." Father Angelo warned.
"Would you like my wife while you're at it?" Alastair asked sarcastically.
Father Angelo clenched his jaw in irritation. "If you won't stand aside, then we'll take it by force."
"By what power? "The Hand of God"?"
That drew his final straw. "No. The fist of man." Grasping his staff tight, he smacked it into Alastair's ribs, causing him to buckle to his knees with a gasp. As the man glanced back up, Father Angelo smacked his staff hard across Alastair's nose, sending the man's vision into a daze before, as he stepped back and twirled his staff into position again, kicked Alastair hard in the chest, sending the man skidding across to his group, unconscious and curled on the ground beneath their feet. Father Angelo scowled at them, clicking his neck as the men grasped their nearby improvised weapons in fear. "No flair. Make it quick." He growled, and he clicked his fingers. Each of his acolytes wrenched off their brown cloaks, revealing orange robes underneath. They grasped their staffs and rushed at the men, three of them flipping in the air over the men to keep them surrounded. For the men, it became a flurry of trying to focus on which acolyte was attacking them. The acolytes, in the words of their master, made it quick with successive strikes to their ribs and heads, keeping them dazed and out of breath before they all crashed to the ground, unconscious and broken. "Get the men and the maids in the dungeon. Now!" He ordered, and the acolytes rushed into the house while he went to the cage, pulling back the canvas slightly to see the man inside giving him a small smile of approval, which made him relax in relief. Screams of terror and fright from the women assaulted his ears for a few moments, which then became drowned in the walls of the dungeon. Even Sir Robert's office was silent, which he guessed that an acolyte quickly moved into the room to silence the man, thus speeding the mission even faster to their victory. He pulled back the canvas over the cage as the acolytes came back into the courtyard, hauling the unconscious men over their shoulders and into the dungeon.
Alastair shot up with a groan, finding himself strung and clasped in irons on the ground inside the hay-strewn, dark, and murky dungeon of the house, along with every single worker, maid and… "Milady?" He said softly, seeing Lady Isobel MacLeish, a brunette woman in a magenta dress and terror in her eyes on the floor beside him, clutching at his arm nervously. At once, the hatch gate to the cell opened, and the monks drew inside the large cage they brought with them on the carriage. "In the name of heaven." He muttered. Father Angelo stepped slowly inside, motioning for the monks to stand back from the cage, gazing at it nervously. "What's in there?" Alastair asked but Father Angelo ignored him. "What is it? What's under the canvas?" He ignored him again. "Father answer me, what's in there?" He demanded.
Father Angelo looked back at them, surprising him with his fearful eyes. "May God forgive me." He said and without warning, he threw back the canvas, revealing the man inside to everyone's horrified eyes, Lady Isobel and the maids all screaming in terror.
"Shh!" The man hissed, and at once, they silenced, still frightened of him. "Keep quiet, and you may live." He said, his voice low yet it carried Father Angelo's authority with such ease, it even made said person shiver slightly. "Keep quiet." The man repeated, and he closed his eyes, motioning for the monks to leave. "Keep quiet." He repeated in a whisper before his breathing steadied, entering a state of pure, peaceful calmness as Father Angelo closed the doors to the dungeon and locked them shut.
The Doctor tinkered about with the TARDIS console, using the sonic to repair a small device removed as they travelled through the Time Vortex, or should we say, cruised through. It was starting to wear his patience a bit, but he did promise Clara to wait until she and Rose had changed for their next trip. And, speak of the devil, the two reappeared from the hallway, rushing out with giggling faces that made him puzzled. "What?" He asked as he put the device back into the console and the two approached.
"What do you think? Will it do?" Rose asked.
Rose, to his puzzlement, had come out dressed in a pink urban renewal crown shirt with Topshop overalls, deep brown Frye campus boots and black tights. Hmm. She's worn better but she can wear worse. Clara's look however, against his best wishes, made him swoon. Pointelle bow cardigan, cream lace blouse and a checkered mini skirt with tights. Clara…" He stared for a moment to create a dramatic pause before he beamed. "You look adorable."
Clara blushed. "Thank you."
Rose rolled her eyes. "Now I know how the TARDIS feels when you two are alone."
"Oi!" They said in unison.
*Beeps* (Thank you, Rose)
"Don't take her side!"
"Well…does it even look good?" She asked.
"For the late 1970s? You'd be better off in a bin bag." Before Rose, with her jaw dropped could retort, the Doctor clicked a few buttons on the console monitor. "Hold on, listen to this." He played the music he had selected, starting to hum along to it while the pair before him shook their heads in playful exasperation. "Das ist gute. C'est fantastique." He hummed for a moment. ""Ian Dury and the Blockheads". Number one in 1979."
Clara giggled. "You can be an utter punk, you know that?" She asked. "That's what you are."
"It's nice to be a lunatic." The Doctor hummed, winking at Clara.
"A big old punk, with a bit of…" She blinked and clicked her fingers a few times.
"Rockabilly?" Rose shrugged.
"Rockabilly, thank you. A little bit of rockabilly thrown in.
"Well then, Clara, Clara, Clara. Do you want to see him?"
"Ian Dury?" He nodded. "In concert?"
"What else is a TARDIS for?" He asked rhetorically, and she giggled. "I can take you to the Battle of Trafalgar, the first Antigravity Olympics, Caesar crossing the Rubicon or…Ian Dury at the Top Rank, Sheffield, England, Earth, 21st November 1979, what do you think?" He rambled.
Clara shot Rose a look, who nodded. "Sheffield it is."
"Hold on tight." He flicked a lever, the TARDIS racing through the Vortex at a high velocity, causing them to grip the console, the Doctor laughing manically. "Go on, Clara!" He yelled, and Clara pulled the materialisation lever, causing them to land with a thump against the floor, even the Doctor banged his head on the console before he hit the flooring with them. They laughed gleefully as the Doctor rubbed his forehead, still bearing his beaming smile. "1979!" He exclaimed, getting up off the floor and helping Clara and Rose up to their feet before he grabbed his overcoat. "Hell of a year! China invades Vietnam. "The Muppet Movie", love that film." He beamed.
"Never seen it." Clara simply shrugged, earning shocked looks from the pair before her.
"Well, we're definitely sitting you down to watch that, you're missing out. Oh, Margaret Thatcher…eugh." He shivered as he finished slipping his overcoat on. "Skylab falls to Earth, with a little help from me. Nearly took off my thumb." He opened the door, letting them out into 1879 Scotland. "And I like my thumb. I need my thumb. I'm very attached to…" They were greeted by a group of royal guards, aiming their rifles at them as they guarded a black coach. "My thumb." The Doctor murmured sheepishly before blinking at their attire. Horses, gloves on the hands, somewhat older style of clothing. "1879." He conclude his mental diagnosis before shrugging. "Same difference."
"No, it isn't." Rose hissed under her breath. "There's no concert and we're well under dressed."
"Sorry. We'll take you to one after…this."
"You'll explain your presence." The head soldier, named Captain Reynolds, spoke in his Scottish accent, sitting atop a black horse and aiming a revolver at them. "And the nakedness of these girls."
The Doctor beamed. "Are we in Scotland?" He asked in a perfect Scottish accent.
Captain Reynolds blinked. "How can you be ignorant of that?"
"Oh, I'm-I'm dazed and confused. I've been chasing these-these wee naked lasses over hill and over dale. Isn't that right, you…" He turned to look at them, seeing Rose with a confused look and Clara who was…blushing. Blushing harder than he'd ever seen. "Timorous beasties?" He finished, blinking in confusion at Clara.
Clara blinked a bit and stammered out in a horrific Scottish accent, "Och, aye. I've been oot and aboot."
He bit his lip briefly to stifle back his laugh, Rose having to do the same. "No, don't do that."
"Hoots mon." She tried again with a squeak.
"No, really, don't." A smirking Rose echoed.
The Doctor had to hide his smirk into his shoulder. "She can't do Scottish accents." He squealed to himself before clearing his throat and returning his attention to the Captain. "Sorry."
"Will you identify yourself, sir?" Captain Reynolds asked, with a blend of irritation and amusement.
"I'm Dr. James McCrimmon from the…township of Balamory. I have my credentials, if I may." He said, motioning to his suit pocket. The Captain nodded, and he pulled out the psychic paper, holding it up for the soldiers to see. "As you can see, a Doctorate from the university of Edinburgh. I trained under Dr. Bell himself."
"Let them approach." An English voice called from within the carriage.
"I don't think that's wise, ma'am." Captain Reynolds warned.
"Let them approach." She repeated.
He gave a small sigh. "You will approach the carriage and show all due deference." He said to the trio, and they nodded to him. Moving past the Captain, they approached the side door of the coach, a Steward opening the door to reveal, to Clara and Rose's astonishment, Queen Victoria. The same height as Clara, dressed in black, with greying hair, hypnotic blue eyes and bearing a stern but welcoming look on her face.
"Clara…Rose…might I introduce her majesty Queen Victoria, Empress of India and defender of the faith." The Doctor said, Victoria nodding in greeting, then she blinked at Clara, who took the expression in a separate way.
"Clara Oswald and Rose Tyler, ma'am." They curtsied in greeting. "And our apologies for being so naked."
Victoria scoffed slightly. "I've had five daughters. It's nothing to me." She then squinted her eyes at Clara. "Have we already met? You seem…familiar."
Clara blinked. "I would definitely remember meeting you, but I don't."
Victoria sighed. "Never mind that. You, Doctor, show me these credentials." He passed the psychic to her and she looked at it for a few moments before her eyes widened. "Why didn't you say so immediately?" He blinked in puzzlement. "It states clearly here that you have been appointed by the Lord Provost as my protector."
"Does it?" The Doctor muttered before he cleared his throat, taking the paper back. "Yes, it does. Good, good." Clara and Rose both shot him slightly raised eyebrows. "Um…then, let me ask, why is your majesty traveling by road when there's a train all the way to Aberdeen?"
Her face fell into a grimace. "A tree on the line."
"An accident?"
"I am the Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Everything around me tends to be planned."
"Assassination?" Clara asked.
"Afraid so, my dear. But never fear, I'm quite used to staring down the barrel of a gun." Victoria reassured, the Doctor and Rose shooting each other bewildered looks at her first words.
"Sir Robert MacLeish lives but ten miles hence." Captain Reynolds interjected. "We've sent word ahead. He'll shelter us for tonight then we can reach Balmoral tomorrow."
"This Doctor, Clara Oswald and their…timorous beastie," She added playfully, "Will come with us."
"Yes, ma'am. We'd better get moving, it's almost nightfall."
"Indeed, and there are stories of wolves in these parts." Victoria said, in playful dramatization. "Fanciful tales intended to scare the children, but good for the blood, I think. Drive on." She said to the carriage drawer and the Steward closed the carriage door before the company moved ahead. The TARDIS trio took a few paces back from the carriage, the Doctor and Clara linking arms before he leaned into her, grinning wolfishly.
"Clara." He purred, and she blushed again. "What was THAT back there?"
"Nothing." She squeaked.
"You like Scottish accents, do you?"
"No, I don't!
"Mmm." He thought for a moment. "Scottish accents and older men. You're giving me some good idea-"
"Stop it!" Rose growled, making them jump.
"Sorry." They said with a blush.
"It's funny, though, cause you say "Assassination", and you just think of someone like Kennedy, not her." Rose said in puzzlement, deciding to quickly move past their flirting.
"1879, she's had…oh, six attempts on her life?" The Doctor said with slight uncertainty before he grinned again, leaning into Clara. "I'll tell you something else. We just met Queen Victoria!" He squealed.
"I know!" Clara returned.
"What a laugh!"
Rose giggled. "She was just sitting there, like a glorious stamp. Although, she was a touch bit friendly with Clara."
"But she acted as if I've met her before. Could it be I meet her again in the future?" Clara asked.
"Probably not. You know why? Queen Victoria wasn't looking at you like an old friend, she thought she was looking in a mirror for a second. Like I've said before, you are a little bit like her back in the day, bossy attitude and all."
"Did you just call me "Bossy"?" Clara growled lightly.
"No, I-I meant to say that-"
"I know." Clara grinned wolfishly, leaning in to whisper in his ear, "Besides, you never do complain when I'm bossy in the-"
"Oh, for fucks sake! Will you two stop it?!" Rose burst in irritation, making them jump and blush sheepishly. "Seriously, where's my Mum when I need her?" Rose let them fall into an awkward silence for a few moments, the two continuously glancing at Rose before she smirked. "How about we make a bet?"
"What kind of bet?" The Doctor asked.
"I want Queen Victoria to say, "I am not amused"." She said in her best posh English accent. "I bet you two ten quid I can make her say it."
"Ten?" Clara asked in astonishment.
Rose rolled her eyes. "Five from you, five from him."
"Ah." Clara said, nodding slightly. "All right count me in. Doctor?"
"Well, if I gambled on that, it'd be an abuse of my privilege as a traveller in time."
"Clara pays five, you pay ten?" Rose bumps up the bet.
"*Scoffs* Done."
Robert watched through one of the many windows of his house with shaking breath, sweat pouring down his forehead as Queen Victoria's company and carriage, including the TARDIS trio, arrived through the gates, and stopping right outside the front doors of his house. "I can't do this." He muttered nervously. "It's treason."
Father Angelo, now dressed in a sharp, slick suit, stepped up behind him, his steel gaze burning through his reflection in the glass. "Then your wife will suffer the consequences. And believe me, Sir Robert, she will be devoured."
Robert gulped, moving from the room without a word, just to keep his distance from the unnerving Angelo. Moving through the large house, he opened the front doors to see Victoria's Steward helping her out of the carriage, and he walked up to her with the best smile of warmth he could muster. "Your majesty." He greeted with a bow.
"Sir Robert." Victoria returned. "My apologies for the emergency. And how is Lady Isobel?"
"She's…" He paused for a moment in contemplation. "Indisposed, I'm afraid. She's gone to Edinburgh for the season. And…she's taken the cook with her; the kitchens are barely stocked. I wouldn't blame your majesty if you wanted to ride on."
The Doctor and Clara exchanged a look, seeing right through his words and shooting a quick glance at Father Angelo before said man could see them doing so. "Oh, not at all." Victoria said with a small chuckle. "I've had quite enough carriage exercise. And this is…" She blinked, looking for the words as she gazed upon the large, stone mansion. "Charming, if rustic. It's my first visit to this house. My late husband spoke of it often, the Torchwood Estate." She said with a glimmer of sad fondness before smiling again. "Now, shall we go inside?" Robert hid his defeated sigh, instead nodding. "And do please excuse the naked girls."
"Sorry." Rose said, Clara nodding with her.
"They're both feral children." The Doctor said, returning to his Scottish Accent that, to his own inflating ego, still made Clara blush. "I bought them both for sixpence in old London Town." They both glared at him. "It was them or the Elephant Man, so…"
"Are you done?" Clara growled, making him blush sheepishly, everyone else smirking, even Queen Victoria.
"Sorry about him, he thinks he's funny." Rose said. "But I'm so not amused. What do you think, ma'am?"
Victoria had to hold back her urge to blink in confusion. "It hardly matters." She shook her head slightly to herself before returning her attention to Robert. "Shall we proceed?" Robert motioned her to follow him through the front doors.
"So close." Rose muttered under her breath to the duo.
"Mackeson and Ramsey, you will escort the property. Hurry up." Captain Reynolds ordered.
"Yes sir." Said soldiers said in unison as they moved to take out a small, brown box from the carriage and into the house. The TARDIS trio looked on at it with intrigue.
"So, what's in there, then?" Clara asked.
"Property of the Crown." Captain Reynolds said simply. "You will dismiss any further thoughts, ma'am." Clara gave them a small shrug, which they returned. "The rest of you, go to the rear of the house. Assume your designated positions." All the soldiers moved about in haste as the TARDIS trio, along with the Captain, moved inside the house. Proceeding through many rooms and hallways, almost having to pretend to give a look of admiration especially on the Doctor's note, they entered a room that, to Clara's amusement, definitely got his attention. Filled with artefacts, trinkets and devices, there was a large machine like a telescope sitting in the room, the front end hanging out the window and looking up at the sky with a large wheel beside it for configuration.
"This, I take it, is the famous "Endeavour"." Queen Victoria said as everyone looked at the machine with awe.
"All my father's work built by hand in his final years. Became something of an obsession. He spent his money on this rather than caring for the house or himself." Robert explained.
"I wish I'd met him. I like him." The Doctor said with a beaming grin. "That thing's beautiful. Can we, um…" He motioned a hand to the machine.
"Help yourself."
The TARDIS trio walked up slowly, Rose moving to the wheel while the Doctor and Clara knelt before the bottom gazer. "What did he model it on?" He asked.
"I know nothing about it. To be honest, most of us thought him a little…shall we say, eccentric?" They cocked an eyebrow at Robert. "I wish now I'd spent more time with him and listened to his stories."
The Doctor furrowed his eyebrows as he looked at the machine up close. "It's a bit rubbish." Clara slowly turned her head to gaze at him with a half glare. "How many prisms has it got? Way too many. The magnification's gone right over the top. That's a stupid kind of a-"
"Doctor." Clara put her hand over his mouth. "Stop it."
He blinked at her as she removed her hand. "Am I being rude again?"
"When are you not?"
"Are you calling me rude?"
"It's either that or you have an ego."
"*Scoffs* You can talk."
"What did you say?" Clara growled. "What did you say to-"
"Cut it out." Rose groaned, making them jump up sheepishly.
"It's pretty." They said in unison. "It's very…" They blinked at each other. "You were gonna…should I…never mind." They cleared their throats, glancing back at Queen Victoria, whose expression bore a hint of amusement…and irritation.
"And the imagination of it should be applauded." Victoria said simply, ignoring their bickering.
"Mmm. Thought you might disapprove, your majesty." Rose perked up. "Stargazing. Isn't that a bit fanciful?" The Doctor and Clara rolled their eyes at each other. "You could easily not be amused or…something?" Rose muttered, her tone getting quieter.
"You're not getting her to say it." The Doctor whispered.
"This device surveys the infinite work of God. What could be finer?" Victoria asked rhetorically, also ignoring her words. "Sir Robert's father was an example to us all. A polymath steeped in astronomy and the sciences yet equally well versed in folklore and fairy tales."
"Stars and magic? I like him even more." The Doctor marvelled.
"Oh, my late husband enjoyed his company. Prince Albert himself was acquainted with many rural superstitions, coming, as he did, from Saxe-Coburg." Victoria said.
"That's Bavaria." The Doctor whispered to the pair when they blinked.
"When Albert was told about your local wolf, he was transported." Victoria said, returning her attention to Robert.
"So, what's this wolf, then?" Clara asked.
Robert shrugged. "It's just a story."
"Then tell it."
The Doctor and Clara saw that Robert's eyes flickered ever so slightly behind him, to Father Angelo, before he hid a nervous gulp in his throat. "It's said that-"
"Excuse me, sir." Father Angelo interrupted. "Perhaps her majesty's party could repair to their rooms. It's almost dark." He informed.
"Of course." Robert nodded, slightly in haste, which the trio picked up on. "Yes, of course."
"And then supper." Victoria said, unfortunately not picking up on the subtle signals. "And…could we find some clothes for Miss Oswald and Miss Tyler? I'm tired of nakedness." She said bluntly.
"What did I tell you?" The Doctor whispered to Clara. "Bossy, just like-"
"Shh!" Clara hushed.
"It's not amusing, is it?" Rose asked Victoria, missing both the Doctor and Clara rolling their eyes at each other.
Victoria also ignored her words, keeping her gaze on Robert. "Sir Robert, your wife must have left some clothes. See to it."
He shrugged slightly. "There may not be much left for the both of them, but I'll see what I can do."
"Then, we shall dine at 7 and talk some more of this wolf." Her eyes glinted with a gleam of excitement. "After all…there is a full moon tonight."
"So there is, ma'am." Robert said in slight dejection with a bow as they left the room. Clara however, stuck close to the Doctor.
"Those servants are really creeping me out." Clara said in a hushed tone to the Doctor.
"Don't worry. I'm not going anywhere." He reassured, hugging her close with one arm.
Father Angelo stepped into the kitchens, ushering in his acolytes who carried bags of mistletoe, dumping the contents onto the counters. "Boil them all. But do it quietly." He ordered, and the acolytes quickly went to work, shredding all the mistletoe into a large pot, boiling it with steaming hot water until the contents became warm, sending a sweet, inviting smell throughout the room. They poured the contents into cast iron mugs, placing them on a few trays to deliver them to every soldier stationed around the house. The remaining acolytes quickly weaved a large amount of the mistletoe into six threaded loops, Father Angelo excluded as he would be inside the house for the night.
The Doctor and Clara opened a door into a bedroom, seeing a king-sized bed in the centre of the room with a large wardrobe in the corner.
"Will you two be all right?" Rose called from a room at the end of the hall.
"Yeah. Be careful, okay?" Clara said. "I don't trust those servants."
"Don't worry, you two. I'll just bring out my inner Mum on them." Rose said with a playful smirk as she shut the door.
The Doctor shut the door to his own room, while Clara rummaged through the wardrobe, bringing out different dresses and frocks, none of which impressed her. "For a couple that can own a large mansion, you'd think they'd have better taste in clothes." Clara bemused.
"Now, who's being rude?" The Doctor teased.
"Ah-ah." She tutted. "You don't get to do that."
"Yes ma'am." Clara winked at him as she brought out a red dress. While the dress itself wasn't very appealing, the red however did catch the Doctor's eye. "Now, that is a colour you look good in." He commented.
Clara shrugged. "I like red. That and orange. But there isn't many good outfits that have a nice orange in them, do they?" The Doctor didn't answer, and she looked at him curiously. "Why do you always act like that when I bring up "Orange"?"
"Clara." He whined. "It's a surprise."
She huffed. "Well, WHEN is the surprise coming?"
He blinked a few times. "I was going to give it to you now, but it doesn't do wood."
"What doesn't do wood?" She asked.
"Spoilers, Clara!" He whined.
She rolled her eyes. "Ugh, fair enough. It'd better be worth it."
The Doctor inwardly grinned. Oh, she has no idea.
Rose kept swaying back and forth as she surveyed a blue dress from the wardrobe, her expression going from "Nice" to "Mmm. Okay" to "Uh…maybe not". She placed the dress on the bed, before moving to another wardrobe and opened it. She jumped with a gasp as she saw a frightened, black haired maid within, panting with shock and fear as she stared at Rose. "Who are you?" Rose asked, and the maid cowered into the wardrobe. "It's all right, I'm not going to hurt you." Rose tentatively reached for the maid's hand, who seeing that she was alone in the room, slowly allowed herself to be led out of the wardrobe and towards the bed. "What were you doing in there? What happened?" Rose asked.
The maid took several shaking breaths to calm herself, but it proved fruitless as her hands quivered in Rose's grasp. "They came through the house, in silence." The maid said in a hushed, frightened voice to Rose as they sat on the bed. "They took the Steward and the master and milady."
"Hey, it's all right." Rose reassured, taking her hand. "Listen, I've got a couple of friends. They're called the Doctor and Clara. They'll know what to do. But you can't stay hidden in here, you have to come with me."
"I can't, Miss." She shook her head.
"Hey." Rose took her face to calm her whimpering. "What's your name?"
"F-Flora."
"Flora." Rose smiled. "It's a beautiful name. Listen, Flora, we'll be safe, okay? There's more people arrived downstairs, soldiers and everything and they can help us." Flora shook her head in disbelief. "I promise." Flora somewhat relaxed but her eyes were still filled with frightened uncertainty. "Come on. It'll be fine." Flora then allowed herself to be led by Rose into the empty hallway, where they moved to turn the corner, seeing immediately the sight of an unconscious soldier on the floor, a spilled mug in his hands, some of the contents staining the wood and the curtain of a nearby window.
"Oh Miss, I did warn you." Flora said, her suppressed nervousness coming back in full force as Rose knelt beside the soldier.
Rose checked his pulse, finding it faint but present. "He's not dead. He must be drugged or something."
"Mmm!" Flora shrieked into the hand of an acolyte, who pressed a cloth stained with the mistletoe water over her mouth. Rose looked up as this happened but was quickly hauled to her feet by another acolyte, also pressing a stained cloth against her mouth. She muffled her protest against the cloth, but the smell of the mistletoe was too inviting for her to keep fighting, and eventually, she sighed into a reluctant sleep.
Outside the house, standing in the shadow of night, Father Angelo watched as his acolytes, covered with the rings of mistletoe, grabbed the guns and ammunition off the unconscious guards and took positions around the house.
"Remember: Don't waste that ammo. Only use it to frighten those inside the house, not kill them. He will do what He wants with them." Father Angelo reminded, and he quickly moved back inside the house, locking the back door as he went.
The Doctor and Clara moved inside a large, candlelit room with a prepped dinner table in the centre, Victoria, Robert, and Captain Reynolds already seated.
"Sorry, ma'am, but I'm afraid that the dresses were to…large for me." Clara said sheepishly.
Victoria gave a reassuring smile. "That, I'm afraid, I know too well, my dear. But I'm only excusing your nakedness on that, nothing more."
"Yes, ma'am." Clara quickly said as she and the Doctor took a seat beside each other and Queen Victoria.
Father Angelo re-entered the room, carrying a bottle of wine on a tray as he closed the door. "Your companion begs an apology, Doctor, Clara. Her clothing has somewhat delayed her."
The Doctor smiled but squeezed Clara's hand in reassurance. "Oh, that's all right. Save her a wee bit of ham." He quipped lightly.
"The feral child could probably eat it raw." Victoria also quipped lightly, causing the Doctor and Clara to smirk.
Captain Reynolds gave a loud laugh, causing the duo to shoot each other and Victoria puzzled looks. "Very wise, ma'am. Very witty." He complimented.
"It was only a tad bit witty." Clara muttered, shaking her head.
"Slightly witty, perhaps." Victoria agreed. "I know you rarely get the chance to dine with me, Captain, but don't get too excited. I shall contain my wit in case I do you further injury."
"Yes ma'am. Sorry ma'am." Captain Reynolds mumbled nervously before clearing his throat.
The Doctor and Clara sniggered under their breath before the Doctor turned his gaze to Robert. "Besides, we're all waiting on Sir Robert. Come sir. You promised us a tale of nightmares." The Doctor said in dramatic playfulness.
"Indeed. Since my husband's death, I find myself with more of a taste for supernatural fiction." Victoria said.
"You miss him, don't you?" Clara asked softly.
"Very much." Victoria nodded before her face went into sorrow. "Oh, completely." She smiled sadly. "That's the charm of a ghost story, isn't it? Not the scares and chills, that's just for children but the…hope of some contact with the great beyond. We all want some message from that place. It's the creator's greatest mystery that we're allowed no such consolation." She gulped silently under her breath to fight back the knot in her throat. "The dead stay silent…and we must wait." Victoria gazed at Clara, seeing a sadness reflected in her eyes. "Who have you…lost?" Victoria asked tenderly.
"My parents." Clara said, and the Doctor squeezed her hand.
"How do you do it? Going on without them?" Victoria asked.
"You live. You live your own live how you will it to be, and you will move on, but that doesn't mean to stop wishing they were still there. You just need to say goodbye." Clara said sadly.
Victoria saw Clara relax as the Doctor rubbed his thumb on her hand, which just made her smile sadly, thinking of her own husband, whom she adored with all her heart. But she shook her head to clear out the sadness. "Come. Now's not the time to mourn and to yearn, it's a time for transportation. Begin your tale, Sir Robert." She said earnestly. "There is a chill in the air and the wind is howling through the eaves. Tell us of monsters."
Robert nodded with a slight sigh of defeat, feeling everyone's gaze fixed upon him. "The story goes back three hundred years. Every full moon, the howling rings through the valley. The next morning, livestock is found ripped apart and de…devoured."
Captain Reynolds sighed. "Tales like this just disguise the work of thieves. Steal a sheep a blame a wolf, simple as that."
"But sometimes a child goes missing." Robert continued. "Once in a generation, a boy will vanish from his homestead."
"Are there descriptions of the creature?" The Doctor asked.
"Oh yes, Doctor." He nodded. "Drawings and woodcarvings. And it's not merely a wolf, it's more than that. This is a man who becomes an animal."
The Doctor and Clara's expression both beamed with increased intrigue. "A werewolf?" Robert nodded.
Rose, having already fought off her forced drowsiness, gazed around the dark room, lit only by a few candles, which cast an eerie illumination upon the man in the cage, who kept his head down and his eyes closed. She slowly moved her legs to sit up, but Isobel stopped her.
"Don't make a sound." She warned, her voice trembling as she did. "He said that if we keep quiet, we may live."
"May live what? He's in a cage." Rose said with blinking eyes. "He's a prisoner, the same as us."
"He's nothing like us." Isobel denied, shaking her head. "That creature is not mortal. And that cage is not to imprison him, but to protect him. They worship him." The man lifted his head and opened his eyes, everyone holding back a gasp at how they weren't just blank in indifference but were also as dark as the night, creating a pit of swirling, boiling rage, waiting patiently to be released. Rose clenched her jaw to contain her own nervousness, standing up and moving slowly towards the cage. "Don't, child, please." Isobel pleaded but Rose ignored her. She felt the chain link on the wall tug on her iron claps, making her kneel on the floor, still a few feet from the cage.
"Who are you?" She asked, and the man clenched his jaw in irritation.
"Don't enrage him." Alastair warned.
"Where are you from?" Rose asked, the man slowly lifting his hand, ready to silence her. "You're not from Earth." That made him pause, his irritation now turning into intrigued amusement. "What planet are you from?"
His eyebrows raised at that, and he sat back in his cage, gazing intently at Rose. "Ohhh. Intelligence." He purred, his slimy voice sending chills down Rose's spine.
"Where were you born?"
"This body? Ten miles away. A weakling, heartsick boy, stolen away at night by the brethren for my…cultivation." He briefly gave a grim, nerve racking smile. "I carved out his soul and sat in his heart."
Rose nodded shakily. "All right. So, the body's Human. But what about you? The real you?"
He smiled, this more of approval before his expression turned distant. "So very far from home."
"If you want to get back home, we can help."
He furrowed his eyebrows at her. "Why would I leave this place? A world of industry, of workforce and warfare." He smiled dreamily. "I could turn it into a new world with such purpose."
"How would you do that?"
"I would migrate to the holy monarch." Everyone shuddered at that. "With one bite, I would pass into her blood. And then it begins, the Empire of the Wolf." He sighed, gazing into Rose's eyes to see something…very familiar. There it hit him, why she seemed so familiar. He lurched forward in his cage, grasping the bars in front of him while everyone jumped with a gasp. "Look! Inside your eyes, you've seen it too!"
"Seen what?" Rose asked, her voice filled with shaking nervousness again.
"The wolf! There is something of the wolf about you."
Rose's eyes widened for a split second in horror, which made him smile. "I don't know what you mean." She denied.
He shook his head with a growl. "You burnt like the sun but all I require is the moon."
"My father didn't treat it as a story. He said it was fact." Robert continued. "He even claimed to have communed with the beast, to have learned its purpose." He shook his head dejectedly. "I should've listened. His work was hindered, he made enemies." The Doctor and Clara saw Father Angelo move to the window out of the corner of their eyes, who began to pray silently under his breath. "There's a monastery in the glen of St. Catherine. The brethren opposed my father's investigations."
"Perhaps they thought his work ungodly." Victoria offered.
"That's what I thought. But now, I wonder, what if they had a different reason for wanting the story kept quiet?"
"Lupus magnus est, lupus fortis est, lupus deus est." Father Angelo prayed under his breath, but the Doctor and Clara picked up on it. (The wolf is great, the wolf is strong, the wolf is God)
"What if they turned from god and worshiped the wolf?"
Clara clenched her fist, staring at the back of Father Angelo's head. "And what if they were with us right now?" Everyone turned to look at Father Angelo with wide eyes of shock.
The door of the dungeon slammed open, sending an icy wind and moonlight into the room, drowning around the man, illuminating his pale, sickly form. He gazed out at the sky with a soft look of relief and awe. "Moonlight." He took a deep breath, withdrawing off his cloak and grasping onto the cell bars. He smiled at them before his face began to twitch.
Rose gave a shuddering breath, standing up and grasping her chain. "All of you! Stop looking at him and listen to me! Grab one end of the chain and pull!"
The maids got to their feet, but the servants and Isobel stared at the man in fear. "But he's going to-"
"Stop your whining and listen to me!" Rose interrupted Alastair. "All of you, get up on your feet and pull!" The servants did so, but Isobel stayed put. "That includes you, your ladyship, now come on! Pull!" Isobel gave in, standing up as everyone grasped the chain and began to tug with all their strength.
"What is the meaning of this?!" Victoria demanded as they shot up from the table, Captain Reynolds withdrawing his revolver and advancing on Father Angelo.
"Explain yourself, sir!" He ordered but Father Angelo ignored him.
"I'm sorry, your majesty, but they've got my wife." Robert muttered.
"Where is she?" Clara growled. "Rose, where is she?! What've you done with her?!"
"I think we can do better than that, Clara." The Doctor said, taking her hand. "This house has a dungeon, yes?"
"Yes, it does." Robert said quickly.
"With us, come on!" The Doctor, Clara and Robert raced from the room.
"Tell me sir! I demand to know your intention!"
"Lupus deus est. Lu-"
"What is it that you want?!"
Father Angelo stopped his chanting, turning to look past Captain Reynolds and straight at Victoria. "The throne." He said simply, and he grasped the Captain's arm, smacking the side of his palm into his joint to sprain it before headbutting him, sending the Captain unconscious onto the floor.
"1, 2, 3, pull!" Rose yelled, and everyone tugged, each attempt straining the link on the wall and rocketing hope for escape into their hearts.
"Aaah!" The man yelled in agony as every bone in his body snapped, rearranging themselves, causing his face to lengthen into a wolf, his skin turning blue and rapidly growing a light fur that glowed in the moonlight. Each crack from his body made him growl, his voice growing more animalistic as he transformed.
"1, 2, 3, pull!" On that tug, the link gave way, causing everyone to stumble back onto the floor, before they quickly helped everyone out of their loose iron claps. This made the wolf growl in irritation, and he began to pull and claw at the cell bars, ripping and bending each one effortlessly. The house door suddenly slammed open, the Doctor, Clara and Robert rushing through. "Where the hell have you two been?!" Rose demanded.
They turned, and their eyes widened at the sight of the wolf, who snarled at the new intruders. "Oh, that's beautiful." The Doctor awed.
"Yeah, it is, but now's not the time!" Clara reminded.
They turned, helping everyone to their feet. "Get out! All of you, get out!" The Doctor yelled, and they began to rush from the room as the wolf tore the cage apart. Robert quickly hauled his wife to her feet as the room emptied, only the Doctor and Clara left standing in the room.
"Come on!" Rose yelled, and they rushed to follow, slamming the door behind them and the Doctor quickly soniced the lock before they ran down the hallway, the booming howl of the werewolf echoing throughout the valley beyond.
"I take it, sir, that YOU halted my train to bring me here?" Victoria accused Father Angelo.
"We have waited so long for one of your journeys to coincide with the moon."
"Then you have waited in vain. After six attempts on my life…" She reached into her purse, withdrawing a small armed revolver, and aimed it straight at Father Angelo. "I'm hardly unprepared."
He smiled smugly. "Oh, I don't think so, woman."
Her jaw clenched, and her shaking hands grew steady at his words. "The correct form of address is "Your Majesty"." And with that, she fired, staring blankly as the man collapsed to the floor motionless.
"Arm yourselves!" Alastair ordered as his accomplices grabbed their emergency rifles and loaded them with bullets. "Lady Isobel, take the girls and get them out through the kitchen."
Isobel turned to Robert with a look of desperation. "Robert, I can't leave you. What will you do?"
"I must defend her majesty. Now, don't think of me, just go." He pleaded.
She nodded reluctantly and gave him a farewell kiss before moving to the maids. "All of you! At my side, come on!" They all rushed out of the room, past the Doctor and Clara, who were removing Rose's iron clasps.
"It could be any form of light modulated species triggered by specific wavelengths. Did it say what it wanted?" He asked as they threw aside the clasps.
"The queen, the crown, the throne, you name it." Rose listed quickly.
Isobel rushed into the kitchens with the maids, moving to the back door but finding it locked and barred from outside. "It won't open! They've sealed us in!"
"Oh, milady, look!" Flora pointed out the window, the group seeing the acolytes covered in mistletoe and armed with the rifles of the soldiers, keeping their steeled gaze on the house. "They'll never let us out. They mean for us to die!" Flora freaked.
"Don't say that, Flora!" Isobel ordered yet her voice was a similar tone. Suddenly, a loud crash echoed in a nearby room, letting silence fall in the kitchens.
"Milady, what was that?" Flora asked but they already knew the answer.
The servants quickly got into position while the Doctor moved to the door, seeking to observe the source of the noise.
"Doctor." Clara called but he held out a hand.
"Don't worry. I'm right here." He reassured as he glanced through the open door, staring straight at the wolf. The wolf stood straight up in the hallway, standing atop the remains of the dungeon door, his growling turning low as it stared at the Doctor. "Blimey." He mumbled under his breath and the wolf snarled, causing him to rush back into the room as the wolf charged, taking Clara's hand, and leading her past the line of servants to join Rose.
"Fire!" Alastair ordered the wolf entered the room. A spray of bullets hit the wolf, who flinched back with a whimper. "Fire!" Another round hit the wolf, causing it to retreat from the room. The TARDIS trio coughed slightly at the small puffs of white smoke generated by the guns before the Doctor straightened his back.
"All right, men, we should retreat upstairs. Come with us."
"I'll not retreat." Alastair denied. "The battle's done, there's no creature on God's Earth that could survive such an assault."
"I'm telling you, come upstairs!" The Doctor exclaimed as Alastair moved to the door.
"And I am telling you, sir, that I will sleep well tonight with that thing's hide upon my wall!" Alastair moved to the door, staring down the hallway to find no sign of the wolf. He turned back to them with a smirk on his face. "It must've crawled away to die-" He was suddenly heaved into the roof by the snarling wolf, the sounds of his body being snapped and broken echoing into every one of their frightened ears.
"There's nothing we can do! Now run!" The Doctor ordered, Clara, Rose and Robert following him out of the room.
"Did they kill it?" Flora asked as the gunshots fell silent. Before Isobel could answer, more gunfire echoed, now accompanied by the sounds of the men screaming in horror and agony, their bodies being ripped apart and devoured.
"Girls." She motioned for them to come close, everyone moving into a huddle by the door, the maids keeping their eyes closed while Isobel kept her gaze fixed upon the open doorway. The growls and heavy footsteps of the wolf came closer, before its shadow entered the room followed by its own form. It gazed at Isobel and the maids, growling before…it stopped. It blinked, looking around the room as it sniffed before rearing its head in disgust and turning away. Isobel stared with wide eyes of disbelief as the wolf left, gazing around the room while she tried to calm herself down.
The group rushed through another door towards the stairwell, the Doctor locking it shut while Robert rushed ahead.
"Your majesty! Your majesty!" He called, and Victoria came rushing down the stairs.
"Sir Robert. What's happening?" She asked. "I heard such terrible noises."
"Your majesty, we've got to get out. But what of Father Angelo? Is he still here?"
"Captain Reynolds disposed of him." Victoria said, her tone of indifference, which the Doctor and Clara read through immediately.
"The front door's no good, it's been boarded shut." The Doctor reported, now back to his normal accent, which briefly got Victoria's eyes to widen. "Pardon me, your majesty, you'll have to leg it out of a window." Victoria nodded, the group moving towards a nearby window before Robert stepped in front.
"Excuse my manners, ma'am, but I shall go first. The better to assist her majesty's egress."
"A noble sentiment, my Sir Walter Raleigh."
"Yeah, any chance you could hurry up?" The Doctor snapped. No one, not even Clara bothered to retort to that, regarding the situation at hand. Robert quickly moved to the window and opened it wide, immediately greeted by a spray of gunfire by the acolytes outside. They quickly cowered away, crouching beneath the windowsill. "I reckon the monky boys want us to stay inside."
"Do they know who I am?" Victoria asked dryly.
"Yeah, that's why they want you." Rose informed, earning a look of shock from the Queen. "The wolf's lined you up for a…a biting."
"Now, stop this talk. There can't be an actual wolf." The answer came from the wolf howling, making Victoria shoot up in shock as the Doctor led the group from the room. At the bottom of the stairwell, they saw the claws of the wolf digging through the door.
"All right, Doctor, plan. What do we do?" Clara asked.
"We…run." He answered.
"Is that it?"
"You got any silver bullets?" The Doctor retorted.
"Not on me, no."
"There we are, then. We run." He turned to Victoria. "Your majesty, as a Doctor, I recommend a vigorous jog. Good for the health." He held out a hand for Clara, who took it earnestly as he led them racing up the stairs, the wolf already having clawed through the door, tearing it to splinters onto the floorboards. "Come on! Come on!" The Doctor yelled as they reached the top of the stairs and ran down the hallway, the wolf quickly gaining on them with haste. They turned the corner, running down the corridor as the wolf gained closer and closer, the group spotting an armed Captain Reynolds, waiting patiently with his gun raised. "Duck!" The Doctor yelled as the wolf drew nearer, the group ducking onto their knees and Captain Reynolds fired, hitting the wolf square in the head, causing it to retreat with a whimper. The group rounded the corner, Rose and Victoria clutching their chests and panting heavy breaths while the Doctor and Clara still held each other's hands tight.
"I'll take this position and hold it." Captain Reynolds said as he reloaded a bullet into the gun. "Your majesty, I went to look for the property and it was taken. The chest was empty."
"I have it. It's safe." Victoria said.
Reynolds smiled. "Then remove yourself, ma'am. Doctor, Clara, you stand as her majesty's protectors. And you, Sir Robert…" He stood, readying his gun as he backed slowly from the group. "You're a traitor to the crown."
"Bullets can't stop it!" The Doctor exclaimed.
"They'll buy you time, now run!" The group moved to the end of the hallway, where the opened doors to the study were awaiting them. The Doctor looked back to see Clara still standing there.
"Please, come with us!" Clara pleaded.
"Someone has to do this, now for god's sake, move yourself!" Reynolds ordered.
"Clara!" The Doctor ran back to grasp her hand and haul her away, Reynolds firing his pistol down the hallway as they neared the door, not looking back as the sounds of his screams of agony came echoing through the corridor.
"Barricade the door!" Robert yelled, and they slammed the door shut, improvising with nearby tables, bookshelves and stools to brace the door.
Silence fell, the footsteps of the wolf getting closer, but it was now more calculated and patient. "Wait a minute, shh." The Doctor hushed as the wolf howled before the footsteps drew closer. The Doctor leaned into the door, feeling distantly the murky breath of the wolf coming through the crack in the door as it sniffed and breathed, growling low in its throat before…it walked away. "It's gone." He whispered. "Listen." They could hear him, each thump of his paws hitting the floor, his claws tapping against the floorboards, each scratch sending a chill down their spines. The wolf, every once in a while, would suddenly stop moving to sniff as it snarled low in its throat, sensing its prey beyond the walls and inside the room.
"Is that the only door?" Clara whispered.
"Yes." Robert nodded before his eyes widened. "No!" The three quickly rushed over to the far side of the room, barricading that door as the wolf drew closer.
"Shh!" The Doctor hushed as they backed away. The wolf stopped by the door and it growled. It's paw had been placed on the door and it began to slowly scratch, splinters of wood falling to the floor as it sniffed and growled under its breath. It then howled, but it was a low and irritated howl before it trotted away, the house falling into silence.
"I don't understand." Rose gave a shuddering breath. "What's stopping it?"
The Doctor paced about, looking at every object and wall with a scrutinising eye. "Something inside this room." He glanced back at the doors, blinking in puzzlement. "What is it? Why can't it get in?" He glanced around the room, before noticing Clara's distant gaze, which made him sigh and walk up to her. "Clara." He put a hand on her shoulder, and she glanced at him.
"I know. It wasn't my fault."
He smiled. "Then we don't need to go through all that again, now do we?" He asked. She nodded, and he embraced her in a soft hug.
"Thank you." She whispered before they parted, and she cleared her throat. "I'll tell you what, though."
"What?"
"Werewolf." She beamed. "Actual, full grown werewolf."
"I know." He beamed back, the two sharing a childish giggle as they did. They glanced over at Rose, who shook her head at them with a smirk.
"I'm sorry, ma'am." Robert perked up from the corner with a look of guilt on his face, making everyone glance at him. "It's all my fault. I should've sent you away. I tried to suggest something was wrong, I thought you might notice. Did you think there was nothing strange about my household staff?"
The Doctor shrugged. "Well, they were bald, athletic."
"Creepy." Clara inputted.
"Tiny bit creepy, yeah."
"I'll tell you what though, ma'am, I bet you're not amused now." Rose interjected, earning dull looks from the Doctor and Clara.
"Do you think this funny?!" Victoria snapped, and Rose flinched.
"No ma'am, I'm sorry." Rose said meekly.
"What, exactly, I pray, tell me someone, please, what exactly is that creature?!"
The Doctor cleared his throat. "You'd call it a werewolf, but technically, it's more of a lupine wavelength haemovariform."
"And should I trust you, sir?! You, who change your voice so easily?! What happened to your accent?!"
"Oh." The Doctor said simply.
"I'll not have it! No sir, not you, not that thing, none of it. This is not my world."
"No, it isn't." Clara said grimly. "But until we deal with that werewolf, you're stuck in here. And for that, I'm truly sorry."
Victoria sighed shakily but her eyes were still stern. "Then see to it that it is dealt with."
Isobel gazed outside the window in scrutinization at the acolytes, surveying every ounce of their form until her gaze landed upon the mistletoe. That led her to gaze around the room at the mistletoe inside and the pieces connected. "Mistletoe. They're all garlanded in mistletoe and the wolf doesn't attack them." She turned to the maids. "Who brought this into the kitchen?"
"Must've been the brethren." Flora shrugged.
She clenched her jaw. "Gather it up, quickly. Every last scrap! Quick, now!" She and the maids went to work, picking up every piece of mistletoe off the floor and putting it all in a pile on the counter.
"Doctor." Clara called, and he came moving to one of the doors where Clara stood. "What's that?" She pointed to the carving on the door.
He blinked, moving in closer to observe. "Mistletoe."
"Could it be…" Clara trailed off.
"It could be." The Doctor answered her unspoken question. "Sir Robert did your father put that there?"
Robert shrugged. "I don't know. I suppose."
The Doctor gazed at the door Robert sat by. "On the other door, too."
"A carving wouldn't be enough, would it?" Clara asked.
"No, it wouldn't." He gazed back at the door in contemplation. "I wonder…" He leant on the door and licked the wood.
"Eugh." Clara grumbled.
"Viscum Album, the oil of the mistletoe, it's been worked into the wood like a varnish. How clever was your Dad?! I love him!" He turned to Clara. "Powerful stuff, mistletoe, bursting with lectins and viscotoxins." He blinked as Clara pulled out a small box and shoved a few tablets into his hand. "What the-" She shoved his hand over his mouth, almost choking on the strong peppermint as he did.
"You do that again, and you'll be properly choking on those altoids." Clara growled.
He cleared his throat, which was already burning from the mints. "Sorry."
"Anyway, mistletoe." Clara returned him to the topic. "Is the wolf allergic to it, or could it have been trained to be?"
He coughed. "Either or. The monky monk-monks could've found it out through years of worshipping the wolf or they just used simple illusionistic training."
"Nevertheless, that creature won't give up, Doctor." Robert perked up. "And we still don't possess an actual weapon."
The Doctor grumbled. "Oh, your father got all the brains, didn't he?"
"Look at that, Clara, he's being rude again." Rose interjected.
"Ah, good. I meant that one."
"Doctor!" Clara snapped. "Do you want more of these?" She held up the box of altoids.
"No." He squeaked.
"Then behave."
He cleared his throat, pacing about the room. "Okay then, if you want weapons, well guess what? We're in a library and libraries have books! The best weapons in the world." He withdrew his "Brainy Specs" and slid them on. "This room's the greatest arsenal we could have." He took out a few books from one of the bookshelves and tossed them to Clara and Rose. "Arm yourselves." The group quickly rushed to work, grabbing every book off the shelf they could see.
The maids in the kitchen worked furiously, shredding the mistletoe as a large pot of water boiled, waiting for the new contents.
"There's no sound of the wolf, milady." Flora pointed out. "Perhaps it's gone."
"Perhaps it's toying with us." Isobel suggested. "But my husband's up there, and if there's any chance he's still alive, then by God I'll assist him." Flora nodded, and she returned to work.
The study became filled with indistinctive chatter as they searched through every book.
"Look up biology or zoology. There might be something on wolves in there." Rose suggested.
"Maybe." Clara shrugged.
"This one talks about some form of explosive." Robert offered.
"Maybe…maybe not." The Doctor said as he hopped off the library ladder, placing a large tome on the table, the group moving to look over his shoulder. "Look what your old Dad found. Something fell to Earth."
"A spaceship?" Rose asked.
"Shooting star." Robert interjected as he read on. ""In the year of our Lord 1540, under the reign of King James V, an almighty fire did burn in the pit". That's the glen of St. Catherine, just by the monastery."
"But that's over three hundred years ago. What's it been waiting for?" Rose asked.
"It may not have been waiting." Clara offered.
"Quite possibly." The Doctor nodded. "Maybe just a single cell survived, adapting slowly down the generations, moving through host after host."
"But why does it want the throne?" Robert asked.
Rose blinked. "It said something about the…the Empire of the Wolf."
The Doctor's expression turned grim. "Imagine it. The Victorian Age accelerated. Star ships and missiles fuelled by coal and driven by steam…leaving history devastated in its wake."
"Sir Robert." Victoria perked up, drawing their attention. "If I am to die here…"
"Don't say that, your majesty-"
Victoria held up a hand to stop him. "I would destroy myself rather than let that creature infect me. But that's no matter. I ask only that you find some place of safekeeping for something far…older and more precious than myself."
"With respect, your majesty, this isn't the time to worry about your treasure." Clara inputted.
"I appreciate your concern, Miss Oswald, but there is nothing that is more of a treasure than this." Reaching a hand into her purse, she pulled out a diamond the size of her own hand, curved and round at the bottom that ascended into a fine point at the top, almost like a circular pyramid.
"Your majesty." Robert breathed as they looked at the diamond in awe.
"Is that the Koh-I-Noor?" Rose asked.
"Oh yes. The greatest diamond in the world." The Doctor informed.
"Given to me as the spoils of war." Victoria sighed. "Perhaps its legend is now coming true. It is said that whoever owns it must surely die."
The Doctor shrugged. "Well, that's true of anything if you wait long enough."
"May we?" Clara asked, holding out a hand. Victoria looked uncertain for a moment before she relented, letting it slip softly into Clara's grasp. Clara brought it up for the group to see properly, Rose reaching out a hand. "Careful." Clara said gently as Rose traced a soft finger over the diamond.
"That is so beautiful." The Doctor awed before he blinked. "Well, aside from…"
Clara smiled softly at him. "Thank you."
"How much is that worth?" Rose asked.
"They say the wages of the entire planet for a whole week." The Doctor informed, and they breathed out a bit.
"Good thing my Mum's not here. She'd be fighting off the wolf with her bare hands for that thing."
"And she'd win." Clara quipped, making them chuckle.
Robert blinked at that. "Where IS the wolf?" He moved to pace around the room, scrutinizing everything in sight. "I don't trust this silence."
"Why do you travel with it?" The Doctor asked.
"My annual pilgrimage." Victoria answered. "I'm taking it to Helier and Carew, the royal jewellers at Hazlehead. The stone needs re-cutting."
"Oh, but it's perfect." Clara awed.
Victoria smiled sadly. "My late husband never thought so."
"Now, there's a fact." The Doctor said as he pocketed his "Brainy Specs". "Prince Albert kept on having the Koh-I-Noor cut down. It used to be 40% bigger than this, but he was never happy. He kept on cutting and cutting."
"He always said that the shine was not quite right. But he died with it still unfinished." Clara gave her a soft smile before she flickered her gaze to the Doctor as he fell silent. His expression screamed the intention that his brain was working at a thousand miles an hour.
"Unfinished." He muttered.
Clara quickly gave the diamond back to Victoria. "Doctor? What is it?"
"Oh, there's a lot of unfinished business in this house. His father's research and your husband, ma'am, he came here to seek the perfect diamond." He rambled before running his hands over his face as he paced about the room. "Hold on."
"Doctor, what is it?" Clara asked again.
"All these separate things, but they're not separate at all, they're connected!" He ran his hands through his hair, ruffling it into an even bigger mess. "Oh, my head! I need a bigger head!"
"Please, don't." Clara said, with mental disgust at the image.
"Clara, this house, it's a trap for her majesty, obviously, but what if that's only what the wolf intended? What if there's a trap inside the trap?"
"A rigged trap?" Clara asked.
"Explain yourself, Doctor." Victoria demanded.
"What if his father and your husband weren't just telling each other stories but they dared to imagine that all this was true, and they planned against it, laying the real trap, not for you, but for the wolf!"
Clara's gazed flitted back to Victoria. "And the weapon is…the diamond? That's what the machine is for?"
"Oh yes." He nodded. Clara sneezed as dust fell from the ceiling. "Bless you…" He trailed off, everyone's eyes widening as they followed the dust and looked up. On the glass skylight ceiling above, they saw the wolf crawling onto it, every tap of its claws scratching against the surface. "Blimey." He gulped. The wolf pressed one of its hind legs against the glass, which began to crack under the weight of the wolf's strength. "Out! Out, out, out, out!" The Doctor exclaimed, and everyone tore the barricade from one of the doors and rushed out of the room, just as the glass crashed, sending the wolf tumbling into the room with them as the Doctor closed the door. "Get to the observatory!" The Doctor ordered, and they rushed down the hallway as the wolf burst the door apart, growling as it chased after them. Rushing around the corner, they saw Isobel running up with a large cauldron of steaming mistletoe. The Doctor clicked his neck. "Get down!" He yelled, and Isobel tossed the contents of the pot onto the wolf as it neared, which howled and whimpered in pain, turning heel, and fleeing down the hallway.
"Good shot!" Clara complimented.
"Isobel!" Robert quickly embraced his wife in a hug and a desperate kiss. "Thank you, but you must get back downstairs." He said as they parted.
"Please, keep yourself safe." She pleaded. He nodded, and they gave each other one last kiss before Isobel took the maids hands. "Down the back stairs, back to the kitchens, quickly." They raced from the room as the Doctor patted Robert's shoulder to get his attention again.
"Come on."
Robert blinked, rushing into action. "The observatory's this way." They followed after him, moving back into the stairwell and racing upwards. Reaching the top, they raced down the hallway towards the observatory.
The Doctor quickly observed the doors as they entered the room. "No mistletoe on these doors cause your father wanted the wolf to get inside. But I just need time, is there anything in here that can barricade it?"
Robert contemplated for a moment before Clara interrupted. "Don't you dare." She warned. "Don't you dare do what I think you're thinking."
"But you need time, don't you?" Robert asked.
Clara clenched her jaw. "There is a better way." She said simply.
Robert glanced around the room and he pointed to a nearby table. "Use that." He grabbed a sword from a display plaque and entered the room. "But be quick." He said as he closed and locked the door.
"Good man." The Doctor said as he and Robert rushed over to pull the table to the door.
Clara held out a hand to Victoria. "Your majesty, the diamond."
"For what purpose?" She asked.
"You can already guess." Clara said simply, and Victoria handed it over. "Rose, help me out. Be quick, Doctor!" Clara and Rose hurried to the wheel and began to heave it counter clockwise. "Come on."
The Doctor and Robert finished barricading the door, so the Doctor ran over to Clara and Rose to help them while Robert motioned Victoria back. "Keep behind me and away from the door, ma'am."
"Is this the right time for stargazing?" Rose asked dryly as they heaved.
"Yes, it is. Argh!" The Doctor said with a strained voice. The door began to crack and splinter as the wolf crashed into it, growling in irritation as it kept trying.
"I thought you said this thing doesn't work." Rose reminded.
"It doesn't work as a telescope because that's not what it is. It's a light chamber, magnifying light like a weapon. We've just got to power it up."
"With what? There's no electricity!"
"Come on, Rose, keep up." Clara retorted.
Rose blinked a few times. "Moonlight." She muttered. "But the wolf needs moonlight. It's made by moonlight."
"You're 70% water but you can still drown, now come on!" The Doctor demanded. The machine kept on raising up, slowly, inch by inch until the wheel shuddered with a halt. The machine began to hum, glowing light blue. At that, the door crashed down, the table bursting apart as the wolf entered the room, standing still and glaring down at Robert and Victoria.
"I've committed treason for you…but no longer." Robert held the sword up. The wolf roared as it readied to pounce, while the light chamber shot a beam onto the floor. Clara quickly tossed the diamond into the beam, reflecting onto the wolf just as it pounced onto Robert and Victoria, sending it flying up in the air and sprawled onto the wall of the room. The wolf slowly melted away, reverting back into the man it had once been.
"Make it brighter. Let me go." The man pleaded. The Doctor gazed at him sadly before he moved over to the machine and grasped a dial, turning it slowly to amplify the light, causing the man to disappear, the only trace left behind being his final howl of contempt before they turned off the machine, the light disappearing, leaving nothing behind.
"Everyone all right?" The Doctor asked as Clara moved to pick the diamond up again.
"Yeah." Rose nodded.
"Fine." Robert said as he put the sword down.
"All good. Don't worry about me." Clara said dryly, making them smirk. Victoria didn't answer as she inspected a small scratch on her wrist. "Your majesty?" Clara called. "Did it bite you?"
Victoria shook her head. "No, its…it's a cut, that's all."
The Doctor walked over as well. "If that thing bit you…"
"It was a splinter of wood when the door came apart, it's nothing."
"Let us see?" The Doctor held out his hand, but Victoria withdrew hers before he could touch.
"It is nothing." She repeated.
"Your majesty, please." Clara pleaded.
"It is nothing." Victoria repeated. They sighed but backed down regardless, Clara outstretching her hand to give back the Koh-I-Noor. Victoria took it gratefully, and Clara saw, just for a second, a small scratch on her wrist.
"Where've they gone?" Robert said, looking out the window, finding rifles and guns on the grounds outside but no sign of the acolytes.
"What does anyone do when the object of their worship gets disintegrated?" The Doctor asked. "They get scared and scarper away, never to be seen again."
Robert gulped, turning to look at Clara. "Why did you…"
"Robert, sir, there's a difference between being brave and being reckless." She said simply. "My advice: Don't get reckless when you still have a life waiting for you."
"You two don't seem to listen to your own advice." He pointed out. The Doctor and Clara grew sad at that, so they just reached for each other's hand to comfort themselves in the awkward silence.
The Next Day
The Doctor, Clara and Rose knelt before Queen Victoria nervously, watched closely by the maids, the awoken soldiers along with Robert, who was being held very close by Isobel.
Victoria brandished out a sword, moving first to the Doctor. "By the power invested in me by the church and the state, I dub thee "Sir Doctor of TARDIS"." She turned to Clara. "By the power invested in me by the church and the state, I dub thee "Dame Clara of TARDIS"." Then, she turned to Rose. "By the power invested in me by the church and the state, I dub thee "Dame Rose of the Powell Estate". You may stand."
They stood, bearing beaming grins on their faces. "Many thanks, ma'am." The Doctor said.
"Thanks." Rose echoed. "They're never going to believe this back home."
"Your majesty." Clara started. "You said last night about receiving no message from the great beyond. I think your husband cut that diamond to save your life. He's protecting you even now, ma'am, from beyond the grave."
"Indeed, and I take solace in your knowledge, my dear." Then, her gaze turned into steel. "Then you may think on this also, that I am not amused."
"Yes!" Rose squealed, Clara rolling her eyes while the Doctor whined.
"I have to pay five extra quid now."
"Not remotely amused." Victoria repeated, and their expressions turned sheepish. "And henceforth…I banish you."
They blinked. "I'm sorry?" The Doctor asked.
"I have rewarded you Sir Doctor, and now you are exiled from this Empire. If it wasn't for Clara's words, or for her saving Sir Robert's life, I would've banished you permanently, but I will be lenient and only make it temporarily." She shook her head. "I don't know what the three of you are or where you're from, but I know that you consort with stars and magic and think it fun. But your world is steeped in terror and blasphemy and death, and I will not allow it! Even your words and attitude is not of this time. You will leave these shores for over one hundred years and I hope that the time given will help you reflect on how you came to stray so far from all that is good and how much longer you may survive this terrible life. Now, leave my world, and until your sentence has passed, you must never return." She said sternly. They nodded and left the room in haste, moving through the hallways and exiting the house at the front door, stopping to gaze at each other.
"Well then, Sir Doctor." Clara said, holding out an arm.
The Doctor took it gladly. "Dame Clara." They turned to look at Rose. "Dame Rose." They said in unison.
"Blimey, that's a bit creepy, Sir Doctor and Dame Clara." Rose said, taking Clara's other arm. Then, they burst into childish laughter, running away from the house and towards the awaiting carriage.
"Whoa! Whoa!" The carriage driver called to the horse as it came to a halt, only a small walk away from the TARDIS, still standing silent just where they left it.
"Cheers, Dougal!" The Doctor called.
"Thanks for the ride!" Clara called.
The driver waved back before he turned his attention to the path in front of him. "Walk on." He said, and the horse drew the carriage away.
"You see, the funny thing is, Queen Victoria actually did suffer a mutation of the blood." The Doctor informed as he took Clara's hand again. "It's historical record, she was haemophiliac. They used to call it "The Royal Disease". But it's always been a mystery because she didn't inherit it. Her Mum didn't have it, nor did her Dad, it just came from nowhere."
"What, and you're saying that's a wolf's bite?" Rose asked.
"Well, maybe haemophilia is just a Victorian euphemism."
"For werewolf?'
"Could be."
"Queen Victoria's a werewolf?" Clara asked.
"Maybe. And remember, her children had the royal disease. Maybe she gave them a quick nip."
"She couldn't be." Clara shook her head. "It wasn't anything more than a scratch."
"True. They may not be werewolves yet. From that scratch, she may have only gotten a single cell, which could take about…oh, a hundred years to mature? Could be ready by early 21st Century if the timing's right."
"Nah, that's just ridiculous." Rose denied. "Mind you…" She blinked as she stared distantly. "Princess Anne…"
"I'll say no more."
"Oh, if you think about it…" Clara inputted. "They're very private. They plan everything in advance. They could schedule themselves around the moon, we'd never know."
The Doctor pulled out his key to unlock the TARDIS as Rose continued from Clara. "And, they like hunting. They LOVE blood sports." That made the Doctor laugh as they entered the TARDIS. "Oh my god, they're werewolves!" They howled playfully as the TARDIS dematerialised from Scotland.
"Now then, Rose, I believe you wanted to see a concert." The Doctor reminded as he paced about the TARDIS. "How about ABBA?"
"Really?" Rose asked.
"Yeah. Have a fun time, because…" He moved closer to whisper, "I've got something to give to Clara."
Rose cocked an eyebrow as Clara didn't hear. "You're giving her a-"
"Yep."
"Then I'll accept the offer." Rose said with a grin.
Victoria exited the house with Robert and Isobel, standing outside and greeting the cold embrace of night and the full moon once again.
"What will you do, ma'am? Will you return home again?"
"I think I might. I have a kingdom to guide after all." Victoria glanced back at the house, spotting the name on the large stone plaque above the front door, "The Torchwood Estate". She contemplated for a moment, before leaning in. "Although we may not speak of these events in public, they will not be forgotten, I promise you that. The bravery you both possessed in fighting the wolf…" She glanced at Robert, "The ingenuity of your father, they will live on."
"I thought you wanted nothing more to do with their world." Robert reminded.
"I saw in the Doctor and Clara, two people who could be great beacons of hope, but they are held back by childish excitement. If that was to be let go, well…" She trailed off, deciding a different approach. "I saw last night that Great Britain has enemies beyond imagination, and we must defend our borders on all sides. I propose…an institute. To investigate these strange happenings and to fight them." She glanced back at the plaque and smiled. "I would call it "Torchwood". "The Torchwood Institute", and if the Doctor or Clara would ever return, and I doubt that they won't, then they must let go of their childish nature and beware, because Torchwood will be waiting."
AN: Oh yes, they will be waiting. Besides, Clara's getting…well…you know what it is. ;) As always, thank you for reading and leave a review if you wish. :)