"…okay, now you would go over there…" Clara was directing.
The group of people stood in the church, going through the motions of the wedding as they practiced for the day after tomorrow. Those present included Angie and Artie Maitland (their father was away on business this week), and the Paternoster Gang. Vastra and Jenny sat quietly and respectfully, watching the proceedings patiently, while Strax slumped grumpily in his seat, acting like he didn't want to be there in the slightest.
Angie had made a comment about the Master, questioning what had happened to the Doctor being her boyfriend, to which she received a withering glare from the apparently "new" boyfriend, who had now established that he didn't like these children at all.
The Master had sat through the boring proceedings, and was now hoping it would be over soon so that maybe he would have an excuse to just kiss her.
Everyone present jumped as the doors slammed open, and someone yelled: "Stop!"
The Doctor ran in, panting and sweaty, having run the entire way. He had forgotten to just take his TARDIS in his moment of panic.
"There's her old boyfriend." Angie smirked. The Master shot her a glare.
"Doctor!" Clara smiled cheerily at him. "You decided to come after all! I trust you finished your machine, finally?"
"I…" He paused, attempting to regain his breath before speaking. He looked like an absolute mess, with his burnt clothes and ash-smeared face, the greasy goggles still hanging about his neck. "I… Did fix the machine… And it worked!" He held up the jacket that belonged to the Master. "This tested positive for Zygon molecules! You…" He pointed at the Master. "…are a Zygon!"
"Oh no." The Woman murmured, covering her eyes in despair.
"What's a Zygon?" Artie asked innocently.
"There are Zygons in London?" Vastra asked, looking from the Doctor to the others in confusion. "We never knew of this!"
"I was hoping to keep it that way." River sighed. "It's not a huge deal."
"Is that the entire reason you ran down here?" Clara eyed him in dismay.
"Yes! Er… no."
"I am not a Zygon!" The Master hissed.
He shook the jacket at him. "Then why did the machine tell me that this jacket was covered in Zygon molecules?"
"We were fighting Zygons the other day!"
"And what about the flash I saw the other day?" He looked at Clara, who now wore an expression of steadily-growing annoyance. "I saw him change into a Zygon, just for a moment!"
"Why do you trust some broken machine?"
"It's not broken! I fixed it!" He walked up to the Master, bringing his face close to his. "I know you're not really who you say you are. Somewhere out there is the real Master, and you are most certainly not him."
"Doctor!" Clara shouted.
He turned to face her, an intense look burning in his eyes. "This is not the Master, Clara! This is a Zygon duplicate, I'm sure of it!" He stabbed an accusatory finger in his direction. "You cannot marry him!"
She stared at him in utter outrage and shock, refusing to believe her friends' convoluted words about her fiancée. "How dare you say that! Why are you so opposed to us marrying? You said that you were okay with it a long time ago!"
"I never was completely okay with it!" He yelled in a sudden outburst. "I never was completely sure about him and you, and I always had a little bit of doubt, but now I'm sure you shouldn't marry, because that is most certainly not the Master!"
Clara looked like she was getting ready to cry. "Well, if you don't want us to get married, then maybe you just shouldn't come to the wedding at all!"
He turned to look at her, a shocked expression briefly passing over his face before turning into a mask of cold anger. "Fine. See if I care." With that, he spun on his heel and marched out of the church, missing the malevolent expression that passed briefly over the Master's face.
Clara was a mess.
She had lain in her bedroom for literally hours on end, crying her eyes out. She knew that she really shouldn't care about what the Doctor thought about her marriage, but it still broke her heart to know that he harbored so much doubt against the man she loved.
A knock on the door interrupted her flow of tears.
"Can we come in?" River's voice came from the other side of the door.
"No." She sniffed, throwing the covers over her tangled hair.
"Well, we're coming in anyway, whether you want us to or not." The lock clicked as if a sonic device had opened it, and two people entered.
"Clara…" River's wheedling voice called. "Come on now. Get out from under there."
"No." was the muffled reply.
The covers were peeled back anyway. "Sit up."
She raised herself up on one arm, brushing the loose, wet strands away from her tear-stained face, blinking in the sudden light that greeted her. "What do you want?"
The Woman and River stood next to her bed. "We've come to talk."
"I don't want to." Clara said, swinging her legs over the edge of the bed.
"Too bad." River plopped herself down on her left, and the Woman on the right.
"My son… isn't too good at saying things." The Woman started. "He may think that Koschei is a Zygon, and he might be right for all I know, but we must give Koschei the benefit of the doubt. He looked pretty shaken up by the ordeal as well.
Clara managed a bitter chuckle. "Got that right."
"And, he could've told us in some other way. Bursting into the middle of your wedding rehearsal was not at all the right way to do that. He was wrong with that." River said.
Clara sighed. "He just gets excited."
The blond shook her head. "He does. Far too often, I might add."
"He was doubting all the time?" Clara sniffed, fresh tears springing to her eyes at the thoughts. "He didn't want us to be together the entire time?"
"It's not that." The Woman said. "He just had a little doubt about Koschei, considering his past actions. He was afraid that he wouldn't treat you right, that's all, but this whole Zygon business has either turned him really paranoid, or…" She trailed off.
"It's just him worrying like usual." River said. "I bet he didn't mean all those things he said."
"I hope not." Clara said. "I still don't think I can bring myself to talk to him though. All those things he said about the Master and I really hurt me."
The Woman shook her head. "He's been in the TARDIS for a long time."
The Doctor stared down at the console. He was mad. Mad at himself, and the Zygons. He had argued with his TARDIS for hours on end with no outcome. She, being the female, had taken Clara's side instantly, and had fussed at him frostily.
He shook his head, slamming his fist on the console in a burst of anger. He wasn't sure who to trust! The Master could be a Zygon, or not. He could be wrong about the entire thing and look like an idiot to everybody. Anyone could be a Zygon for all he knew. It was all too dangerous! He had to get that machine up and fully functioning soon, before something really bad happened.
The door creaked open behind him. Without turning around, he could tell it was the Master. He waited until his footsteps grew closer to speak.
"I'm sorry."
He turned to face his fellow Time Lord, hoping to apologize for his actions.
"You will be!" The Master snarled, his face flickering to briefly to the red flesh of the Zygons, yellowed fangs bared in an evil hiss. The Doctor started to cry for help, but a slimy hand closed around his throat, cutting odd his air. He flailed desperately, trying to find something to prevent this assault, but to no avail.
The last thing he saw before fading into blackness was the Zygon hybrid that was the Master grinning down at him.