(This chapter is dedicated to everyone who read and supported this fanfiction. This is all for you guys, from, Jamie)
Chapter Seven
But Kitty's reaction was not at all what Clara expected. "We need to get you home. Zack, let's do this." She backed up a considerable amount until the TARDIS slightly calmed down. "You have to jump," she yelled over the noise of the rocking. The Doctor and Clara turned to one another, nodded, and began to walk closer to the box. The Doctor tossed Zack his sonic screwdriver, and waited for them to open the time vortex. "Now, Zack, buddy, wait until the moisture index is exactly 30, you got it? Then wait 5.6 seconds for the sonic to correctly adjust, and then click the little button on the side." "Okey, dokey, British guy."
Zack raised the sonic into the air, with his hands shaking, then pressed the button. A shaking, not from the TARDIS but from the sky, erupted. A thin crack became visible, and the Doctor and Clara began to run into the TARDIS. "Come on, come on, come on," he muttered as he tried shoving the key into the lock. Turn, nothing. Turn, nothing. "OH, COME ON GIRL, HELP US OUT!" The TARDIS doors burst open, letting the Doctor and Clara bustle in. Zack and Kitty cheered on the ground as the TARDIS began to slowly fade. The vortex was feeding it energy.
Clara watched from the still open doors as something terrible happened. Kitty slowly started fading, leaving pulses of light scattering around. She slowly reached out her hand to the Doctor, who could see the fear in her eyes. He could see it, and couldn't do anything about it. He watched as she washed away, mutely shouting for her rescue that couldn't be. "When a paradox is too big, the universe takes care of it," Clara kept repeating in her mind. Kitty was gone.
The TARDIS landed but everything was silent. The Doctor dropped to his knees, with tears trickling down his cheeks and falling onto the floor. "And I lost another one," he quietly said, holding back the sobs that he knew would scare Clara. "She wasn't real," Clara whispered back. "Oh, but she was. And she would still be here if it wasn't for me."
Clara sighed sadly, letting her grief flow into the air. "But, you were her life, this was always meant to happen, Doctor. And also, look at all those people. They all love you, and us, even your stupid old cow of a box! Every Saturday there are families that huddle around their tellys and watch you and your story all throughout time and space! And Doctor, I believe that every one of them would risk their lives to travel with you…because you're so wonderful."
The Doctor stood up slowly, his wobbling legs nearly caving underneath him. He took Clara's face gently in his hand and gently brushed her cheek with his thumb. And he kissed her.
A kiss of hurt and loss. A kiss of sorrow and grief. A kiss of happiness and memories.
A kiss of love.