The next day, Clara and Ashildr found themselves on the pursuit to find an address written on a small piece of paper. Earlier that day, an unexpected guest in the form of a boy interrupted their breakfast and gave them the aforementioned note with an instruction to meet the Doctor there at noon. Since they arrived recently, their knowledge of the spatial organisation of the town was rather poor. To make things even worse, not one passerby asked was able to give them any proper directions.
Luckily, a person advised them to ask Charlotte, the oldest inhabitant of the town. The name the elder provided with didn't ring a bell at first, but after a moment, it brought back a memory of a mystery farmhouse her dad always advised her to avoid during their picnics when she was a child. The farm was supposed to be located about one mile south of the wood where their TARDIS was parked. However, just as her father told her, Charlotte forewarned the women about the bad fame the place had. According to local legends, the family who lived on the farm abandoned it one night and was never seen again. Other stories she told them claimed that the country house and surrounding grounds were haunted by an apparition of black horse which was supposed to leave a burned marks on the grass with its fiery horseshoes. Clara didn't believe in any dark forces, but her travels with the Doctor taught her that the world is full of things human will never understand.
The way to the farm turned out to be not the easiest one. They got lost twice and reached their destination horribly late. The house looked better than Clara was expecting it to. The entire frontal elevation was covered with a purple wisteria. The windows and doors seemed to be in a relatively good condition taking into the account that the building wasn't occupied by anyone.
Ashildr loudly knocked on the main doors and they both went inside. The doors led to a kitchen which surprisingly seemed to be fully operational. They spotted the Doctor sitting by a huge wooden kitchen island and drinking his coffee. Clara looked around, quite impressed and surprised by the interior of the house. Rows of light wooden cupboards and shelves were decorating every wall. Other equipment included a cooker, a chalk coal burner, a massive stone sink by the window and large amount of different copper pots hanging from the ceiling.
"You're late," he told them and took another sip of the hot fluid.
"Well, the address you chose turned out to be a needle in a haystack." Clara answered him, annoyed by his accusations.
"Don't worry – it'll be easier to find next time."
"Next time?" she asked.
"Yes, next time. We need to stay here for a little bit longer if we want to capture them. And since your thoughts are what attracts them, we need to make sure they'll sense them. Other places are too crowded. Too much noise and too many brains similar to yours." He kept explaining while investigating the surroundings "Besides this one belongs to the UNIT, so full privacy is included."
"Who's saying anything about capturing them?" Ashildr asked him, already irritated by his plan.
"That's because they cannot be defeated. Damage only triggers drainage of energy from available sources. One cannot survive if wounds make his opponents only stronger. On Gallifrey, we used to close them in containers made from Bodreutrium. A metal from Tesmil, the planetoid where they first found on. But since the only boxes are on Gallifrey, we have to improvise."
"How so?" Clara kept asking him.
"My suggestion is to bring them here and slightly break. Being a time traveller at the end of time has one significant flaw. You can't say how much time passed. So if we're lucky, they are never going to find out that their pets were destroyed and send new ones."
"How?"
"I'll prepare a dynamic particle buffer."
"And how is that supposed to help us?" Clara asked, visibly confused with his technobabble.
"DPB is a potent source of energy, an infinite one if one knows how to prepare it correctly. More importantly, it forces uncontrolled migration of particles when an object with a lower energy level is in close distance. If they'll come closer to the source of DPB they'll burn."
"And how do you want to make them come closer?"
"Physical contact isn't that important as long as the distance is less than 5 miles."
"Thank you." The Doctor said with a smile on his face, "Now with everyone is on the same page, can we please discuss the details?"
"Yes," Clara told him. "Is there another way to get rid of them that doesn't involve putting the entire planet in danger?"
"The risk of destruction is minimal that way," the Doctor continued. "Besides, they're already here, so you risk more leaving things how they are."
"But why are you so sure they will come here if they sensed me elsewhere?"
"They don't think – they respond to the changes in the structure of time and space. Basically, they are always were the signal is stronger, and your brainwaves have higher priority than anything else. Besides, they won't do any harm here since the message they received from my people is to destroy once you left. As long as you're here in 1984, the Earth is safe."
"…I don't have any more questions. Ashildr?"
"It seems to be the most reasonable solution if you ask me," Ashildr told her. "But are you ready to live in the same house for some time?"
"I'll take the attic and not leave it without your permission." The Doctor stated with a smile on his face.
"Why would you like to live in the attic?" Clara asked, bewildered. "And no, I don't mind being under the same roof with you. As long as we stick to the rules, everything should be fine."
"It will be fine." Ashildr reminded her. "I like the idea with the attic."
"It's set, then." He put the hand in his pocket and brought out a pair of keys. "Here. They are yours to keep." He handed the keys to Ashildr, who was standing closer to him. "I have some business to take care of in the TARDIS first. Take your time and bring everything you need from yours. Unfortunately, we cannot leave any of the ships nearby, since they would derange the signal. It'll be…domestic for the next few days."
Clara had to admit that she fell in love with the house and the farm instantly. It was hard to believe that people from the town had no idea about the existence of this place. The property was huge. It included the country house with five bedrooms, all en-suite with fantastic views for the bay. A swimming pool with Jacuzzi and sauna, and a piece of beautiful forest before the house. There was also a wooden horse-barn, but unfortunately without any animals inside.
After few hours of dragging her belongings thorough the forest, Clara finally went upstairs to the room that was supposed to be hers for some time. The bedroom wasn't big, but was definitely cosy. The walls were hidden behind flowery pastel wallpaper. The majority of space was taken by a huge bed covered with plenty of crème and white pillows. White wooden wardrobe and matching desk were squashed in the corners of the room. She laid her luggage on the bed and opened it to retrieve some of her personal belongings. There wasn't much in it. Some fresh clothing and underwear, a wash bag and her favourite books. That's when she realised that she left her diary in the TARDIS.
The first thing Ashildr warned her after she became technically immortal was the loss of memory that likely will affect also Clara. Ever since, she had tried to write down as much as she could remember both from her present and previous life. Since the diary contained some details about which she would never want the Doctor to find about, she was particularly careful about location of it these days. The chances he would find it were minimal as he didn't have an access to their TARDIS, but she still felt better knowing that it was hidden in a safe place.
She went downstairs and started to look for Ashildr, hopeful that the woman would agree for another trip to their TARDIS tonight. Nonetheless, her companion was nowhere to be found. Instead, she found the Doctor sitting in an armchair on the porch reading a book.
"Hi." She greeted him politely. "Have you seen Ashildr?"
"Oh, yes. The short one went to bed."
Her nervous movements made it easy to guess that there was something bothering her.
"Is everything alright?" he asked her.
"Yes, everything is perfect. Well, there is one thing, but it's really stupid." She told him, almost whispering.
"You can keep it to yourself, then." He continued reading.
"I forgot something very important from my TARDIS. And I don't want to go alone."
"Can't Ashildr go with you?"
"She's asleep."
"That sleepy business is really annoying, isn't it?"
"It is." Clara paused. When the Doctor wouldn't look up from his book, Clara let her hands swing awkwardly at her sides. "Anyways, it can wait till tomorrow." She slowly started to head back to the house when she heard him calling her name.
"Clara. If it is important to you, we can go there now. I've spent almost entire day reading this book. A little walk would do me good."
