Thank you for the lovely reviews :) And please don't panic if I miss a day because of the 6 tests that were/are due this week.

Chapter 12

"Uhhhh, I'm shaking with terror," the Doctor muttered without enthusiasm as they passed a row of heads on a spike.

Clara giggled next to him. "They have to keep that part suitable for children, you know?"

If she was completely honest, the Doctor did have a point. The main halls of the London Dungeon were hardly frightening, but for tonight's show they had planned a few additions to their usual repertoire and upon entering, the Doctor and Clara were cautioned that children, sensitive people, pregnant women, epileptics and anyone suffering from a heart disease were advised not to attend the show, so she guessed that the frightening part was yet to come.

"You're not bored, are you?" Clara asked him as they walked along the dark corridor where a model of 17th century London was going up in flames next to them. She didn't want the Doctor to be bored. She wanted him to enjoy this evening with her.

"Bored?" he chuckled, smiling down at her in the darkness, "I couldn't be bored in your company if I tried."

Clara almost stopped dead in her tracks when he said that, but the crowd behind her kept her moving. Still Clara didn't know what to respond. If she hadn't known better, she would have thought he was flirting with her.

Then her mind was taken off the matter when they had reached the end of the corridor and a guide was waiting for them there. He gave a speech about the labyrinth they were about to enter, about the creatures that would try to hunt them down on their way through and warned them once more that this was their last chance to turn around if any of them had a change of mind.

"Last chance to leave," the Doctor muttered next to her.

Clara giggled in response. "I'm not scared."

"I wasn't talking about you," he said and threw her a glance, smiling lightly.

"Don't worry," Clara reassured him jokingly, still giggling while she reached for his arm, "I will keep you safe."

"I'm counting on that."

The doors to the labyrinth opened and Clara tightened her grip around the Doctor's arm in anticipation. She had never taken part in anything like this before and she had no idea just what exactly to expect, and it was the uncertainty that made her a little wary of what was to come.

They were asked to step inside in groups of two or three and Clara and the Doctor entered the labyrinth a few minutes later. Clara could hardly see a thing in there and the sounds she heard were eerie, yet not enough to actually frighten someone.

"Are you okay?" the Doctor asked her, chuckling a little.

"Absolutely," she replied but a second later Clara gasped in surprise and her heart started beating a little bit faster when she thought she had almost run into someone else.

A scream could be heard from one of the other groups further ahead and Clara stopped in her tracks until she realized that the person she had almost run into was nothing but her own reflection in a large mirror.

"Oh my God," she muttered under her breath, sighing in relief.

The Doctor laughed next to her. "Don't exaggerate. You don't look half as scary as you just made it seem."

"Ha-ha," she mocked him, "Let's see how you react when you suddenly bump into a mirror."

But the Doctor didn't respond. Instead he spun around on the spot and looked further into the darkness.

"What is it?" she asked and instinctively stepped a little closer to him. He had spotted something, Clara was sure of it. It was as if she could feel it lurking there somewhere.

"Not sure," he said hesitantly, his voice quiet.

Clara didn't dare to move and yet the uncomfortable feeling grew the longer they remained in the spot. She felt watched, despite, or especially because of the darkness. Anything could be hiding here. Then she felt it. It started with a soft rustling sound, then a prickling on the back of her neck as her hairs stood up. When she could feel the breath on the skin of her neck Clara shrieked, grabbed the Doctor by the arm and started running. The person dressed as a monster didn't follow, she was sure of that, and yet she still dragged the Doctor behind one of the mirrors where they were hidden away from sight.

"What was that?" the Doctor asked she instantly.

"Shhh!" Clara shushed him, her voice dropping to a whisper, "There was something behind us."

He laughed next to her. "You are terrified."

"No," she retorted, a hurt tone to her voice, "Just. . . startled. This is a horror cabinet. So I'm allowed to be startled. Encouraged even."

Again the Doctor chuckled and Clara felt him close his hand around her own in the darkness. She rolled her eyes at the gesture. "Doctor, I maybe be a tiny but terrified, but I'm still a grown up. There's no need to actually hold my hand."

"Clara," the Doctor replied cautiously and a moment later she watched him raised two hands in the air. Even with the little light they had she could see them clearly. "I'm not holding your hand."

"Boo!"

Both the Doctor and Clara screamed when the monster stepped out from the shadows behind them and they started to run. They passed a graveyard filled with moving angel statues, they ran along the shaking corridors of a sinking submarine where steam was blown into their faces from all possible angles, they hurried along a haunted house filled with ghosts and other illusions and they didn't stop until they had reached the exit. Panting and wheezing they finally came to a halt.

"Well, that was a short night of horrors," the Doctor commented, gasping for air.

Clara raised her hand, pointing back at the labyrinth. "You can go back if you like."

"Uhm, he paused, staring down the path they had come from, "No, I'm good."

Once they were back outside, Clara once more became aware of the freezing cold October air and she wrapped her coat around her body for protection. The Doctor had parked his car not too far away, but it would still take them a couple of minutes before they had reached it. Then, when they had been walking in silence for a while, Clara couldn't hold back the laughter.

"You were scared, admit it," she laughed at him.

"I was startled," he replied, but after a moment the Doctor started laughing as well, "It was fun though. Didn't know I could run that fast."

"Yeah, it was fun," Clara agreed with a smile, but her mood vanished when she realized that her evening with the Doctor was about to come to an end. Unless she thought of something else. "Hey, I haven an idea."

The Doctor turned around, arching an eyebrow at her.

"It's not even midnight and I'm not really tired yet. Would you-," she hesitated, "Would you like come back to my place and watch a horror movie or something? Just so we can get startled a little more."

She had half expected the Doctor to turn down her offer, but to Clara's surprise he smiled at her. "Yeah," he replied, "That sounds like a great idea."